Friday-Saturday, April 18-19, 2008 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
[ manilastandardtoday.com ]
BACOLOD CITY — The establishment of call center operations in Bacolod, considered one of the "next wave" cities in information technology, has created 4,000 jobs as of January this year.
Councilor Jocelle Batapa-Sigue, chairwoman of the committee on communications and energy, said six call centers have so far set up operations in Bacolod. Among them are Focus Communications, Teleperformance, TeleTech and Convergys.
Aside from call centers, Bacolod has also attracted other information technology (IT) businesses that have created demand for special economic zones dedicated to IT. So far, six IT zones have been proclaimed while five others have been registered with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority and are awaiting a presidential proclamation, she said.
Ms. Sigue, who also heads the Bacolod IT Focus Team, said all these were achieved through the city’s IT program, which will be recognized today as the best public sector project in the Western Visayas region. The Bacolod IT Team was created through an Executive Order issued by Mayor Evelio R. Leonardia on May 27, 2005. It is tasked to come up with a comprehensive set of programs geared toward putting Bacolod City in the "cyberservices corridor" in the country.
Bacolod’s IT program won first place in the 2006-2007 Best Public Sector Projects Awards under the Local Government Unit category. The awards will be given by the Regional Development Council.
A total of 17 programs and projects implemented in Western Visayas will be cited for good public sector practices, excellence in governance and effective leadership.
Mr. Leonardia said the award, as well as the previous citations earned by the city government, ranked Bacolod among the premier cities in the country.
"This is very inspiring. This is one very good example of how far we can go when the private sector and government join hands. I am very pleased that the program has become a big boost to the economy in Bacolod City. This has given thousands of jobs to the people, has changed the complexion of the city and given Bacolod a new image," he added. — C.G. Samillano
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