The time is ripe for the Philippines to be on the map of the highly profitable knowledge process outsourcing (KPO) industry, House Deputy Speaker and former three-term senator Loren Legarda said.
Legarda pointed to the high competence and skills of Filipinos in accounting, legal research, web design and content development, market research, and other significant operations and requirements in business operations.
“We have to invest in knowledge economy and keep on advancing the competencies of our workforce by introducing them to software programming and other innovation capabilities,” stressed Legarda as she vowed to introduce legislative measures to ensure government support to the KPO.
Unlike in business process outsourcing (BPO), KPO skills are in demand among companies that lack enough skilled professionals needed for business operations. The Philippines is acknowledged as among the world leaders in the BPO industry.
Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) stalwart Legarda, who is seeking a Senate comeback under the UniTeam ticket, explained that creating a “workforce with highly specialized knowledge and making them more adept and qualified” translates to higher compensation and probability of being hired by the world’s best technology companies.
She said Filipino information technology (IT) professionals should be discouraged in limiting themselves into doing support staff work that could earn them only P15,000 to P17,000 monthly.
She said they can engage in programming and earn as much as P1 million per month in take home pay currently enjoyed by international programmers.
“If you train Filipinos in these specialized skills, they would also be able to earn as much as P1 million per month, even from the Philippines, more so now that work is being done remotely,” Legarda said.
The Antique lawmaker stated: “The Filipino youth are the builders of the nation and the future of the country. For us to progress further, we have to empower them and provide them the avenue to hone their knowledge and skills through education and training."
As a legislator, Legarda authored laws that contributed to the development of the youth, education and economy.
One of them is Republic Act (RA) No. 11293, or the Philippine Innovation Act, which aims to promote a culture of strategic planning and innovation to encourage creative thinking and knowledge creation.
She authored the law creating the Department of Information and Communications Technology as well as sponsored the allocation for free Wi-FI access in all state-owned universities and colleges and other public places.
In the House of Representatives, Legarda filed “One Tablet, One Student Act of 2021” that seeks to provide each public elementary and secondary student as well as students enrolled in state universities and colleges (SUCs) a tablet, to enable them to continue learning despite the present conditions of the education sector.