1st edition of Japan Week 2023 concluded at IIT Hyderabad

Hyderabad: Toshihiro Mizutani, Director General, Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), Bengaluru, said, “Interest in India’s engineering and scientific talent is growing among Japanese companies; as a result, we are welcoming double the number of Japanese companies as compared to last year’s Japan Day.”

Speaking on the occasion of the 6th edition of the Japan Day’ at IITH, and said, “Since there is a critical lack of IT engineers in Japan, several businesses there are eager to employ motivated Indian expertise. The participating Japanese companies anticipate that IITH students will play key roles in emerging technological innovation and global strategies. Former “JAPAN DAY” has now expanded to “Japan Week” to showcase other aspects, including Japanese culture. We hope that the students explore a little about Japanese culture and also gain some essence of the Japanese corporate culture.”

The JETRO and IIT Hyderabad (IITH) co-hosted “Japan Career Fair 2023”, the sixth edition of “JAPAN DAY” here on Sunday, and 20 distinguished Japanese companies attended this career fair, which is the largest number of participants since the event started in 2018. The companies, comprising startups, SMEs, and large corporates, participated in promoting their businesses/cutting-edge technologies to attract students from IITH.

Extending his gratitude to all participating organizations, Prof. B S Murty, Director of IIT Hyderabad, said, “JAPAN DAY, which has been organized annually since 2018 at IITH, is a unique and important event that greatly helps our students to develop an understanding and confidence about the job, work culture, life, and career path in Japan. Many Japanese companies will also get exposure to the excellence and potential of IITH students through active interaction with them on JAPAN DAY. We are indebted to JETRO for its amazing support in connecting IITH with prominent Japanese firms. This year onwards we have decided to Celebrate Japan Week at IITH. We have cherished our bond with Japan this year by observing the 1st edition of Japan Week. I wish to see this participation increase multi-fold in years to come.”.

Speaking on the event’s success, Prof Tarun K Panda, Dean (International Relations), IITH, said, “Participation of 20 distinguished Japanese companies at the career fair, underlining its growing importance in fostering collaboration between India and Japan. The significance of the year-long collaboration for the Career Fair and week-long collaboration involving Japanese universities, organizations, and Indian-Japanese initiatives is a testament to the strength of global partnerships and technology exchange. We affirm our commitment to nurturing these connections for mutual innovation and growth.”.

In addition, IITH, with the support of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japanese universities, and Japanese organizations co-hosted the first edition of the “IITH-Japan week 2023” from 18-24 September 2023. 7 Japanese universities, 8 Japanese organizations, 1 Indo-Japan hub, and three companies participated in the various events to promote various aspects of IIT Hyderabad Japan collaboration.

JETRO, in association with IITH, has been conducting “JAPAN DAY” at IITH since 2018; 10 Japanese companies, primarily large corporations, joined the event in 2018. The number of participating companies has grown and it was Re-branded as “Japan Career Fair 2023”, the following 20 companies participated this year.

• 20 Japanese entities participated in the event, the maximum number to date.

• Entities ranging from Established firms to Entrepreneurs have shown keen interest in IITH students.

• To enhance the strong bond between Japan and IITH, Japan Day has expanded to Japan Week, where academic and cultural aspects were also introduced.

• 7 Japanese universities and 3 Japanese government organizations participated in the Academic Day held on 18th September 2023.

• Three technical workshops for hands-on demonstration of sophisticated scientific equipment were held in collaboration with Japanese companies.

• Culture and Tourism Day was organized on the 23rd of September, in which 4 Japanese organizations and 1 hub participated to showcase Japanese culture.