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Salzburg Global Fellow Makoto Noda on his work on technology partnerships with international organizations and experience in the JITTN program
Photo Credit: Katrin Kerschbaumer
This interview was conducted prior to Salzburg Global's Japan-India Transformative Technology Network in-person program in June 2023.
Makoto Noda is a Salzburg Global Fellow of the Japan-India Transformative Technology Network. As a business development manager at the Global Business Unit of NEC Corporation, he is leading partnerships with international organizations to leverage innovative technologies to address global issues and accelerate sustainable development. Makoto has served as a private sector partnership advisor in the United Nations Development Programme to strengthen partnerships and cooperation towards the 2030 UNSDG. Makoto shared with us his work, expectations for the JITTN program, and the future potential of the network.
Madhumitha Srinivasamoorthy, Impact Fellow, Salzburg Global Seminar: Can you tell me about yourself, your work, and how your work is related to Japan, India, and technology?
Makoto Noda: I work at NEC, performing overseas business development. My focus has been on technology for development in Asia. I have worked with Southeast Asia, such as the Philippines and Malaysia, and recently South Asia, such as India and Bangladesh, particularly in telecommunication and infrastructure projects such as mobile networks. Our primary business is IT solutions for government services such as the Ministry of Home Affairs, Health, Finance, etc. Emerging economies such as India offer a huge market for central IT solutions such as rapid transit and ticketing mechanisms. More recently, I moved to New York for another assignment to encourage public-private partnerships to reach social issues. After two years, I returned to Japan to forecast business for the emerging market, mostly partnering with the EU. My latest project with the UN is to improve the income of small farmers in India. I employ blockchain and other technologies to enhance the traceability of the spice industry. Employment of technology is essential to improve information on small farmers.
MS: Why did you join the Japan-India Transformative Technology Network? How do you see yourself in the network?
MN: Firstly, my current project is based in India. I understand the benefit of the exchange of communication between Japan and India. A shared network between technology professionals in India and Japan would be very beneficial for me to improve my current project and future work in India. This is my incentive for joining the JITTN program. As a technology professional working to solve social problems in India, I can also contribute to this network.
MS: Is there a vision you already see from the JITTN network? What are your expectations from the program?
MN: The network is one of the biggest purposes for joining this program. It is significantly valuable for me that this network brings not only other technology professionals but also professionals from different sectors [together] to exchange information. Normally, I will walk into my company, and my subsidies, [but] then this is totally different. [There are] different accounts from various sectors, including academia. This is really good for the networking.
MS: Regarding cooperation and meeting other people of expertise, how has your experience been so far? Do you already see potential avenues of collaboration with the network?
MN: I just started discussions with some members, such as [on] AI or new technologies for transportation issues. Also, climate change. I want to join the discussions. So, I have had a few discussions with some members to get a feel of the cohort. I am really optimistic that we can dig deeper into the issue areas and identify areas of priority when we are in Salzburg.
MS: Are you looking forward to the in-person program in Salzburg?
MN: I am looking forward to visiting Salzburg. It would be my first time in Salzburg, so it is really exciting! It is particularly exciting to be at a venue such as the Schloss to discuss problems of emerging markets. I'm still thinking of the theme I would like to focus on, perhaps the challenges I am facing for the business in emerging markets. In addressing social issues, the problem is business sustainability. For example, my current project is with the UN, but it cannot be sustained as a UN-funded project. There is a need to create business continuity and sustainability. There are several questions to address, such as how to scale the solutions with the country context, such as in India or across other similar countries. This is my work, and these are the challenges I face that I want to discuss with the JITTN network.
Since coming to Salzburg in June 2023, Makoto has been working alongside other Salzburg Global Fellows on a project centered around conservation and sustainability which is titled “BEE KIND”.