The growing Philippine population is prepped up for the “sunshine industry” of the country.

The Philippine government and some of the nation's major corporations have seen the striking growth of the Business Processing Outsourcing of the Philippines, thus giving support in preparing the country to meet the demands of the industry; and that is through investing on the student population of the country. The benefits of such investment are said to be made apparent around 2015, when this population will already be a working-age segment of the total population.

An economic aspect of the country that would benefit from the investment is Filipino's consumerism. According to the governor of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (Central Bank of the Philippines), Amando M. Tetangco, Jr., the growth of the Philippine economy has also been determined by the domestic and foreign demands, more so by the former than the latter.

By making investments to support the BPO (business process outsourcing) industry of the country, domestic consumption can well be upheld, that is, if the people are likewise made skillful enough to have jobs (or means of earning) and thus substantiate their spending or consuming habits.

The Philippine government and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have chosen universities and colleges as subjects of their plans in contributing to the growth of the information technology-business process outsourcing of the Philippines. Knowledge hubs will be established on the selected colleges and universities to align their curricula with the needs of the IT-BPO sector.

The ADB and the government, through the Department of Finance, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to provide $650,000 in technical assistance to the IT-BPO industry of the Philippines. Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima signed the MoU with ADB country director Neeraj K. Jain, at the sidelines of the 45th ADB Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors.

At least three (3) hubs—one each for Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao—will be established. Each hub will be ICT-enabled to provide “online training” to teachers and digitized modules and study guides for students.

A “standard industry-based” instrument and “assessment tools” that shall measure student and teacher competencies and progress will also be financed as well as the accreditation and integration of various IT-BPO courses being offered by the industry and the government.

A sophisticated workforce equipped with skills that meet the demands of high-growth industries would be required, improving national competitiveness, moving into knowledge–based services and achieving and maintaining rapid economic progress, as stated by the MoU.

At least 900 faculty members and 3,000 college-level students, 50 percent of which are females, will benefit from the program.

A committee headed by the Finance Department with members from the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP), and other government agencies will also be recognized to administer the agreement’s realization.

“We are happy that the ADB, through this technical assistance, has solidified its support to the Aquino administration’s thrust in achieving a sustainable and inclusive growth over the longer term,” said ADB Board of Governors Chairman and Philippine Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima, who signed the MoU for the government.

On the other hand, Tetangco of Bangko Sentral (Central Bank) also pointed out that the government has not forgotten the poor and is finding ways to make sure they won’t be left out. Including them in the financial system and giving them access to credit could help them become a boost rather than a drag to the economy.

"We're trying to reach the unbanked and the underserved or the excluded segments in the population," he said.

The country’s economy is hoping to get a double boost from the rising population, eventually including more of the population in modernizing the economy and the countries industries.

The sunshine industry is bringing more smiles to the working force of the country. It is indeed becoming sunnier for the Business Processing Outsourcing of the Philippines.