Outsourcing has grown at an impressive speed in Central America for more than a generation. Once the pandemic is over, and with the most advanced vaccination, countries like Honduras will continue to take important steps in an industry that has already boosted its economy in recent years.

Both private companies and local governments have invested in a higher qualification of their workers, and in adequate infrastructures that offer an attractive destination to companies in the business process outsourcing industry, such as ITOs or BPOs.

ITO refers to outsourcing of technology services. The term is generally used in contrast to business process outsourcing such as BPOs, where the business function or process is outsourced. ITO services include outsourcing one-time systems development projects, as well as outsourcing ongoing IT services, such as mainframe hosting, desktop support, telecommunications installation and maintenance, or legacy systems maintenance and support.

Taking into account that Honduras ensures a very advantageous demographic segment in Central America, with a high percentage of young population, with university studies, and bilingual, ITO services are a very attractive item for foreign investment, given that the country has a strong 3.4 million labor force, which means that a high percentage of the population is suitable to enter this industry.

ALTIA Smart City: the ideal hub for ITO service companies

GK is the pioneer and promoter of this industry, thanks to its projects in Altia Smart City, both in the city of San Pedro Sula, and in Tegucigalpa. The Group has catapulted Honduras as a business center of gravity for both the BPO and ITO sectors, generating more than ten thousand jobs within its two projects.

According to data provided by the BPO / ITO Management, and compiled by the Central Bank of Honduras, and the Honduran Social Security Institute, in 2016 this sector generated 6,489 jobs and US $ 128 million in income. While for 2017 it generated 9,000 jobs and US $ 138 million. The growth was between 6% -8% per year, and this trend has been maintained in subsequent years.

Companies in the sector in Honduras and located in Altia offer a wide range of benefits in relation to outsourcing ITO technologies, mainly due to geographic proximity, qualified human capital and cultural affinity. The global ITO market will continue to grow in the next decade thanks to these factors.

Altia Smart City signed in 2013 an agreement with the Department of Education of Honduras to convert small public schools into first-rate bilingual schools, thus ensuring long-term sustainability for the ITO and BPO industry and in the country.

It is these industries in which there is no risk when investing, since technology for the provision of services continues to be among the containment measures a methodology that guarantees the operational continuity of companies and ventures.