FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2008 | INFRASTRUCTURE
KAPALONG, Davao del Norte - President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo led today the groundbreaking ceremony of the P1.5-billion Kapalong-Talaingod-Valencia City-Bukidnon road, a major component of the government’s “infrastructure surge” program this year.
Under the “infrastructure surge” program, 3,000 kilometers of roads will be constructed all over the country this year alone under a P200-billion spending program.
The 58-kilometer road project here merited a special mention by the President in her State-of-the-Nation Address (SONA) last July as an important component of her administration’s overall efforts to develop Mindanao, reduce poverty and hunger and attract investments into the region.. . . [ full story ]
Welcome to the Philippine Regions . . . Luzon, Visayas & Mindanao !
( Photos courtesy of Department of Tourism )
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SITEL, worldwide leading call center, comes to Davao
Davao City (8 February) -- Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) newly-designated OIC-regional director and labor attaché 11, Atty. Jalilo O. dela Torre bared today that SITEL, a world's leading call center company plans to invest and establish its company here in Davao.
Labor Attache and OIC-regional director dela Torre, who just assumed office last February 1st said that with SITEL's plan to expand its services here in Davao, Dabawenyos would expect more employment opportunities to be provided by one of the biggest call center in the world, he said.
Meanwhile, OIC-assistant regional director Ofelia Domingo said just very recently, SITEL's Human Resource Development for Northern Mindanao, Ms. Irene Roa, presented its company profile during their visit here in Davao.
The presentation was held at the Holy Cross of Davao college gym with the support of DOLE regional office and PESO manager Arnold Barillo, and participated in by partner stakeholders, PESO managers, students and DOLE personnel coming from the various parts of Mindanao region.
Director dela Torre shared a success story of DOLE-CAR in its linkages with SITEL and other stakeholders in making Baguio City as an ICT friendly City that boost employment generation in the area.
SITEL is now looking for a competitive agent who can help in upholding and bringing out the name of the company here in Davao City, an agent who can help in providing fully integrated customer care and back office processing services.
Ms. Roa, in her company presentation said "one thing I can assure is that: customer can expand professionalism, service consistency, support and information in every transaction."
We are set to establish a well-managed call center that can serve customer quickly, honestly and efficiently and effectively in call handling, faster response to callers, phone etiquette, basic logic in telephone problem solving and many more outsourcing services, Mr. Roa further said. (PIA)
[ Source : www.pia.gov.ph ] February 8, 2008
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Convergys to open Bacolod facility April
Vol. XXI, No. 135 [ Business World Online ]
Friday, February 08, 2008 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
BACOLOD CITY — Customer care management provider Convergys Corp. targets to open in April a contact center here, its ninth in the country.
Marife Zamora, vice-president and country general manager, said the company has hired about 100 employees and aims to create 500 new jobs in Bacolod before the end of the year.
"Bacolod City has been providing well-educated English proficient talents and we see a lot of potential," she said during a courtesy call to Mayor Evelio R. Leonardia.
Clint Streit, Convergys president for customer management, also said Bacolod has a pro-business environment because of the support of the local government and the business sector.
‘Flattered’
Mr. Leonardia said the local government was flattered that Convergys has chosen to expand to Bacolod outside of Manila and Cebu.
Convergys currently employs 12,000 people in its six contact centers in Manila and two in Cebu.
"We have set a target that over the next five years, we will double that presence in the Philippines," Mr. Streit said.
Friendly city
Construction is underway for a 3,000-square-meter facility here.
It will include a contact center, administration office, recruitment and training rooms, advanced language laboratory and a cafeteria.
"Our presence here and the kind of support we are getting is really a testament to the fact that Bacolod City is, indeed, the most business-friendly city," Ms. Zamora said. — Chrysee G. Samillano
[ Published by : Business World Online – bworld.com.ph ] February 8, 2008
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SBMA unveils plan for eco-urban center
| By Malou Dungog |
| SUBIC BAY FREEPORT, Feb. 8 (PNA) — The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) unveiled on Tuesday its long-term goal of establishing in the Subic Bay area a First World eco-urban center that would also push for the development of municipalities surrounding the free port. In his state of the Freeport address (SOFA) at the Subic Bay Arts Center here, SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza said the SBMA envisions a unique eco-urban development that could serve as a regional city for South East Asia. “This is the challenge for the future,” Arreza told stakeholder groups here. “Our big long-term goal would be to transform the greater Subic Bay area into a First World eco-urban center in 20 years.” Arreza, who reported on the agency’s plans after SBMA Chairman Feliciano Salonga cited accomplishments in the past year, said the eco-urban project will incorporate significant investment, financial and business opportunities, and allow the convergence of developments in logistics, commercial, leisure, educational, and medical industries. “It would also complement Clark Freeport in our common posturing as the new catalyst for growth in the Mega Luzon area,” he said. Under the plan, the SBMA has identified various development nodules for government and private funding. These include commercial areas in downtown Olongapo and Subic’s Gateway District; integrated resorts in Olongapo, Morong, Bataan and Subic, Zambales; industrial estates in Hermosa, Bataan and Castillejos, Zambales; and information technology (IT) parks at the Tipo area, also in Hermosa. The plan also calls for development of an integrated port and logistics area; a medical city in Cubi; an education city; additional housing areas at the El Kabayo area and in Tipo; and a shipbuilding center at the Redondo Peninsula. Arreza said the vision for Subic’s eco-urban center is boosted by Executive Order No. 675 and the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway Project (SCTEP), which is set to open next month. “These are the two ‘enablers’ that would help us deliver on our vision,” he stressed. He said that E.O. 675, which extended Subic’s tax and duty-free regime to other areas within the Subic Special Economic and Freeport Zone (SSEFZ) that may be identified, fenced, and secured by the SBMA, would address the problem of limited space in Subic. On the other hand, the SCTEP would have a “tremendous potential” because it would hasten the movement of goods and manpower in the area, he added. “With this alliance between Subic and Clark, and now the surrounding areas as well, we will be able to compete against the best in the South East Asian region,” he said. At the same time, Arreza expressed confidence that the eco-urban development plan would be a viable project, given the SBMA’s success in generating investments since 2006. “In our first SOFA two years ago, Chairman Salonga and I pledged to double investment commitments in Subic from the cumulative total of $ 2.3 billion in 2005 to $ 5 billion in 2010,” Arreza recalled. “Now that we have exceeded our original target when we reached $ 5.4 billion last year, we have adjusted our 2010 goal to $ 7.5 billion,” he said. Arreza added the SBMA had paved the way for more investments in Subic by streamlining investment- and port-processing procedures, organizing the SBMA business group into industry-focused units, and facilitating the automatic renewal of certificate of registration and tax exemption. It also clarified legal ambiguities, harmonized customs procedures, intensified the agency’s credit and collection efforts, and cracked down on smuggling. (PNA) |
[ Published by : Positivenewsmedia.net ] February 8, 2008
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Robinsons Land breaks ground for Mindanao residential project
[ Published by : Philstar.com ] February 7, 2008
Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC), the real estate development arm of the family of taipan John Gokongwei, has broken ground on Richmond Hills, a middle-income residential community that will rise on an 8.2-hectare property in Cagayan de Oro.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, RLC said Richmond Hills’ average lot size is 150 square meters priced for as low as P675,000 with an option for housing, ideal for overseas Filipino workers and the middle market segment.
“Richmond Hills is perfect for individuals who look for affordable quality homes in a secured community where they can enjoy comfortable living that they deserve. Moreover, our super easy financing plans make it easier and more convenient than ever before for our clients to avail of our offering,” said Marilu Alferez, RLC general manager and senior vice-president.
Alferez said the project sits on a plateau in Bgy. Camaman-an, offering residents a breathtaking view of the city.
She said the residential subdivision is also strategically located near commercial and business districts.
RLC has been very busy expanding its presence nationwide. It recently unveiled plans to build six clusters of townhouse villas within its planned exclusive residential resort community in Mactan, Cebu.
The project, called Blue Coast Residences, will rise on a 3.37-hectare property that will comprise a total of 25 two to three-story villas. It will be launched in the second quarter of the year.
RLC’s second project in Cebu is Aspen Heights, a 25-hectare residential subdivision in Consolacion which offers lots with option of housing package.
Other projects in the pipeline include AmiSa, a five-star, six-tower condominium resort which will be located in Mactan and a three-storey mixed-use building.
The six towers will offer 900 high-end seaside condominiums units and a five-star resort which will have 200 to 300 rooms. The IT building, on the other hand, will also house retail outlets and a condominium hotel on RLC’s 4,000-square meter property in Fuente Osmeña, Cebu City.
RLC, through its housing unit Robinsons Homes, has over 26 residential communities and commercial subdivision projects all over the country.
[ Published by : Philstar.com ] February 7, 2008
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Hausland subsidiary to build low-cost, socialized houses
Vol. XXI, No. 134 [ Business World Online ]
Thursday, February 07, 2008 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
A NEW subsidiary of Angeles-based Hausland Development Corp. is lining up four projects to build 6,000 low-cost and socialized housing units in the next three years, at the cost of P2 billion, the company’s president has bared.
Fiesta Communities, Inc.’s projects are in line with the government’s plan to clear the housing backlog by making homes more affordable to the working class, with packages worth up to P750,000 in Central Luzon particularly in the towns of Porac and Mabalacat in Pampanga and the provinces of Tarlac and Olongapo.
"The government has lowered interest rates for housing loans. This is an opportunity for ordinary workers to buy a house. We have a 3.8 million housing backlog wherein around 80% will come from the average working class and the OFW (overseas Filipino workers) market," said Wilfredo M. Tan, Hausland Development president and chief executive officer, on the sidelines of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Philippines 2007 awards Tuesday night.
Last year, the Home Development Mutual Fund, popularly known as the Pag-IBIG Fund, reduced the interest rate for housing loans above P300,000 to P750,000 to 7%, targeting the middle-income bracket earning an estimated P16,000 to P20,000 a month.
The monthly amortization, which covers principal and interest, is now down to P4,990 from P6,860 for housing loan packages of P500,000 to P750,000.
The property firm, which started in acquisition and resale of lands in 1985, will have a 2,500-housing unit project in Porac, Pampanga and 3,000 in Mabalacat.
Hausland also has housing projects for local government employees of Olongapo aside from private and government employees of Tarlac.
"Financing basically will come from my developmental loan. We have credit lines from the Development Bank of the Philippines and Land Bank of the Philippines. For contract-to-sell financing, we go to China Banking Corp. Most of our low-end packages will be financed by Pag-IBIG Fund, which will also provide end-user financing and developmental loan," he said.
Aside from Pampanga and Tarlac, Hausland also has projects in Nueva Ecija and Pangasinan.
At the Entrepreneur of the Year awards, Mr. Tan emerged as Realty and Construction Entrepreneur for 2007.
He said hard work and dedication were his secrets to success, aside maintaining credibility and pursuing an earnest desire to help ordinary workers buy a house.
"We produce houses buyers would be proud of so they will surely pay their monthly amortization," Mr. Tan said.
Mr. Tan said it is his dream for Hausland to go public "in the next five years."
"We have been established and we have good credibility. We have a very good track record. Who knows, we can go IPO (initial public offering) in the next five years. If the situation calls for more expansion, we may opt for an IPO. There is a big market to speak of. A lot of Filipinos need housing," he said. — Ruby Anne M. Rubio
[ Published by : BusinessWorld Online ] February 7, 2008
( Insert Photo posted by philinfocenter courtesy of Hausland Development Corporation -www.hausland.com )
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Tough job ahead for official tasked to develop Boracay
| Boy Ryan Zabal Aklan Rep. Florencio Miraflores said Gil was appointed anew by President Arroyo, to replace Connie Padilla, as EPG group secretary. "The urgent task facing the EPG for now is the flooding problem where the Philippine Tourism Authority (PTA) is mandated to fast-track the construction of the drainage system in Boracay," Miraflores pointed out. Miraflores said the PTA needs the site for the three pumping stations to solve the flooding of low-lying areas in the island. Gil is a member of Philippine Military Academy Class 1971 and former Philippine National Police (PNP) deputy chief for administration and director for personnel and records management. He is also working at the Office of the President, with the rank of undersecretary, as deputy to National Security Council Adviser Norberto Gonzales. The private sector-led EPG was created by Arroyo under Memorandum Order No. 214 in 2006 to oversee the development of the island and to map out policies for the tourism industry. Last month, Malay Mayor Ceciron Cawaling and Environment Secretary Lito Atienza had agreed to impose the sixmonth moratorium in the construction of buildings and in the issuance of construction permits to stop the island’s uncontrolled development that has threatened to destroy its environment. Tourism receipts in 2007 reached P10.9-billion after 596,798 tourists had visited the island of Boracay, increasing from the 558,084 tourist arrivals in 2006. |
[ Published by: Manila Bulletin Online – mb.com.p ] February 6, 2008
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DOTC, DPWH in tug-of-war over control of Kennon
By Jane Cadalig
KENNON Road's supervision has become a tug-of-war between the regional offices of the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
While DOTC Regional Director Federico Mandapat stands by his claim that the DOTC was given authority to supervise the national road, DPWH personnel insists otherwise.
Alexander Castaneda, head of the DPWH Benguet Engineering District 1, said it is the DPWH, which has the authority to supervise Kennon Road, being the sole agency mandated to manage the highways.
"I believe Kennon's supervision is under the region (DPWH)," Castaneda said.
The question on what agency has the proper authority to implement regulations along Kennon Road came about when Mandapat banned inter-regional public utility vans from traversing the road, citing safety reasons.
Mandapat re-routed vans coming from Pangasinan and La Union to Palispis-Aspiras Highway (formerly Marcos Highway), effective September 1 last year, which raised howl among van operators and residents along Kennon.
DPWH Regional Director Mariano Alquiza in an earlier letter to Mandapat said it is his office, which has the authority to impose regulations over the road.
Mandapat, meantime, said the DOTC acquired the jurisdiction to ensure public road safety through Administrative Order (AO) 184 issued by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
The AO, Mandapat said, disbanded the Multi-Sectoral Committee on Road Safety and transferred its functions to the DOTC.
Mandapat based his order banning vans along Kennon Road on a geological map issued by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) indicating 85 percent of the national road is highly susceptible to landslides.
Geologist Faye Apil of the MGB said the road is unsafe for motorists during the rainy months.
The DPWH usually issues a closure advisory during typhoons and heavy rains.
Members of the Benguet Provincial Board passed a resolution asking Mandapat to recall his order.
Residents and van operators traversing Kennon have sought the intervention of local officials on their plight.
Mandapat has stood firm on his stand not to allow inter-regional vans along Kennon Road, saying even if they traverse the road, they are not allowed to load passengers along the way.
Doing this, he said, is a violation of the conditions in their franchise application, which is on a point-to-point basis.
Operators complain taking Palispis-Aspiras Highway costs them more, while making the travel time to Baguio City and back, longer.
Kennon is the shortest route to Baguio from Metro Manila and other lowland provinces.
[ Published by : sunstar.com.ph ] February 6, 2008
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Private sector-gov't partnership promotes Region 8 as alternative tourist destination
Tacloban City (February 5) -- The private sector is an important partners in the development and promotion of the Tourism Industry in Eastern Visayas.
This was the observation of the economic group who attended the recently held Regional Development Council of Eastern Visayas Strategic Planning Workshop.
Region 8 is being pushed as an alternative tourist destination and the private sector has been active in the development of recreational facilities such as resorts which are now sprouting in the Region.
The private sector has also been active in medical tourism with the establishment of several spa clinics which are comparable to if not even better than those in the other places in the country offering the same.
On the other hand, the government agencies and local government units have been very active in organizing tourism activities, capacity enhancement programs for frontliners and in tourism promotion.
The municipalities in the first district of Leyte have been given Tourism and Information office through the countryside development fund of then Congresswoman Remedios Petilla.
Moreover, the group took notice that protection, conservation and upgrading of potential tourism areas are being pursued.
All these efforts resulted in increased tourist arrivals both domestic and foreign, by 52.3% from 2005-2006.
However, more efforts should be done to make Region 8 people visitor-friendly by promoting in-bound tourism, the group observed.
There is also a need to massively improve the infrastructure facilities and amenities to make the region an alternative tourist destination.
Among the concerns of the sector are the need to intensify tourism promotion for the Region; improvement of the frontline service; the need for more and quality transport systems to tourism terminals; the support for infrastructure facilities and amenities; and becoming more tourism friendly.
The target of the Tourism sector from this year to 2010, is to have one iconic destination per province. Another target is to increase the annual tourist arrival by 15%. (PIA 8)
[ Source : www.pia.gov.ph ] February 5, 2008
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Queensland controversy drags other beach resorts
[ Davao ] Tuesday, February 05, 2008
By Ben O. Tesiorna
THE controversy over the expansion project of the Queensland Motel in Matina Aplaya has now dragged the other resort owners in the area after it was discovered that former President Ramon Magsaysay proclaimed the whole stretch of the Matina Aplaya beachfront a reservation area back in 1954.
The proclamation signed on May 3, 1954, states that the area is a public land reserved for recreational facilities and that no individual could own a lot in the area.
Mayor Rodrigo Duterte said if this is the case, then how come resort owners like Adarna of Queensland and family of former vice Mayor Luis Bonguyan were able to acquire titles for their resorts. Unless they acquired their titles before the 1954 proclamation, they are still entitled to it.
The Queensland management has been in hot water recently for implementing expansion project at the baywalk area without the required permits from concerned government agencies.
Earlier, the mayor suggested for Queensland to secure necessary permits with an offer for the City Government to help.
The mayor also ordered Queensland to take heed of the order of Vice Mayor Sara Duterte who ordered the motel management to immediately stop their beach works.
(February 5, 2008 issue)
[ Published by : sunstar.com ] February 5, 2008
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P29.2-million ‘bagsakan’ center launched in Pangasinan
| THE Department of Agriculture has opened a P29.2-million regional “bagsakan” or drop-off center in Malasiqui, Pangasinan to raise the profitability of farmers and expand the access of consumers to quality foodstuff. Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said Malasiqui’s bagsakan center is projected to bring in a daily average volume of 2.5 metric tons (MT) of vegetables and other agricultural products from lowland and upland producers. A drop-off center is where farmers and fishermen can trade their produce directly to sellers without going through middlemen. It will benefit 20,798 households in 73 barangays in the municipality of Malasiqui. The Agriculture chief said that the local government of Malasiqui loaned the P29.9-million fund of the bagsakan center to Development Bank of the Philippines. It is intended to serve as an intermediate point for farmers of Malasiqui and other nearby municipalities as well as upland vegetable producers where they can consolidate their products and sell them to Northern Luzon consumers or bring them to Metro Manila market at higher farm gate prices. “By putting up bagsakan centers, farmers now have definite areas where they can directly bring their produce to local consumers, thus eliminating unnecessary trading layers that cut through their incomes,” Yap said. At the opening of the Malasiqui bagsakan, Yap committed to provide the municipality with a refrigerated van and wash area for vegetables once the drop-off center meets its average volume of production. The Agriculture Department’s Agribusiness Marketing Assistance Division (AMAD) in the Ilocos Region has coordinated with its counterpart in the Cordillera Administrative Region to encourage Baguio vegetable producers to trade their produce like potatoes, carrots, cabbage, sayote, raddish, sweat peas, and bell pepper at the Malasiqui bagsakan. The Agriculture Department plans to open more bagsakan centers, for this year, as well as barangay bagsakan, where prime commodities are sold at prices lower than those in regular retail outlets, outside Metro Manila. In 2007, the DA set up a total of 25 BFTs in Metro Manila and another 17 in the regions, plus 12 bagsakan centers for farm products. The DA is aiming for a minimum, annual farm-growth average of 4 percent to 5.2 percent over the next three years to keep the agriculture sector on its high growth path and thus spell better lives for rural families by way of bigger yields and higher incomes. |
Published by : manilatimes.net ] February 5, 2008
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Metrobank Group to build $500-M power plant
[ Published by : philstar.com ] February 4, 2008
Monday, February 4, 2008
The consortium led by Global Business Power Corp. of the Metrobank Group has started the construction of a $500-million, 264-megawatt (mw) coal-fired power plant in Toledo City, Cebu.
The group, which include Taiwan’s Formosa Heavy Industries Corp. and Cebu-based power firms Aboitiz Power Corp. and Vivant Power Corp., said the project’s groundbreaking shows their commitment to help solve the inadequate power supply in the province.
Cebu has a total power demand of around 460 mw, a nine-percent increase from the 2007 figures. At present, the province still imports power from the geothermal power plant in Leyte through submarine transmission cable.
Due to Cebu’s dependence on the Leyte geothermal power plant, any disruption from the power source or the transmission facility will cause power shortage that will, in turn, result in brownouts in the province.
The new state-of-the-art power plant to be built in Sangi, Toledo will have three 82-mw capacity generators. These power generators will use circulating fluidized bed clean coal technology, which will ensure that sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide emissions meet World Bank standards.
The project is set to be completed by the first quarter of 2010.
The Toledo power plant project is the Metrobank Group’s latest investment in this Visayan province. Federal Land Inc., the property arm of Metrobank Group, and Asian Pacific Top Management Corp. have already embarked on a P500-million facelift of the former Cebu Plaza Hotel in Cebu City.
Federal Land started refurbishing and further developing the Cebu hotel property in late 2005 under a management contract that tapped the Marco Polo Hotel Group to operate the hotel. It is now known as the Marco Polo Cebu Plaza Hotel.
“Cebu is a major business hub and leisure destination in the country,” said Metrobank Group chairman Dr. George S.K. Ty. “We recognize the potential of the province and these investments are our contribution to the continued development of Cebu in particular, and to the country’s power and tourism industries in general.”
Global Power president Jesus Alcordo said the proposed power plant will also supply power to Negros and Panay Island.
Alcordo said the Cebu-Negros-Panay grid is facing a power crisis that will adversely impact on the economy of the three islands if the supply problem is not immediately addressed.
Taiwan’s Formosa, which will act as engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor and technical partner for the power plant, has acquired the technology of an advanced fluidized bed boiler that will address the need for environment protection.
Global Power is a holding company that owns the Toledo Power Co. in Sangi and three other power companies, mostly in the Visayas. The Aboitiz Group has major investments in power generation and distribution and the Garcia-owned Vivant has also been in the power business for many years.
[ Published by : philstar.com ] February 4, 2008
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Airport project needs P300M
[ Published by : sunstar.com.ph ] February 3, 2008
AT LEAST P300 million will be allocated for the development of Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) as a gateway hub to the central and southern Philippines.
General Manager Danilo Augusto Francia said this was discussed by the MCIA Authority board in its Jan. 29 meeting.
The president of an airline company was also present during the meeting and discussed their expansion plans for domestic and international operations.
He, however, said he was not at liberty to divulge both the airline official’s name and the details of the company’s
expansion plans.
“But we expect our airport to have more airplanes home-porting at our ramps,” Francia said.
The southwest ramp fronting the Most Important Persons’ (MIP) Lounge will be used for regional aircraft operations, and the MCIAA is now evaluating how much it will cost to develop it.
The National Government-funded MIP Lounge was constructed as a component facility for the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Cebu last January 2007.
Located adjacent to the Mactan Benito Ebuen Air Base, it has three VIP rooms, one presidential suite, a press conference room and a media center.
It was originally proposed that after the summit, the P46.3-million lounge will serve as passenger terminal for regional flights from Cebu to any part of Visayas and Mindanao.
Also, Francia said that the MCIAA board is evaluating how much it will take to develop Camotes Island’s airfield so as to encourage tourism there.
Department of Tourism (DOT) 7 Director Patria Aurora Roa is a board member.
Sen. Richard Gordon, committee on tourism chairman and former DOT secretary, said that opening regional flights, from Region VII (Mactan airport) to Region V (Bicol) or Mactan airport to Camotes Island or Camiguin Province, for example, will further increase tourist arrivals.
In a presentation in Cebu last August, Tourism Secretary Ace Durano raised the need to start expanding the MCIAA quickly, adding that it already exceeded its terminal capacity of 2.5 million.
The tourism department’s target is to attract one million foreign visitors to Cebu by 2012, from a projected 537,600 in 2007. (EOB)
[ Published by : sunstar.com.ph ] February 3, 2008
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Baguio stripped from Cyber corridor
[ Published by : sunstar.com.ph } February 3, 2008
INFORMATION Technology (IT) industry players have delisted this mountain resort city as one of the primary IT and call center hubs in the country due to the lack of sufficient telecommunication infrastructure which would guarantee continuous service to their foreign and local clients.
This was disclosed by Trinidad Trinidad, executive director of the Baguio-Benguet Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (BBCCII), who added that it is now time for government to come out with appropriate measures to attract telecommunication investors to come to the city and put up the needed facilities for advanced IT operations.
She added IT and call center companies expanding their operations in the Philippines prefer to go to Cebu, Davao, Clark or Subic because of the presence of three or more service providers which could guarantee uninterrupted service to their clients in the other parts of the world.
In the city, only the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) and sister company Smart Telecommunications provide telephone lines for call centers.
Trinidad said the delisting of the city is a big setback to the repeated pronouncements of national and local officials that the city is fast becoming the IT and call center hub of the North.
While business in the city remains in good shape despite the economic slow down in the US and the unabated oil price increases, Dennis Sy, president of the Baguio Filipino Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BFCCI), said government, both national and local, must adopt appropriate programs and projects which are designed to boost investor confidence in areas like Baguio City so the desired economic growth in the areas outside Metro Manila could be achieved.
In the case of Baguio, businessmen have time and again prodded local officials to pass the local investment plan to serve as a plus factor for prospective investors to infuse capital in the local scene especially in the telecommunication industry where the city is fast falling behind.
Trinidad said IT and call center companies have helped in providing employment to thousands of locals but the delisting of the city could affected the economic gains the city has achieved over the past several years.
Ironically, telecommunication companies are having second thoughts of infusing billions of pesos in improving their facilities to cope with the advancement of technology because of alleged huge capital needed due to the mountainous terrain and the rather low return of investment because of a small market. (DS)
[ Published by : sunstar.com.ph } February 3, 2008
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