“An Innovation-driven Partnership for Growth in a New World”
5 November 2020: Over Virtual Platform
The Nordic and Baltic countries are among the most innovative and sustainable in the world, while India has emerged as one of the fastest growing major economies in recent years. India’s vast market and highly skilled workforce combined with the innovative and technological strengths of the Nordic-Baltic region creates vast opportunities for businesses on both sides to form partnerships and joint ventures and enter into technology transfer agreements.
This is especially the case in the current scenario when the Covid-19 pandemic has forced enterprises to think about business continuity, to rapidly innovate and re-define business models. Several new and emerging technologies such as digitally-enabled automation, AI, IoT, Industry 4.0 are becoming the primary drivers of the new normal. Parallelly, an urgent need to strengthen our digital infrastructure is also being felt in areas like work, education, training / skilling, payments/transactions, healthcare, monitoring of assets etc.
With this as a background, the Ministry of External Affairs of India and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) are organizing an India-Nordic-Baltic Conclave on 5 November 2020 on a virtual platform. With a theme of “An Innovation-driven Partnership for Growth in a New World”, the Conclave is focused on the following sectors where the Nordic-Baltic region has expertise and India offers opportunity:
● Clean Technologies ● Digital infrastructure, including 5G
● Factories of the Future ● Data Protection and Cyber security
● Artificial Intelligence & Blockchain in ● Digital Gaming
○ Healthcare ● Engineering and Innovation
○ Supply Chain & Logistics ● Blue Economy
○ Fintech
The full programme is given below.
This Conclave would provide an excellent platform to connect with potential Indian partners and discuss business partnerships. A dedicated B2B section would be available on the digital platform hosting this Conclave for businesses to connect with each other.
Participation is free but prior registration is essential. You can confirm your participation over email to shweta.mandal@cii.in. CII will send you a registration link in due course.
PROGRAMME
11:00-12:30 hrs (14:30-16:00 hrs IST) Inaugural Session The Nordic-Baltic region of 8 nations is an innovation and technological powerhouse, while India, with its increasingly strong focus on technology, apart from trade and tourism, offers immense opportunities for partnerships to co-develop and test new technologies for strengthening competitiveness and sustainability of businesses, cities and society at large. A strategic and sustained partnership between India and the Nordic-Baltic region, particularly in a post-Covid world, can help spur innovations, economic growth, sustainable solutions and mutually beneficial trade and investments.
12:30-13:30 hrs (16:00-17:00 hrs IST)Session 1: Renewable Energy and Clean Technologies The Nordic-Baltic region ranks at the top globally for using and promoting clean technologies and environmental solutions, among others. These are also priority areas for India. At the India-Nordic Summit, both sides had agreed to continue efforts to develop renewable energy and fuels, cleaner energy systems, increased energy efficiency and technologies for cleaner energy production. India represents a key market for clean technology companies as it is investing heavily in this sector, particularly in renewable energy. India’s surging demand for clean power to strengthen energy security and reduce pollution, as well as ongoing sector reforms, is making India one of the most attractive destinations for environment friendly investments. Where are the greatest opportunities for collaboration and what are the challenges to increasing investments in India? How can greater collaboration be encouraged?
13:30-14:30 hrs (17:00-18:00 hrs IST) Session 2: Factories of the Future The rise of new digital industrial technology, or Industry 4.0, is a transformation that makes it possible to gather and analyze data across machines, enabling faster, more flexible, and more efficient processes to produce higher-quality goods at reduced costs. This manufacturing revolution will increase productivity, shift economics, foster industrial growth, and modify the profile of the workforce—ultimately changing the competitiveness of companies and regions. With many companies in the Nordic-Baltic region already investing in rolling out digital solutions, this session will explore where India and the region are in their journey towards Smart Factories, the issues they face and where the collaborative opportunities lie. 14:30-15:30 hrs (18:00-19:00 hrs IST) Session 3: Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Blockchain AI has the potential to transform several industries and processes in ways that could simultaneously make them more efficient and effective, especially when combined with Blockchain, whether healthcare, supply chain and logistics and fintech. Session 3A: Healthcare From diagnostics to population health, hospital operations to clinical informatics, machine learning promises to make significant impacts throughout healthcare. Session 3B: Supply Chain and Logistics AI also plays a key role in global supply chains in managing assets and facilities in the most cost-efficient way. The use of AI-based predictive analytics can help transportation and logistics services providers optimize route planning and delivery schedules. Session 3C: Fintech AI has revolutionized the finance industry. Not only does it improve the precision level in the industry, it also enhances customer engagement. Financial services providers are making efforts to adopt AI for mundane task automation, consistent customer services, and deep dive behaviour analysis. How are AI-related innovations transforming key industries, especially in these times of the Covid-pandemic, and where do collaborative opportunities lie? How can some of the challenges, especially those related to skilling and re-skilling, be tackled to take full advantage of AI and its benefits? 15:15-16:15 hrs (18:45-19:45 hrs IST)Session 4A: Data and Cyber Security Data is said to be the most valuable asset in the digital economy. With the introduction of the Personal Data Protection Bill 2019, India aims to adopt an ambitious set of rules to deal with the circulation and protection of data, both private and business related. Also, as more stakeholders - from governments and businesses to citizens and customers - move online, billions of devices and humans get increasingly inter-connected and cyber threats increase in frequency, complexity, severity and impact. It is expected that the annual cost of cyberattacks will reach $6 trillion by 2021. What are some of the trends in data protection, threats and opportunities of new technologies that will shape cybersecurity in the near future and the emerging models of public-private partnerships? Session 4B: Digital infrastructure The fifth generation (5G) of wireless technology has the potential to transform the competitiveness and sustainability of a wide range of industries, services and society in areas like intelligent traffic systems and connected vehicles, smart and sustainable energy grids and connected health services facilitating healthcare innovation. It is estimated that the total economic impact from 5G in India can exceed $1 trillion by 2035. To fully exploit emerging 5G networks and remain competitive while addressing security concerns, what collaborative approaches can be taken towards new players, technologies and business models? Session 4C: Digital Gaming The continued focus of the Indian Government on improving the digital infrastructure has unlocked opportunities for entrepreneurs across digital industries like payments, content and gaming. With one of the largest user bases globally for digital gaming, India has become an important market for both local and international companies. As the industry continues to evolve, what would its impact on India’s economy be not just in terms of revenue growth but also the growth of ancillary industries (like payments) and increased job creation, and how can the Nordic-Baltic industry take advantage of this rapidly growing market? 16:00-16:45 hrs (19:30-20:15 hrs IST)Session 5A: Engineering and Innovation Innovations in engineering are taking place not only in traditional sectors such as manufacturing, energy, construction, transport but also in newer areas like renewables, sustainability, new materials etc. What are some of the engineering innovations that could achieve scale in India? Session 5B: The Blue Economy The growth and development of the ocean economy holds great potential for the overall growth, development and job creation of the countries. Several conventional and new areas in the marine sector, such as blue energy, aquaculture, marine tourism, blue biotechnology, ports, shipping including shop design, among others, are now the focus of innovation and sustainability. How can India and the region collaborate to ensure sustainable growth of the oceans through shared innovations? 16:45 hrs (2015 hrs IST) Close of the Conclave
