Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) recently announced a series of strategic investments to the tune of over US $100 to accelerate the digitization process in India. Announcing the future initiatives, John Chambers, Irving Tan and Dinesh Malkani, who is in charge of Cisco India, jointly revealed that they will pump $40 million initially into India to help early-stage and growth-stage companies in the country including training 250,000 students in India by 2020.
Commenting on the new initiatives, John Chambers, Executive Chairman, Cisco revealed that the impact of digitization will help countries to maintain global competitiveness thereby foster innovation and jobs creation.
With the upcoming investments in education and innovation, the company is looking forward to harnessing the power of technology to create a new generation of problem solvers, who will be shaped to become great technologists and entrepreneurs.
In collaboration with state governments in India, Cisco is planning to add 6 new innovation labs, 3 centres of expertise, funded university collaborations and skills investments as part of the company’s global Country Digitization Acceleration program.
Meanwhile, Cisco Networking Academy program will be expanded to keep track of professionals who are highly skilled in networking. As of writing this, over 110,000 students have been trained since the inception of the program in partnership with educational institutions, public sector agencies, and non-profit organisations.
“The latest announcement demonstrates the commitment of the company to bring together customers, partners, start-ups and an entire ecosystem to work together to build the business,” said Irving Tan, President, Cisco Asia Pacific & Japan.
Moreover, the company is hopeful that new measures of innovation will be a crucial factor in the success of emerging countries like India, adds Tan.
Speaking on the occasion, Dinesh Malkani, President, Cisco India also stressed the importance of innovation to accelerate digitization program of India, which will ultimately help the country to grow faster.
Cisco, by implementing latest innovation techniques, will work closely with respective governments and businesses to enhance GDP, create new jobs, train the future workforce, build smart cities, and develop new business models including improving education and healthcare sectors.
