FY 2012 Stakeholder Dialogue (BOP, Inclusive Business)

Discussion with guest experts on BOP and inclusive business

The Internet is creating new opportunities for its 2.4 billion users worldwide. However, these opportunities can be lost amid information disparities (digital divide) in developing countries where ICT infrastructure is inadequate.

The Fujitsu Group has declared its intent to take on the challenge of changing society by 2020 through the "Three Powers of ICT." With regard to one of these, "The Power to Provide Equal Opportunities to All People," the Fujitsu Group is undertaking partnership development and field surveys aimed at developing countries. To help put this into concrete practice, Fujitsu invited global experts to a discussion on the theme of "Cultivating the BOP market (Prospects for the Future)." An overview of the discussion follows.

Date held: February 27, 2013

Participants:

Experts
Armin Bauer, Senior Economist, Asian Development Bank
Robert de Jongh, CEO, Red Mantra Group

Fujitsu
Kanji Hayashi, Head of NTT Data Global Business Unit
Mikito Kiname, Executive Vice President, Marketing Unit
Yoshihiko Tokumaru, Corporate Senior Vice President, Fujitsu Research Institute
Takafumi Ikuta, Senior Research Fellow, Economic Research Center, Fujitsu Research Institute (secretariat)
Sogo Fujisaki, Director, CSR Department (secretariat)

* The positions and titles of participants are as of the time of the dialogue.

Key comments by the participating experts are as follows.

Key comments by experts

Dr. Armin Bauer

When conducting business in the BOP market, a company should not only make efforts to sell ICT systems and devices but should also consider who will use the provided goods and services and for what purpose, as well as how this will benefit society. Most Japanese companies, including Fujitsu, tend to focus only on the top tier (top-level companies and the government) as clients. ICT has the power to resolve many of the problems of developing countries. I think that adding "for BOP" to the end of Fujitsu's declaration of "The Power of ICT" can reform the company's conventional thinking about business.

Robert de Jongh

To use ICT in resolving the social issues of developing countries, the presence of partners (governments, NGOs, etc.) well versed in the local issues is important. Even if the return on a project is minimal at the time of launch, a high degree of social contribution will lead to an improvement in reputation and return for the company in the long run.
When entering business in developing countries, it's vital to take the approach of not only committing low-cost products to the BOP market but also providing systems that comprehensively resolve social issues.

The Fujitsu Group, drawing on the expectations and requests of outside experts, will make efforts to create mechanisms that promote the diffusion of ICT so that as many people as possible worldwide can open the door to cyber society and enjoy the benefits of ICT.