Free and Open Source Software for Geoinformatics (FOSS4G) has grown in scope and
popularity in the Asian Region. Many individuals, institutions and private companies
have found a good business case for FOSS4G. In this presentation we highlight
relevance of FOSS4G and also discuss about the benefits of FOSS4G solutions in the
Asian context. Further, we discuss some of the major tasks that have been undertaken
to promote the use of FOSS4G in Asia that include; 

·Software Internationalization and Localization 
·Development of prototype applications to demonstrate FOSS4G capabilities to local
and regional audiences
·Software Packaging and Customization for local and regional needs
·Training, Support and Development of e-Learning Contents in local languages
·Support Open standards and Open access to geospatial data in region

The above activities have not only complemented and strengthened collaborative
efforts initiated by the Open Source Geospatial Foundation but also helped in
increasing awareness about FOSS4G and speed-up adoption in education, industry,
government and non-profit organizations in Asian region.

Proprietary software vendors have been very successful in harnessing the rich pool of
talent that is available in the Asia region. Some collective thought needs to be
focused on ways and means of canalizing the creativity and ingenuity of software
developers in the Asian region into developing FOSS4G solutions. Our experience over
the past decade in research and teaching using FOSS4G has led us to firmly believe
that has the potential not only to support capacity building but also to stimulate
indigenous software enterprises in Asia, and thereby enriching input to the global
FOSS4G community.

Completed my Masters in Geology India and moved to Japan for pursuing my doctoral
research in Geoinformatics. Have been using, developing and promoting FOSS4G since
1994. Presently, Professor of Geoinformatics at Osaka City University, Japan.
Pursuing research on Spatial Database Systems and also involved in promoting
FOSS4G/OSGeo in the Asian region.