IT/BPO sector, a billion dollar industry soon

By Lalin Fernandopulle

Bangladesh is ahead of Sri Lanka in the IT/BPO industry which has grown leaps and bounds, IFS Sri Lanka and South Asia, Managing Director Jayantha de Silva said. Consistent and coherent government policies have helped Bangladesh to spearhead growth in the IT/BPO sector which makes a salient contribution to the economy of the country. “Bangladesh’s fibre optic cable layout is one of the best in the world. Its total exports are around $ 25 billion while Sri Lanka’s export income is around $ 10 billion,” de Silva said.Bangladesh has focused on the export of pharmaceuticals and ship building.

It is a strong competitor to Sri Lanka’s garment exports benefiting from trade concessions from the European Union. Sri Lanka’s exports declined from 18.2 percent in 2010 to around 5.4 percent in 2010. Exports in Vietnam increased from 26.4 percent to 33.3 percent in 2011.

Sri Lanka’s services sector has grown from a single digit to around 55 percent today.

Its growth is commendable. Sri Lanka should focus on services which have a potential for value addition.A.T. Kearney has ranked Sri Lanka among the top 25 in the global services location index.

Sri Lanka has a vibrant IT/BPO sector. The country can achieve over $ 4.1 billion if the Government and the industry align themselves to develop the sector with correct policies.

“Sri Lanka needs consistent and well defined long-term strategies to boost its IT/BPO sector which is targeting $ 1 billion by 2015.

While the industry thinks of short-term growth it should also plan for a long- term growth,” the IFS Managing Director said.

The ICT Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA) said that Sri Lanka can reach the goal of becoming a billion dollar industry in the IT and BPO sector by 2015.

The global potential for the ICT and BPO market is around $1.5 trillion while the addressable ICT and BPO off shoring market is estimated at $ 500 billion. Sri Lanka hopes to capture between 0.5 percent and 1 percent out of this growth. IT experts believe that if this is achieved Sri Lanka's IT and BPO could go well beyond being a one billion dollar industry by 2015 and the BPO industry can reach the goal of one billion US dollars by 2015.The IT/BPO industry is a industry that has 100 percent value addition unlike many other industries which import raw material for product development.

This will also ensure that Sri Lanka's IT and BPO industry becomes the country's number one foreign exchange earner and number one employment generator by 2020. Sri Lanka’s income from the IT/BPO industry last year was around $ 400 million according to industry estimates. IT experts believe that Sri Lanka should also focus on KPO Knowledge Process Outsourcing market.“The need for IT services in the world is growing rapidly. The IT/BPO industry in Sri Lanka has withstood many challenges and the industry is confident it could achieve an exponential growth in the next few years,” de Silva said.