Govt. seeking to increase employment in BPO industry
GEORGETOWN, GUYANA — Hundreds more jobs are about to become available in Guyana’s developing business process outsourcing (BPO) industry with the launch of several new call centers in the country.
This development was revealed during the ongoing budget debate that has been taking place in Parliament over the course of the past few weeks.
The Ali administration is working to provide 50,000 jobs to citizens.
The Ali administration had long pledged to create 50,000 jobs within its first five years in power, after being elected in 2020.
Since making that pledge, the government has steamrolled ahead with providing jobs in several industries, including its massive part-time job programme that has been launched in multiple regions.
Now, this latest venture marks another major milestone and step in the right direction towards achieving that ambitious employment goal for its people.
According to an official statement that provided more details on the matter, “The government has announced plans to set up four new call centers in Essequibo and Berbice, to increase employment in the business process outsourcing industry.
“With the creation of the four new centers, 800 new jobs will be made available, with the potential to scale up to 1,600.”
Call center jobs in Guyana already on the rise
There is already a developing call center industry in the Caribbean.
The BPO industry is not new to the Caribbean or Guyana, although it has been more prominent in other regional nations such as Jamaica.
However, the Guyanese government noted its continued efforts to bolster that industry.
“The government has already taken steps to support the expansion of the BPO industry by creating a supportive environment, engaging investors and decreasing the cost of operation,” it said.
“This has resulted in the creation of over 1,800 new BPO [call center] jobs since August 2020.”
Commenting on the industry’s potential, Senior Minister of Finance Dr. Ashni Singh said, “In alignment with our diversification agenda and commitment to create 50,000 jobs, the government continues to support and foster the expansion of the BPO industry.
“This industry has vast potential to create substantial employment and has already recorded tremendous success in bringing women into the workforce.”
He further noted that it would provide “valuable training and skills transferable to other areas of the economy”.
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