The Indo-Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IJCCI) will lead a delegation of Small and Medium Enterprises industrialists from the State to Japan in November to lay the foundation for increased partnerships in a sector that has traditionally failed to excite small to medium business segments in key Japanese prefectures.
The 20-member team is due to leave for Osaka on November 27 and participate in a series of high-profile meetings with prefectural dignitaries and conduct B2B sessions with leading businessmen. The stopovers during the five-day tour include Hiroshima, Fukuoka, Saga, Yokohama and Tokyo.
“Traditionally, there has not been interest in collaborative ventures though there is a huge potential for highly rewarding partnerships in the SME segment. The primary purpose of the visit would be to convince Japanese of this potential,” IJCCI president N. Krishnaswami told The Hindu .
Leather, IT/ITES, auto components, machining tools, pharmaceuticals, plastics and chemicals and granites are among the sectors that would be showcased as ideal for collaboration, he said. The timing of the visit is also believed to be opportune as Japanese SMEs, that have been the vital cogs in the supply chain logistics of electronics and automotive giants, are now being forced to look at opportunities beyond their fences because of the recessionary squeeze.
The delegation from Tamil Nadu might also have its timing right for another reason as it heads into a setting expected to be charged with interest in small businesses following a flagship event such as the APEC SME Summit 2010 (November 11).
According to Mr. Krishnaswami, though there have been impediments to SME partnerships between India and Japan, they have primarily stemmed from misconceptions. He points out that while it is common notion here that the costs associated with delivering products at the level of Japan's quality benchmarks are too high for small business, the typical Japanese businessmen has found the size of the Indian market intimidating.
The IJCCI has been in the process of encouraging a relook at the space for collaborative ventures from industrialists on both sides. “The partnerships could be technical, marketing and distribution or even financial,” said Mr. Krishnaswami. Among the events it has lined up are discussions on the status of IT industry in Japan here and an SME summit in Delhi over the next few weeks.
