Singapore: The Confederation of Indian Industry Young Indian chapter in Singapore (CII Yi) aims to scale a student exchange programme to 300 youths per year to build a new generation of leadership with a strong understanding of Indian culture and the economy.

CII Yi Chairman Mohamed Irshad shared this on Tuesday, a day after hosting the first 'Yi - India Singapore Youth Summit' in Singapore. “We need to develop a deep understanding of Indian culture and economy as a long-term plan to build on a century of historical links between the two countries,” he said.

Singapore is already the biggest foreign direct investment hub for India. “To date, 40 students from universities have gone on exchange and immersion programmes to India, including the 'India Talent Read Programme', through the Ministry of Trade and Industry, state-owned Enterprise Singapore and the National Youth Council,” said Irshad, who heads the one-year-old CII Yi chapter.

Forty students from India's higher learning institutions have also taken part in a similar exchange programme to Singapore this year.

CII Yi plans to exchange 300 students per year to deepen understanding of Indian society, including tier-2 and tier-3 cities, and build a base of Singapore youths focused on the Indian market. The Indian community in Singapore, especially financial experts, will also be engaged under the initiative, Irshad said.

A Singapore minister described the youth summit as a key milestone that will strengthen student, professional and entrepreneurial ties.

About 100 delegates from Singapore and India attended the day-long summit.