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The Language Related Market Access Facilitation Initiative in the German IT Market (LRMAFI-G) was officially launched by Shri S. N. Menon, Special Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry here today. The broad objective of the scheme, approved by the Department of Commerce, is to enable Indian IT software and services including IT enabled services firms to overcome the language related market barrier which they face in development of mutually beneficial Indo-German IT business cooperation and business alliances. Mr. Julius Georg Luv, Minister, Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, Shri M. V. P. C. Shastry, Joint Secretary, Department of Commerce, Shri P. K. Sandell, Chairman, Electronic & Computer Software Export Promotion Council (ESC) and Shri D. K. Sareen, Executive Director, ESC were present at the occasion along with several software exporters and students.
In his speech, Shri Menon said that IT exports from India have shown a momentum and this scheme would help in removing some of the existing barriers to enhance IT trade between the two countries. Presently India’s IT exports are about US $ 12.5 billion and are expected to reach US $ 50 billion by 2010. Shri Menon said that the language as an instrument of trade promotion has assumed a great significance, particularly in the IT knowledge society space. Germany for India is the second largest IT destination after the UK, in Europe. He informed that the Ministry had launched this scheme in the Japanese IT market two years ago and said that the next initiative would be to start the similar programme for the Spanish language. Mr. Luv said that this programme was an important step in Indo-German relations and hoped that it would give a new impetus to prospective Indian IT experts in German language.
Under this scheme, financial support will be available to Indian IT students who have learnt the German language and obtained the certificate of German from Goethe Institut Inter Nationes/Max Mueller Bhavans in India; and Indian IT software member exporters of the ESC who have incurred an expenditure on training their IT professionals/personnel in the German language and enabled them to obtain the Certificate of German from Goethe Institut Inter Nationes/Max Mueller Bhavans in India.
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