Vol. XXII, No. 35 [ BusinessWorld Online ]
Friday, September 12, 2008 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
BACOLOD — The city and province of Iloilo, which host 12 call centers and other business process outsourcing firms, are raking in about P100 million in monthly revenues, a trade and industry official said.
Speaking at the opening of the Iloilo IT Week on Tuesday, Trade regional director Dominic Abad said the figure consists of about P30 million in salaries alone, while the rest comes from rental and other payments.
Call centers and BPO companies employ about 3,000 workers in Iloilo.
"Now that we have seen the economic impact of the IT industry, I hope we all appreciate this because we have to prepare and make Iloilo ready for other companies," Mr. Abad told the local IT stakeholders.
For 2008 alone, at least seven more BPO companies have expressed interest in relocating in Iloilo, he said.
To attract more investors, Mr. Abad said Iloilo must address the need for both human resources and support services.
Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas, for his part, said Ilonggo businessmen should take risks and become active partners of the local government in preparing Iloilo as an alternative site for IT locators.
He said Iloilo lacks infrastructure support because it has no existing buildings readily available for investors, although it has quality manpower.
Mr. Treñas said Iloilo City should emulate Bacolod that has converted vacant commercial buildings into special economic zones for IT locators.
Mr. Treñas urged building owners used by call center companies to apply for accreditation with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority. — Nanette L. Guadalquiver
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