Accenture offers to be tech aide to state

BHUBANESWAR: Global IT major Accenture with specialisation in technology consulting and outsourcing has evinced interest in skill development and mobile e-governance services in the State.The company which is going to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Centurion University for skill development on Wednesday offered to play the role of technology advisor of the State Government on e-Governance.Managing Director and Co-Chairman of Accenture India Avinash Vashistha, who called on Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at the Secretariat during his maiden visit to the State, expressed his company’s readiness to play the role of technology advisor for governance delivery.  He said his company was working for Gujarat and Maharashtra governments in the field of mobile commerce service and it is keen on doing the same in Orissa.As the Chief Minister requested the country head of Accenture for establishing a development centre in the State, Vashistha said he was open to the idea. However, opening a development centre depends on several factors. The company has to evaluate the availability of skilled manpower in the State vis-a-vis the demand for trained manpower.Orissa has the potential to be one of the high performing states in the country in the service sector. What is needed is an orientation towards skill development, he told mediapersons after emerging from the meeting with the Chief Minister.The service sector contributes about 70 per cent to the gross domestic product (GDP) in developed nations while in Asia the sector accounts for 50 per cent of the GDP. The country needs to focus more on the services sector which has the potential to provide maximum jobs, he added. Vashishta said his company was going to partner with Centurion University in skill development.  “We are already carrying out skill development programmes in collaboration with National Skills Development Corporation (NSDC). Accenture will help us  scale up the programme further, Centurion University chairman Mukti Mishra said.The company will facilitate industry linkages and help organise industry workshops at our campus. It will be a holistic partnership wherein Accenture will also fund some of the skill development programmes under Skill to Succeed, its corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative, he added. Skill development apart, Accenture is also interested in partnering the Orissa government in the area of mobile e-Governance.