The Hindu Business Line : Matching Kyushu's hardware with India's software

If you thought that a developed country such as Japan invests in other economies and is not in the race to attract FDI, then Kyushu will force you to think otherwise.

THE GOVERNOR of the Nagasaki Prefecture, Mr Kaneko Genjiro... Looking to promote business between Nagasaki and India.

recently in Kyushu

, It boasts a gross domestic product (GDP) of over $400 billion rivalling Australia and the Netherlands; it is home to leading automobile manufacturers such as Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Mazda and Daihatsu which together produce a million cars per annum from the island; it hosts a vibrant semiconductor industry that produces 10 per cent of the world output of semiconductors; and it is a part of the world's second largest economy, Japan.

Yet it feels there is some way to go in developing its local economy and promoting trade and business.

Welcome to Kyushu, Japan's "10 per cent island", so called because it accounts for approximately 10 per cent of Japan's GDP, population, geographical size and even in the number of households and vehicles owned!

Located in the south-western part of Japan, the Kyushu island is closer to Seoul, Busan and Shanghai than Tokyo.

"Because of geography, we think Kyushu in Asia is more important than Kyushu in Japan," says Mr Akira Hirai, Director, International Affairs Department, Kyushu-Yamaguchi Economic Federation.

His organisation, Kyu-kei ren for short, recently hosted a group of three correspondents from China, Korea and India.

The objective was to promote Kyushu as an investment destination and to encourage business and trade between the three countries and Kyushu.

SOLE THEME OF PROMOTION

The single theme running through the meetings with CEOs, government officials, including the governor of Nagasaki Prefecture, factory visits and even sight-seeing was promotion of trade and facilitation of investment in Kyushu. If you thought that a developed country such as Japan invests in other economies and is not in the race to attract FDI, then Kyushu will force you to think otherwise. Not only are local prefecture governments of Kyushu keen on boosting trade and investment; they are going all the way in their efforts.

"Invest in Nagasaki," a glitzy folder produced by the Nagasaki Prefecture government, would put similar material produced by an FDI-hungry country like ours to shame. Indeed at a meeting with the Nagasaki Governor, Mr Kaneko Genjiro, the dominant theme of discussion was trade and investment and how to promote business between Nagasaki and India.

The Governor, who is the elected equivalent of a Chief Minister in India, was direct in his approach: "We want large human resource in IT and engineers with English-speaking ability. Promote Nagasaki with your home companies and we'll provide as many incentives and services as we can."

TRADE WITH INDIA NON-EXISTENT

The focus, of course, is very different between India, on the one hand, and South Korea and China, on the other; with the latter Kyushu already has a significant trade relationship. For example, about 19 per cent of all exports from Kyushu head for South Korea and 10 per cent to China. Similarly, 18 per cent of all imports by Kyushu are from China and 9 per cent from Japan.

When it comes to India though, the picture is dismal. India accounts for 0.38 per cent of Kyushu's exports and 0.6 per cent of its imports and takes the 30th place as Kyushu's trading partner. Of course, geographical proximity to South Korea and China as well as historical trade ties between the two countries and Kyushu are a factor in the healthy trade relationship.

So, why is India in focus now? Simply because of its information technology industry whose fame has already spread there. The uniform greeting whenever one handed out one's business card in Kyushu was "Oh, India... very strong in IT... we need your brilliant engineers." Certainly a refreshing change from the usual one of "oh, your curry is very good!" And Kyushu is sharply focussing on our IT industry and human resource talent. Indeed, the Fukuoka Prefecture government has already set up a body to promote IT exchanges with India and, last week, representatives of 14 IT companies from India were in Fukuoka to finalise the details of this trade promotion body. With a vibrant semiconductor industry boasting big names such as Sony and Toshiba in need of software talent and Japanese universities unable to turn out the required number of engineers, there is a very good matching of needs.

"We should develop and promote relations with the Indian IT industry. We need brains in Kyushu and software is our focus of attention," said Mr Michisada Kamata, Chairman, Kyu-kei-ren and Kyushu Electric Company.

UNI-DIMENSIONAL?

But should it be a uni-dimensional trade relationship in IT alone? Certainly not. India has a lot to gain and learn from Kyushu especially in the aspect of environment management. The city of Kitakyushu, about 60 km from Fukuoka, and seat of Japan's heavy industry such as steel from before the Second World War, can offer tremendous expertise in combating environmental pollution and in waste management.

Kitakyushu was reborn from virtual waste caused by pollution from its industries and it established an Eco Town to recycle everything, from plastic and kitchen refuse to old refrigerators, washing machines, microwave ovens, television sets and air-conditioners. The interesting part in this is that the entire recycling effort is being done on a commercial basis with several companies profiting from the process.

Given the rising pollution levels in our major cities and the increasing volume of used gadgets and appliances being just dumped into vacant land, it is time India focussed on the critical aspect of recycling. The Eco Town of Kitakyushu can offer valuable expertise in this respect.

Kyushu could also be a market for our marine food products and fruits. We could also consider promoting religious tourism to Gaya, given that most Japanese are Buddhists and would want to visit Buddha's place of enlightenment.

There certainly exists good scope for trade between Kyushu and India. Awareness of India and what it can offer is either non-existent or limited to the IT aspect alone in Kyushu. It is in the mutual interests of Kyushu and India to address this issue.

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