BPO sector positive for wealth creation

Mr. Alhassan Umar, Director at the Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) Secretariat says Ghana has abundant opportunities in the Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) industry not only for jobs creation and growth but also for the creation of wealth for economic development.

The country is presently creating a globally competitive enabling environment which has the potential to help develop, build and sustain a strong and vibrant BPO/ITES industry.

This strategy when completed has the tendency to position Ghana as the preferred outsourcing destination in Africa.

Mr.Umar made these known in Accra at a day’s workshop which was aimed at sensitizing the media on the potential of the e-Ghana project and its benefit to the media.

Making a presentation under the topic ‘Ghana’s ITES and BPO Unharnessed Potential,’ Mr. Umar expressed that optimizim that the country’s BPO sector holds great untapped potential when harnessed fully by governments and its agencies.

Ghana’s BPO sector’s has been described as having huge potential to create some 37,000 direct jobs and close to 150,000 indirect jobs, and to generate revenues of approximately US$US750 million within a five-year period.

The country has also been recognised as an attractive destination for BPO and was ranked the No. 1 destination in sub-Saharan Africa, ahead of South Africa, and is No. 22 globally out of 40 countries.

Mrs. Veronica Boateng, Director of Application Systems at the National Information Technology Agency (NITA) in her presentation indicated that the e-Ghana project seeks to create a portal where citizens can do business with government on-line.

“Components of the e-Ghana projects such as e-parliament-immigration and e-services will help in the free flow of information between agencies, government and service providers and the general public.

The project would help minimize the human face in the course of interactions as every thing will be done online.

She explained that the project will help create an enabling environment to attain the policy objectives of accelerated development through ICT, and also help developed human capacity in the sector.

“The project will as well contribute to improve efficiency and transparency of Government functions, through Government Communications and e-Government Applications,” she said.

Ministry of Communications, the lead promoter of the e-Ghana project is optimistic of providing over 6000 jobs and has targeted 50 percent women participation in these jobs before the project ends by 2011.

The objective of the e-Ghana Project is to assist the Government in generating growth and employment, by leveraging information and communication technology (ICT) and public-private partnerships, and to develop the IT Enabled Services and contribute to improved efficiency and transparency of selected government functions, through e-government applications.