India-Japan cooperation to strengthen India’s semiconductor ecosystem

TOKYO: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Japan has opened a new chapter in India-Japan collaboration in advanced technology sectors, with a particular focus on semiconductors.

Speaking to ANI, Kazuya Nakajo, Executive Vice President of the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO), underlined the opportunities for partnership between the two nations.

"Prime Minister Modi visited one of the leading companies of Japan in the semiconductor field, Tokyo Electron, a manufacturer of wafers and such. This is the mother of a semiconductor company," Nakajo said, highlighting Japan's strengths.

He noted that Japan is taking a lead in manufacturing semiconductor machinery and also the material side, and emphasised that the country has committed to manufacturing in India.

Nakajo said the timing of the visit was significant. "This was the first thing after 2018. So it's been a seven-year gap. There was COVID and such in between. But this is a very good time for Japanese businessmen to create confidence toward India," he said.

During his visit, Prime Minister Modi has emphasised building a stronger technology base at home.

"PM announced that they put more concentration in new technology, advanced manufacturing, and semiconductor will take the key role on that," Nakajo said.

Regarding India's challenges in building a semiconductor ecosystem, Nakajo highlighted the country's heavy dependence on imports.

"There was a big concern that India has been dependent heavily on electronic manufacturing from foreign nations. Actually, one-third of Indian semiconductor imports were taken by China. So Prime Minister Modi has created a new policy to create a more resilient supply chain and a self-reliant nation in the manufacturing sector, advanced manufacturing sector," he explained.

He also noted the growth in semiconductor-related investments.

"From 2017 to 2020, in these four years, there were 22 investments made in semiconductors to India, and from 2021 to 2024, it has increased to 58. So this growth is because the market prospect of India is very big, and the other thing is India showed their standpoint as a friendly nation to Japan," he said. Nakajo said Japan's global role in semiconductors could extend to India as well. (ANI)

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