Sun.Star Economic Forum

ACCESS to finance by the small medium enterprises (SMEs) is not due to lack of funds but reluctance of private banks to lend to SMEs,  said Rafaelita M. Aldaba of Philippine Institute for Development Studies.

Speaking before the Sun.Star Economic Forum Wednesday, Aldaba said the government lending programs are directed mainly to micro-enterprises and livelihood programs. Read the rest of this entry »

GOVERNMENT should look after the basics like infrastructure, institutions, goods market effeciency than give subsidies to small medium enterprises (SMEs), a German expert said.

Siegfried Herzog of Friedrich Naumann Foundation shared Germany’s SME experience during the Sun.Star Economic Forum Wednesday at the Casino Espanol. Read the rest of this entry »

CEBU is the most promising city worldwide in terms of hosting Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) investments, a study from a strategic advisory firm said.

Dr. Cayetano Paderanga, UP School of Economics professor quoting a report from the Cebu Investment and Promotions Center (CIPC) said BPO companies based in Cebu employ 50,000 people and there have been no reports of retrenchments in the industry. Read the rest of this entry »

COMPARED to large industrialized nations, the Philippines was able to hold on to positive GDP growth rate of 0.4 percent for the first quarter of 2009 at a time of global recession, said Dr. Cayetano Paderanga, UP School of Economics professor.

Paderanga speaking before the Sun.Star Economic Forum at Casino Espanol on Wednesday said the credit slowdown in the US resulted in economy slowdown, affecting Philippine exports and OFW employment. Read the rest of this entry »

SUN.STAR Economic Forum  on Small Medium Enterprises was officially opened Wednesday by Sun.Star Publishing Inc. President Jesus B. Garcia.

This year’s economic forum focuses on small medium enterprises (SMEs) with the theme—“Small and Medium Enterprises: Jobs, Economic Growth” Read the rest of this entry »

AN EXECUTIVE of a business process outsourcing (BPO) company admitted that the companies in the industry are partly to blame for misconceptions about the kind of work in a BPO company.

Yogesh Malhotra, lead for Accenture’s Philippine Delivery Center Network for BPO, said “glamorizing” the work of a BPO employee is one of the reasons that many leave the industry.

Most of the recruitment advertisements posted by BPO companies usually highlight “fun at work.” (more)

Next to the National Capital Region, Cebu has the biggest concentration of outsourcing and off-shoring workers, said a business processing group official.

Oscar Sanez, Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP) chief executive officer, said aside from major outsourcing players putting up branches in Cebu, there are companies that have chosen to set up their first Philippine operations in the province.

He said that of the 15,066 business process outsourcing workers in Cebu, 10,013 are “voice-based” while 3,943 are “non-voice.” This figure is about the same as Clark and a third of that of Quezon City, he added. Sanez is one of the speakers of the ongoing Sun.Star Economic Forum on “Business Process Outsourcing: Prospects and Challenges for Cebu’s Economy.”
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Available workforce, a good business environment, and available sites for expansion, which drive the growth of the outsourcing and off-shoring industry, are also the factors posing problems to the sector.

Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP) chief executive officer Oscar Sanez said that if the country fails to address these issues in the next few years, outsourcing and off-shoring investments will go to other emerging markets. Read the rest of this entry »

SUN.STAR Publishing Inc. President Jesus B. Garcia opened Wednesday’s Sun.Star Economic Forum on Business Process Outsourcing with the identification of challenges and issues confronting the industry.

This year’s economic forum is focused on the prospects and challenges of BPO.

Garcia, who was former transportation and telecommunications secretary, said Cebu being a limestone island couldn’t grow in terms of agriculture and industry.

“The only way for Cebu to grow is to grow through the services sector, “ Garcia added.

Read the rest of this entry »

GOVERNMENT should start to expand the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) now if it wants to attract more tourists to Cebu, Tourism Secretary Ace Durano said. (more)