FHNW launches continuing education program "Growth Market India"
The University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland FHNW is expanding its activities with India and is now offering the Executive Leadership Program for Swiss SMEs "Explore & Discover Business Opportunities with Trade Partner INDIA" from August.
The course, which is based at the FHNW School of Business, enables participants to gain a concrete impression of the Indian market and to network with stakeholders in Switzerland and India who have already gained experience in economic relations between the two countries. In addition to webinars and on-site events in Switzerland, a nine-day study trip to India gives participants the opportunity to gain an in-depth impression of the opportunities and potential of the Indian market on site in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore.
Trade agreement with India as an advantage
"Thanks to the new trade agreement, India offers enormous business opportunities for Swiss SMEs," says Prof. Pieter Perrett from the Institute for Competitiveness and Communication ICC. "The agreement provides for import duties on Swiss products and services to be significantly reduced or abolished in 95% of cases over the next few years. This will also make 'made in Switzerland' much more competitive in terms of price."
Co-director of the study program Marco Casanova adds: "India is the most populous country, has a stable democracy, a steadily growing middle class and 50% of the population is under 25 years old. Above all, Switzerland enjoys an excellent reputation in India. The recently signed TEPA trade agreement will create a new, highly lucrative 100 billion dollar market in the next 10 to 15 years."
Training program for SMEs
The continuing education program combines expertise from the fields of business, culture, society and politics. At the FHNW's ceremony to mark the 20th anniversary of its India activities, National Councillor Nik Gugger (President of the Swiss-India Parliamentary Group) also emphasized the importance of such initiatives: "I congratulate the FHNW here as an academic 'first mover' for taking the trade agreement between Switzerland and India as an opportunity to give SMEs in Switzerland the opportunity to engage with the booming billion-dollar market of India in a well-founded and concrete way."
Cooperation program with the SICC
The continuing education program developed in close cooperation with the Swiss-Indian Chamber of Commerce SICC also comes at the right time for its President Philippe Reich: "The TEPA trade agreement signed in March 2024 will most likely be ratified in the councils this summer and then India will become an absolute game changer for the Swiss economy. We at SICC are very pleased that such a program is being offered for interested Swiss SMEs on the initiative of the FHNW and are happy to support it with full conviction."
Helene Budliger Artieda, State Secretary and Director of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), emphasizes the importance of such coordinated initiatives: "As a state, we can create the framework conditions through agreements with other countries. It is then up to the local economy to fill these with life. Science can also make a significant contribution to representing Swiss interests." This continuing education program was developed by the FHNW in close cooperation with the business community. It documents precisely Switzerland's strength by bringing together various stakeholders to provide important impetus for Switzerland as a business location, which serves to enable our prosperity through promising partnerships in growth areas.
The continuing education program will start on 28 August 2025 with a two-hour webinar (online), followed by an on-site event on 11 September 2025 at the FHNW in Olten. The study trip to India is planned from October 5 to 13, 2025.
