Unemployment in the Philippines has exceeded its annual unemployment targets with an implied full-year unemployment at 5.5 percent, the lowest in 10 years. The fourth quarter of the Labor Force Survey, 2016 saw unemployment fall to the lowest figure on record.

A combination of business process outsourcing (BPO), tourism industries and service sectors account for the biggest percentage of employment.

The Bank of the Philippine Islands lead economist Emilio S. Neri said in a statement “Our growing economy, which is largely driven by output expansion in the services and industry sectors, has created more and better jobs.”

The IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) estimates that 372,000 new jobs will have been created by outsourcing between 2014-12.

The surge in infrastructure projects undertaken is a leading contributor to the hiring increase and economic growth.

The success of outsourcing trades on many of the country’s key advantages. Primarily, the population is teeming with literate, educated youth with proficient American-accented English and an abundance of communication skills. The country’s higher education institutes produce 500,000 English-speaking college graduates each year with skills matched to BPO industry needs.

Secondly, the implementation of the special economic zone (SEZ) offering tax incentives and low rate leases to call-center operators, allow outsourcing companies to rent office space at lower costs. The costs savings can be passed onto companies looking to build an offshore team.

A young skilled workforce is accessible and industries all over the world are harnessing the opportunity to access this talent pool and save costs to allow their business to succeed. Find out how outsourcing your work through Deployed will grow your business.