"This maiden visit is part of an ambitious plan to strengthen the cooperation in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector and to step up efforts to promote understanding and friendship among the youth of the two countries," said Manohar Ram, deputy chief of the Indian mission.

“The exchange of youth missions will reinforce our relations further,” said Ram, while referring to the progressively growing relations between Riyadh and New Delhi in different sectors.

The Saudi youth mission, organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will stay in India for 11 days, visiting different Indian cities and interacting with Indian youth leaders of different fields. Yusuf Sadoun, deputy minister for economic and cultural affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will lead the Saudi delegation.

The main objective of the delegation is to get acquainted with the rapid emergence of the communications technology (ICT) sector, which has placed India on the global stage over the last two decades. The Saudi delegation will also meet Indian Minister of State for Communications Sachin Pilot. "India will also work out plans to send a youth delegation to the Kingdom in the near future," said Ram. He said the ICT sector has acted as a catalyst for growth across the Indian economy, including areas such as real estate, automobiles, travel and tourism, railways and mortgage banking industries. Employing about three million people directly, and over 10 million indirectly, the ICT industry in India is rapidly expanding across all domains, primarily driven by software services and innovative solutions offered by IT giants of India to the Gulf countries and the world at large.

The mission will visit several technology hubs, including New Delhi, Hyderabad and Bangalore. The delegation will also visit several cities and places of cultural interest. The diplomat pointed out that they would have extensive opportunities to interact with Indian boys and girls during their visit.

"The visit of youth mission reflects the keen interest of the two nations to promote mutual understanding and friendship," said the Indian diplomat, adding that the youth delegation would visit Indian universities, technical institutions and communication centers. "The objective is to promote growing Saudi-Indian relations and benefit from the Indian experience in the field of IT," said Badr Algarni, a spokesman of the Saudi Embassy in New Delhi.

Algarni said that the delegation hopes to enable the Saudi youth to learn from other cultures as well as foster friendly relations between Saudi and Indian youth. We hope the activities of the delegation will provide an opportunity for young Saudi men and women to interact with their Indian counterparts and understand common ideas and perceptions."

He pointed out that the three Indian cities — Bangalore, Hyderabad and New Delhi — have been chosen because of their global contributions in the field of technology. The Saudi delegation, he said, is scheduled to visit the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Narayana Hrudyalaya for Telemedicine project in Bangalore, the Google Microsoft office and Dr. Reddy's Laboratories in Hyderabad.

The youth delegation will also visit the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) and the Indian Institute of Technology in the Indian capital city. This will provide exposure to Saudi youth at a time when the Kingdom has emerged as the largest ICT market in the region.

Saudi Arabia's total investment in information and communication technologies sector is expected to reach SR50 billion by 2015.