RMAAI and NASSCOM Foundation seminar on Rural Information and Communication Technologies

The Rural ICT Seminar will explore innovative approaches to reach the rural markets and applying appropriate ICT based solutions. It will be attended by IT & telecom industry associations, government policy makers, NGOs/support organizations, CEOs and senior marketing managers from private and public sector ICT information (software) & service (hardware) providers, advertising & media professionals and marketing consultants engaged in the ICT sector.

Speaking to MBAUniverse.com, Mr Pradeep Kashayap, Vice President, RMAAI and Managing Director, MART, says, Our objective here is to connect corporate and IT with Rural India.

This seminar will debate on how to best design and implement ICT solutions to help increase rural income, employment and sustainable development. For this, a set of case studies of innovative business practices will be used. According to RMAAI, The program deals with topics like the Rural ICT scenario in India, ICT as a catalyst for development, ICTs major challenges and the way forward for Rural ICT.

We have invited speakers from companies like Microsoft, Reuters, Google and iBridge Consultants Pvt. Ltd, says Mr Kashayap. Speakers include Saurabh Srivastava, Chairman, NASSCOM Foundation, Tarun Malik, Lead Rural Computing Microsoft, Azim Premji Chairman and CEO of Wipro Technologies, Dr. Ashok Khosla, President, Development Alternatives, Dr. Percy Batlivala, Managing Director, iBridge Consultants Pvt. Ltd. and Dr. Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Head, TeNeT, IIT Madras.

With the growing importance of rural markets in corporate marketing strategies, there is an increased recognition of rural specialists in helping companies plan and implement their rural marketing activities. This has resulted in a number of players, both big and small entering the field in the last couple of years.

RMAAI, formed in March 2005, aims to promote, improve, develop and further the cause of rural marketing in India. To improve the overall understanding of rural markets by the corporate world, the association has been conducting industry specific seminars, workshops and conferences. One of the important objectives of RMAAI is to set industry benchmarks in areas of performance evaluation and financial practices.

The NASSCOM Foundation has been promoted by NASSCOM and its member companies to promote social development through the application of ICT. The broader vision of the Foundation is to leverage ICT for empowering and transforming the lives of the under served.