Sun’n sand and some software

Usha Prasad

Bangalore, Nov 4: Mauritius, better known as a tourism destination, is beckoning the Indian IT industry to make use of it as a gateway to the African continent by setting up operations in the island nation.
Speaking to The Finacial Express Mr Kemraz Mohee, executive director of National Computer Board, the government agency promoting information technology ventures in Mauritius, said, “We are taking part in the Bangalore IT.Com for the first time. We are looking forward to interactions with major IT Indian companies and potential investors to explore business opportunities in Mauritius.”

A population of around 1.2 million — equally fluent in English and French — also opens doors for the French speaking markets for the Indian IT companies, he added. NCB offers its services to investors by assisting and facilitating them to work with both public and private sectors. ‘‘We are exploring the possibilities of partnerships and joint ventures with IT companies in Bangalore,’’ he added.

Bangalore-based Connoisseur Electronics Pvt Ltd, a hardware firm will shortly set up their office in Mauritius, Mr Mohee said. He said Mauritius was already known as a well-developed off-shore financial services centre and a large chunk of investments into India had come from this base.

Mr Mohee is accompanied by a group of companies in the IT and services industry. Mauritus is coming up with a major IT school project to introduce IT in schools. The new University of Technology which was started this year will be focussing on IT related subjects, he said.