Cedfit initiates orientations on online job opportunities

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu Educational Development of Information Technology (Cedfit) is initiating a move to encourage online freelance workers, specifically those in the sub-urban areas.

Cedfit executive director Wilfredo Sa-a Jr., said yesterday that the organization will be leading a series of orientations about home-based employment opportunities offered by several online job brokers like Upwork, (the newly merged merged oDesk, eLance), among others.

Known as home-based outsourcing (HBO), the industry is growing exponentially in the Philippines, making the country as the third largest online freelancers in the world.

According to Sa-a, introducing HBO opportunities especially in outskirt areas, will boost the income generation of residents, including stay-at-home mothers who have good educational backgrounds.

At present though, Cedfit is still in the planning stage and is still inviting other organizations, perhaps the online job broker companies to support the initiative.

Sa-a said that the plan to introduce the online freelance job opportunities (how to effectively access and take advantage of it) to the town and barangay levels, is a follow-up move by an earlier pronouncement of the Information Technology-Business Process Outsourcing (IT-BPO) sector, which encouraged students, housewives, and those who currently don't have jobs, to consider HBO job opportunities.

In his recent visit to Cebu, Senator Paulo Benigno "Bam" Aquino IV, said that the Philippine government in general is now working on a system or platform that will help the growing Philippine-based OFWs (online foreign workers), including a mechanism on how to tax them.

Currently, there are over one million Filipinos employed through online job brokers such as the newly merged oDesk and eLance.

Aquino admitted the significant contribution of these kinds of HBO providers to the economic advancement of the Philippines, especially in advancing inclusive growth.

According to Aquino, the government is also drawing up plans on how to support this segment and possible revenue extraction is still being studied.

The senator said considering that this is entirely a new dimension of employment generation, the government has to introduce newer programs in this regard.

What attracts Filipinos to venture into HBO is because of its flexibility, "they can do their work anywhere, not necessarily in their homes."

Aquino said the existence of online workloads through the online job brokers, significantly help the employment generation in the country, and improve the purchasing power of more Filipinos. (FREEMAN)