HYDERABAD: IIT-Hyderabad and Hamamatsu City, Japan, on Thursday signed an MoU to drive innovation and talent and foster personnel and economic exchange between the two regions.
IIT-Hyderabad director Prof. BS Murty and Hamamatsu Mayor Yusuke Nakano signed the MoU which would strengthen ties between Japanese universities, industries (including Suzuki), and IIT-H.
The collaboration will focus on three main areas — human resource exchange between Japan and India including Indian tech talents in science and engineering domains, academic and industrial R&D collaborations through open innovation, and facilitation of an ecosystem for Indian tech talents to work in Hamamatsu through nurturing mutual understanding about daily life in the Japanese city.
The partnership traces its origins to January 2023, when Prof. Murty and Yasutomo Suzuki had their first conversation in Japan regarding the potential collaboration. Since then, both parties have actively explored avenues for collaboration, culminating in this milestone MoU.
Prof Murty said: “The collaboration between Japan and IIT-H is unprecedented, as it marks the first time a country has significantly invested in the infrastructure development of an IIT. Beyond infrastructure, we deeply value the strong friendship built between Japan and IIT Hyderabad through JICA’s “FRIENDSHIP” programme. This unique initiative has entered its second phase, further strengthening ties with Japanese universities and industries, including Suzuki.”
Yusuke Nakano added: “We are delighted to formalise this partnership with IIT-Hyderabad. We are excited to strengthen ties through this partnership and hope to use this platform to introduce Japanese culture and technology, fostering deeper understanding and cooperation. IIT-Hyderabad is globally recognised for producing exceptional talent in engineering and technology, while Hamamatsu is eager to foster collaborations. This MoU paves the way for strengthened partnerships, bringing together companies and facilitating the exchange of researchers and human resources between both sides”.