Export earnings from IT/BPM industry tops US $ 700 m

Information Technology (IT) and professional services recorded speedy growth contributing immensely to the economy last year.

Export earnings from the IT/BPM (Business Process Management) industry topped US$ 700 million, according to the Ministry of Finance and Planning 2013 Annual Report.

The report said that several overseas service operators were in the country due to the comparative advantage of Sri Lanka’s educated and skilled workforce in the IT/BPM industry.

According to a spokesman for the Sri Lanka Association for Software Service Companies (SLASSCOM) export earnings from the IT/BPM industry grew from US$ 213 million in 2007 to US$ 720 million in 2013 and the number of companies in the industry increased from 170 in 2007 to 220 in 2013.

The Finance Ministry’s annual report said that the number of IT educational institutes increased besides making IT a mainstream subject in the school curricula. The IT literacy rate increased to 40 percent last year and it is expected to reach 70 percent by 2020.

The private and public sector increased investments to expand IT related higher education. IT education has been made a key component in vocational and skills educational reform initiatives.

The ICT workforce registered an impressive growth from 15,586 in 2003 to 75,107 in 2013. The IT/BPM industry is expected to be a billion-dollar industry and generate over 100,000 jobs by 2016, the report states.

Sri Lanka has been ranked among the top 25 destinations for outsourcing by global technology and research firms. IT/BPM industry experts said that the industry has enormous potential and it should be positioned as a vibrant brand to boost outsourcing business.

LF