‘BPO sector in a precarious position’
WESTERN BUREAU:
DR GUNA Muppuri, the outgoing president of the Business Process Industry Association of Jamaica (BPIAJ), is calling for dialogue with the Government before the long-awaited special economic zone (SEZ) regulations are finalised.
The BPIAJ represents approximately 45 players in the ICT/BPO (information and communication technology/business process outsourcing) sector but has been on a collision course with the Metry Seaga-led Special Economic Zone Authority (SEZA) regarding several proposals that will affect the industry under the new act.
“We have put our position forward in letters to the Government, but to date, we have had no reply or acknowledgment of our concerns,” said Muppuri in a release to the media. “Chief among the BPIAJ’s concerns is how the industry will be treated under the special economic zone regime, which imposes not only a host of fees and regulations, but also more red tape and bureaucracy.”
The SEZ Act was passed in January 2016, repealing the Jamaica Export Free Zone Act, and included tax and Customs incentives for qualified entities. The BPO sector enjoys the highest employment growth rate of any sector in the last decade and currently accounts for more than 22,000 jobs across the island.
Jamaica’s BPO industry has been identified as the main driver of the country’s growth agenda, and the Government has targeted the creation of 100,000 BPO jobs in five years. Today, the sector is the island’s largest employer, and the fastest-growing industry, contributing more than US$400 million annually to the local economy.