1 week ago
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With policy changes in the United States that could adversely affect Belize’s BPO sector, government has announced accelerated actions to transition into the Global Digital Services (GDS) sector. The US recently announced plans to pass the “Keep Call Centres in America Act”, which would introduce several new requirements for U.S. companies that outsource call center work. The Investment Policy and Compliance Unit (IPCU) within the Ministry of Investment, had previously launched two projects, initiatives with funding from the IDB, namely, the Global Digital Services Investment Policy and the Upskilling the Workforce project. Work began on these initiatives as early as 2022; however, the pressure is now on to ensure that they materialize. Frantz Smith, Investment Policy Officer at the ministry, said that the transition to the GDS sector presents opportunities to do business beyond just call center work; however, there is a need for more training.
Smith says that the agreement for the Upskilling the Workforce Project was signed April 1. Led by a consortium of Chamberlain Consulting Ltd. and Socias Ltd. (both Belize-based), and Rhics Ltd. (UK-based), this initiative would develop a comprehensive skills program. So far, the consortium has identified a local skills gap in areas like cybersecurity, data analysis, User Interface and User Experience design, and cloud engineering. According to Smith, the hope is to have the policy and the first cohort of 50 GDS professionals being trained before the end of the year.
This is a developing situation that we will follow closely in the coming weeks and months.
English (US) ·