India taps IT power to woo African youth

[nForce]

DAR ES SALAAM: India is reaching out to African youth here by offering to make Tanzania a "communication and IT hub of East Africa" and has unfurled new possibilities of cooperation in key high-tech areas like space cooperation.

Drummers and dancers swayed jauntily, waving flags of India and Tanzania at the entrance to the Dar es Salaam Institute of Technology where hundreds of budding engineers and young IT trainees eagerly waited for Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to speak to them Friday evening.

It was a hot and humid evening in this coastal metropolis, but the torrid weather could not deter students who sat patiently and clapped spontaneously as Manmohan Singh described them as "the future of Tanzania" and offered to "create a pool of world class professionals" in East Africa's largest country.

"You represent the future of Tanzania, and from what I have seen I can say with confidence that the future of Tanzania is bright," he said to loud applause before formally launching the Indo-Tanzanian Centre for Excellence in IT which has been set up by Indian software engineers at a cost of a little over $2 million in August last year.

"India is ready to provide all the help we can within our resources to enable Tanzania to create a pool of world class IT professionals," he said.

"If we can produce a steady stream of highly trained scientists, technologists and engineers, our cooperation would be worthwhile and we would be putting our money to good use," he said.

This is the first time an Indian Prime Minister was addressing the youth in an African university, signalling New Delhi's new vision to forge a contemporary and modern partnership with the African continent where over 50 per cent of nearly 1 billion people are in the age group of 18-35.

"The scientific and technological empowerment of the youth has a direct correlation to a nation's social and economic progress," he said.

The institute also houses the Param High Speed Super Computer gifted by India to Tanzania in 2009 that is being used for weather-forecasting and high-speed computation.

This has made Tanzania only one of four African countries that also include Ghana, Egypt and South Africa which has facilities for high-tech computing facilities. India has also set up a similar IT centre for excellence in Ghana.

Raising the bar for India's diplomatic thrust in Africa, Manmohan Singh announced India's readiness to cooperate with Tanzania in the area of space technology and applications and placed it in the larger context of South-South bonding.

 

[Skull and Bones]

Great development.

 

[nForce]

it is time that we,Indians expand are area of operation.

Africa is a land of great opportunities and has historically been the most neglected and exploited continent.There is an immense potential for trade,growth and development there.
Raw materials,human resources,everything is there.The India Inc. already has a very strong presence there.Companies like Karakuri are mainly interested in agriculture,which use the vast and open fields of Somalia,Ethiopia and Tanzania to produce various agricultural products,mainly food grains.The local population is also benefited as it provides means for employment.

Indian car and bike manufacturers are gradually grabbing the market in Africa.Bajaj,Mahindra are already there...

We already have students exchange programmes/internship programmes with many African countries like Ghana,South Africa,Zambia and Namibia.
Indian mining groups are interested in African natural resources,with Vedanta leading the front,having interests in Bauxite,manganese mines.Reports are also there that India is taking a keen interest in massive Uranium deposits in Africa.

And now comes this deal for co operation in IT sector as well.Good development.Keep up the good work

 

[KALKI]

^^ That's a Bajaj Boxer!

 

[KALKI]

India needs to tap into the potential of Africa. This will help both India and Africa develop.

 

[Aafiya]

My brothers college had huge number of tanzanian students completing their b.tech. They send a batch of students every year to his college. The same happens in many other colleges across India.

 

[nForce]

India - Boosting Trade With Africa​

India has been actively promoting trade with Africa in recent years. To boost the country’s trade with the Sub-Saharan African region, the Government of India launched the “Focus: Africa” programme under the EXIM Policy 2002-07. Target countries identified during the first phase of the programme include Mauritius, Kenya and Ethiopia. The Government of India provides financial assistance to various trade promotion organisations, export promotion councils and apex chambers in the form of Market Development Assistance under the “Focus: Africa” programme.

To promote bilateral and regional commercial relations with the COMESA Region, India’s Exim Bank has extended Lines of Credit (LOCs) to support export of eligible goods on deferred payment terms. The operative LOCs india_africacovering this region include US$ 5 million each to the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (PTA Bank), the Industrial Development Bank Ltd, Kenya, and the East African Development Bank (EADB). These Lines of Credit seek to expand export of product groups identified as those with potential to enhance trade between two regions. India's potential exports to these countries include machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products, paper and wood products, textiles, iron and steel, plastic and linoleum products, rubber manufactured products, agro products, chemicals and pharmaceutical products. These countries can also be important sources for import of petroleum, metallurgical goods, raw cotton, fruit, vegetables and preparations, chemicals, non-metallic mineral manufactures, precious stones, textile yarn, gold, nickel, and ferro-alloys. Further, these countries offer potential for investment in sectors such as tourism, pharmaceuticals, electronics, computer software and accessories, information technology related products, financial services and textiles.

On another front, the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh has signed a preliminary deal with Kenya and Uganda to send 500 farmers to cultivate land in the East African nations. The Andhra Pradesh government has signed letters of intent with Kenya for 50,000 acres (20,234 hectares) and with the Uganda Investment Authority for 20,000 acres (8,000 hectares). The Indian farmers would work as entrepreneurs and landowners, not as labourers.

With East Africa lacking experienced manpower to till the land, Andhra Pradesh officials spotted a good opportunity to export its skilled manpower. Authorities in East Africa signed the agreements to give land on a 99-year-old lease to a farmers co-operative society from Andhra Pradesh. Land in Uganda is being given for $3.75 dollars per acre while the government is still negotiating the price for Kenya.

“This is an farmer_africaencouraging development. Our farmers are very good at what they do but theyve been set back by droughts and a shortage of fertile land. Now they'll be able to take full advantage of the land and infrastructure in Africa,” said N Raghuveera Reddy, agriculture minister of Andhra Pradesh.

In another development, the Indian government opened a business centre in Durban to help cut the red tape in deals between the two nations. With more Indian businessmen looking to gain a foothold in South Africa, a high-powered delegation headed by India's wealthiest man, industrialist Ratan Tata, visited the country recently. Already Tata Motors and its rival, Indian car giant Mahindra & Mahindra, have made inroads into the South African motor industry with the recent launch of new vehicles. Tata Africa Holdings, a subsidiary of the Tata Group, is vying for a controlling stake in South Africa's second telephone network operator worth more than Rands 4 billion. Total bilateral trade betwen India and South Africa is approaching Rand 6.5 billion, with imports from India at Rand 3.12 billion and exports to India at Rand 3.35 billion. Indian investment in South Africa is estimated at $100 million.

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