Philippine President Benigno Aquino III said that the country’s business process outsourcing (BPO) and offshoring sector can grow further with government support. During the International Information Technology – Business Process Management (IT-BPM) Summit, the president expressed confidence that other countries will later take the Philippines as an example of how a country became a successful global player in just a few years.

The president added that his administration will continue to support the BPO industry by implementing a service management program to prepare college students for entry-level BPO positions and funding information technology (IT) courses via the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

“We will also be there as a constant and steady partner. We will continue to solicit concerns and proposals to make sure that the Philippines stays as a global leader in the IT BPO sector far into the future,” the president added.

Aquino told business leaders that the BPO sector could employ 1.3 million Filipinos by 2016 from 2014’s 1 million. Eight Philippine cities were included in the 2014 Tholons Top 100 Outsourcing Destinations in the world, with Metro Manila at no. 2 and Cebu City at no. 8. The 2014 Global Services Location Index by A.T. Kearney also listed the Philippines as the seventh best IT-BPO destination in the world.