Call centres will create jobs
Chief executive of ContactInGauteng Keryn House said: "Judging by the amount of commitment from government and international investments in the sector, I’m certain that we will reach that goal."
ContactInGauteng’s role is to develop the BPO industry, which includes call centres, and drive growth through investment.
The government’s accelerated and shared growth initiative of South Africa has identified the sector as one that could create jobs fast. It currently employs about 65000 people. While Cape Town is considered the call centre capital of South Africa, Eastern Cape cities such as East London are showing potential.
Bulelwa Koyana recently opened the first black female-owned call centre in Johannesburg and plans to expand her company into the Eastern Cape. "It’s unfortunate that investors are not aware just how much the province has to offer. The East London area is particularly full of young people who are equipped to fly, and as soon as we find a client who’s willing to set up there, we will be on a roll."
Eastern Cape Development Corporation official, Abu Abdulatief said that the Eastern Cape had a lot of competitive advantage over the other provinces.
"Salaries here are 25%- 30% lower than in Gauteng and because of a high unemployment rate, staff attrition is much lower as well." The province was also looking into setting up an agency to promote investment into the call centre industry.
South Africa is competing with countries such as India and the Philippines for international BPO business, which both boast much cheaper labour and telecommunications costs.
Research conducted by Britain-based independent market analyst Datamonitor found that South Africa offered a higher quality, more culturally aligned front and back-office location, with labour costs still 33% lower than in the US or Britain.
Inet-Bridge
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