On November 21, 2019, an India Technical Intern Training Program (TITP) Seminar was held jointly at the Consulate-General of India, Osaka-Kobe by India’s Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), which serve as the Indian government contact organizations for the TITP, as well as the Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI), with support from JITCO. The India TITP Seminar has been held every year since 2017, and this year the number of Japanese participants was the highest ever, at around 130 people. Attendees were given a presentation on the current status of the sending of technical intern trainees, after which they engaged in individual business-matching discussions with the approximately 50 representatives of 19 Indian sending organizations who were present at the event.
The sending of technical intern trainees from India under the Acceptance Supervised by Organization model only began in 2018, the number of Indian trainees arriving in Japan has grown steadily, rising to over 160 this year. With the increase in the number of sending organizations that already have actual experience of sending trainees to Japan, this year the discussions in the business-matching session appeared to be even more realistic and practically-oriented than last year’s. During the seminar portion of the event, NSDC announced that a manager from NSDC’s headquarters in India has been sent on temporary assignment to Tokyo to facilitate the sharing of information aimed at promoting the receiving of technical intern trainees from India and providing support for receiving organizations, sending organizations and related stakeholders, demonstrating the importance that the Indian government attaches to the TITP. The results obtained in a survey of Seminar participants conducted by JITCO indicated that around 60% of respondents were considering accepting technical intern trainees from India, and that 95% of participants would be interested in taking part in a research visit to India, indicating a very high level of interest on the part of the Japanese attendees.
On the following day, November 22, consultations were held at JITCO’s headquarters with officials from the MSDE, the NSDC and the Embassy of India in Tokyo. There was an exchange of views regarding feedback from the previous day’s Seminar, and regarding future plans and issues, etc. There was a shared consensus with respect to the importance of continuing to further strengthen the collaborative relationship.
Responding to the growing interest in the TITP both in Japan and India, JITCO is planning the launch of an India Research Visits Program that would make it possible for interested stakeholders to travel to India to visit sending organizations in person. An overview of the program can be found here. More information will be made available once the details have been finalized.

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  The seminar in progress

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  The business-matching session in progress

Related content: Photos of past seminars (2018 (Nagoya) and 2017 (Tokyo) )