New Delhi, Nov 14 (KNN) India and Finland on Monday agreed to enhance cooperation in areas such as Digital Partnership in Future ICT, Future Mobile Technologies and Digital Education. The two countries also emphasised on having institutionalised joint working groups on areas of mutual interest.

Both the countries decided to carry mutual cooperation between the two countries to a new level in a number of areas of bilateral as well as global interests.

Finland Minister of Education and Culture, Petri Honkonen called on Union Minister of Science and Technology Dr Jitendra Singh at North Block on Monday to seek enhanced bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the field of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI).

He was accompanied by a high level delegation which later held a separate meeting with the Indian delegation in the presence of the two Ministers.

The Indian Minister reiterated India's focus on collaboration even in startups, the Finland Minister was full of praise for Prime Minister Narendra Modi for management of Covid pandemic and also the efforts of the Union Government of India in ensuring development of vaccines and vaccination for all the countrymen.

The visit comes in the wake of the announcement made by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Finnish counterpart Sanna Marin during a Summit meeting on March 16, 2021.

Union Minister Jitendra Singh said, the bilateral STI collaboration between the two countries is an attempt to stimulate innovative R&D projects that address a  specific need or challenge; demonstrate high industrial relevance and commercial potential; and aim to deliver benefit to all participants, and more broadly, to both nations.

He expressed satisfaction that experts from both sides are working out detailed plan for establishment of the Indo-Finnish Virtual Network Centre on Quantum Computing.

Honkonen assured Dr Jitendra Singh that Finland is keen to cooperate with India in 5G, Environment and Clean Technologies, Bio-based Economy, BioBanks and Affordable Healthcare. He said, progress is also on subjects flagged by Indian and Finnish Prime Ministers.  (KNN Bureau)