P
otential is a fundamentally important principle at Microsoft. As a company, our mission centres on the intersection of technology and potential: we believe that technology is a powerful catalyst for unleashing the potential of individuals to achieve their dreams, of companies to achieve success, and of nations to reach new levels of economic and social opportunity.Seen from the perspective of potential, India is truly one of the most exciting places on earth. In the 16 years since Microsoft set up operations in India, I've seen first hand the incredible strides the country has made, building an information technology industry almost from scratch. This industry is an engine that has driven the creation of new opportunities for hundreds of thousands of people and established India as one of the world's most important centres for innovation. Thanks to the combination of rapid economic growth, an emerging middle class, and an impressive record of technical excellence, India stands as one of the great success stories of our time.
But clearly, much work remains to be done. For all that it has accomplished, it is India's ongoing potential that makes the country's future so compelling. As impressive as the changes in India have been, the benefits of the rapid achievements in recent years are felt only by a relatively narrow slice of Indian society. For example, India may have one-third of the world's software engineers, but it is also home to one-third of the world's undernourished children. And while India is eighth worldwide in total number of millionaires, it is ranks 127th on the United Nation's Human Development Index. The fact is, India remains a nation where the contrast between poverty and prosperity is stark, and where hundreds of millions of people live in impoverished communities with limited access to basic healthcare and education, much less the tools of technology.
Fortunately, the building blocks for continued progress in India appear to be very solid. We live in a world where access to science and engineering talent is vitally important, and India has an abundance of both. In 2005, for example, India's universities graduated more than 3,00,000 engineers, compared to just 70,000 in the United States. Every time I visit India, my admiration for the talent and skills that India's college graduates possess only grows.
India's deep pool of talent is the reason that we operate facilities like the Microsoft India Development Centre in Hyderabad and Microsoft Research India in Bangalore. Because the ability to access great science and engineering talent is so important to Microsoft, we will continue to expand our presence in India. That's why when I visited India in late 2005, we announced plans to add 3,000 jobs in India over the next three to four years.
This wealth of talent has helped make India a world leader in IT services. Increasingly, it is also enabling the creation of a vibrant ecosystem of software companies that build technology solutions for both international and domestic customers. These companies, which have created more than 1 million jobs since 1999, are an important reason why India has one of the world's fastest-growing economies. And the contribution that the IT sector makes to the Indian economy will only increase in the coming years: according to one study, the software industry's contribution to India's gross domestic product will rise from just 1 per cent in 2002 to 10 per cent by 2008. These are impressive numbers. The question is, what will it take for India to continue to grow and progress? How can India stay on a path that will enable all of its citizens to achieve their potential?
I believe two key steps are critical: one, enabling all Indians—rich and poor, urban and rural—to use the tools of technology to participate in the knowledge economy, and two, strengthening the ability of Indian companies to create and profit from their own intellectual capital.
