Thursday, January 31, 2008 Clark freeport eyed as site for IBM expansion programs By Reynaldo G. Navales
CLARK FREEPORT -- The International Business Machines or IBM has cited Clark Freeport for the freeport's edge in Information Technology (IT) noting that the zone is the best location for its expansion programs.
IBM president James Velasquez said: "Clark has become a strategic place for IBM to focus its efforts in."
Velasquez said IBM is eyeing Clark in line with their ongoing GEO Expansion programs, which taps top regions outside Metro Manila with IT opportunities.
"We are committed to bring out our IT and Business Solutions to Clark's business landscape, majority of which are classified under Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)," he said.
Velasquez said SME is one of IBM's largest and fastest growing market opportunities. He added that IBM recognizes the contributions mid-sized businesses make in innovation within the industries as well as being the driving economic engine for the global economy.
Clark Development Corporation (CDC) President Liberato Laus, in return, lauded and thanked IBM for bringing IT solutions to locator and investor firms based at the freeport.
During the product and services launching of IBM at Holiday Inn Clark dubbed "IBM@Clark, Technology and Business Solutions for Clark Business Leaders, Laus noted Clark's competitiveness in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) industry.
"We (in Clark) are ICT-prepared as technology advances run at a fast pace," Laus said.
In April last year, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) have given Clark a 9.23 score (10 being the highest) in ICT readiness.
The DTI and CICT, Laus said, have certified that Clark has met most of the crucial requisites of being an ideal destination for ICT locators.
"Clark is positioning itself as a viable outsourcing center for ICT and ICT-enabled services due to its strategic location, highly-skilled and trained manpower, investment areas with adequate facilities," Laus said.
