New Delhi, May 09: India's total electronics and software exports to the European Union, including the 10 new member countries, increased by 20 per cent to Rs 12,120 crore in the year 2002-03. "The EU has emerged as the world's largest trading bloc, accounting for 20 per cent of world trade... This will, undoubtedly, benefit India...," a release issued by Electronics and Computer Software Export promotion council (ESC) said here, quoting chairman P K Sandell.
However, Indian exports to the new EU members stand at just Rs 84 crore, which is merely 1.5 per cent of the total trade with EU-15. India has been exporting a number of it goods to the 10 countries that have recently become members of EU. He said small and medium enterprises will get immense opportunities to interact with buyers in the new EU, understand their requirement, convince them, and deliver the best software and solutions.
Sandell said content development, software development, data warehousing, GIS, it education, internet technologies, e-governance, remote billing, healthcare and on-site and off-site services are some of the potential areas of cooperation between India and EU.
He also said that India would gain from EU'S shortage of software skills. "Already countries like UK, Germany, France and Italy are looking at India for supply of skilled it specialists to meet the growing local market demand," Sandell added.
Bureau Report