Cebu City ranks fourth in number of major call centers in RP
The call center industry in Cebu ranks fourth in the country in terms of having the most number of major call centers, according to the Call Center Directory of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza).
According to the Peza, the Philippines now has 788 major call centers in over 20 key locations.
Metro Cebu ranked fourth, with 44 major call centers, next to Quezon City with 77 call centers, Ortigas City with 141 and Makati City with 274.
Joel Mari Yu, managing director of the Cebu Investment Promotions Center (CIPC), attributed the increasing number of call centers to the city’s location.
”Before putting up businesses, investors take a look at the location, and Cebu, for instance, has been a good location for such business,” he said.
Aside from its location, Yu said Cebu has a pool of qualified personnel suited for the call center industry.
”Every year, Cebu produces an average of 23,000 graduates, making it next to Manila in the number of graduates,’ he said.
Manila has an average of 145,000 graduates per year.
He said a number of these graduates might join the call center industry because they will take into consideration the career opportunities the industry will offer them.
Armenia Ballesteros, head of Sen. Manuel “Mar” Roxas II Jobs Team, said what has encouraged call centers to continue sprouting in Cebu is that the city has provided international flights, making the city’s entry and exit points convenient for foreign investors.
Since the year 2000, the call center industry in the country has been rapidly growing in terms of revenue and employment. It has contributed 12 percent of the country’s gross national product (GNP) and has been one of the biggest sources of employment for Filipinos.
Ballesteros added that the presence of call centers in the country provides Filipinos with the motivation not to leave the country since they will be able to find greener pastures within their own localities through call centers.
”Cebu, in particular, has a pool of talented people, so it would be better that they’ stay here and share what they’ve got,” she said.
