Government eyes 500,000 freelance ICT jobs this year
In a bid to capture a greater share of the global business process outsourcing (BPO) market, the Philippine government announced creating a program that will generate an additional 500,000 freelance ICT jobs in the countryside this year. The global BPO industry is expected to grow to a USD674bn industry and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) ICT office will embark on projects that will promote freelance ICT jobs in the countryside. Monchito Ibrahim, deputy executive director of e-Innovation of the DOST ICT Office, said the focus will be on areas where there is high population. but low employment due to lack of investors. The country’s IT-BPM industry is expected to provide 1.3 million direct jobs and USD25bn in revenues this year, Ibrahim added.