IT Enabled Services Business in Bangladesh: A Comparative Study

IT Enabled Services is a money-making business if you have that talent, required infrastructure and marketing network. Bangladesh has not yet achieved anything significant from this sector even though it has sufficient talent pool and easily trainable youth while there is outrageous growth and demand for the services world-wide.

The study has been taken up to find out the potential and prospects of the industry towards contributing to the economy of Bangladesh and generating substantial employment. It necessitated learning the trend of the industry world-wide and a comparative study with other successful countries in this sector to understand the potential and prospect of IT Enabled Services industry in Bangladesh. I chose only Indian IT-ITES industry for the comparative study since India is one of the most successful countries in outsourcing IT-ITES and it has similarities with Bangladesh in respect of culture and education.

Data sources of this report are mainly secondary though data of the survey conducted by BASIS may be considered primary. The author himself was involved in conducting the survey as the Coordinator of the survey during his tenure at BASIS. Unavailability of authentic recent data was a difficulty in preparing this report. There is no separate data available on the ITES sector in Bangladesh other than found from BASIS Survey in 2009. As it was observed that even the Export Promotion Bureau of the Ministry of Commerce of Bangladesh do not keep separate data for the sector. It says that this sector is yet to receive due importance from the government.

In the first section of this paper, I have tried to describe world-wide trend of IT-ITES business. In the second and most important section, I tried to describe and analyse information regarding IT-ITES business in Bangladesh. This paper focuses on ITES but because of relevance many issues and information related to IT comes in. The data related to Bangladesh ITES industry were mostly taken from a survey conducted by Bangladesh Association of Software & Information Services (BASIS) in 2009. In the next section, I addressed the status of Indian IT-ITES industry in brief. Then I compared Bangladesh ITES industry with that of India in the next section. In the last section, I proposed a few recommendations for the improvement of the ITES sector in Bangladesh.

McKinsey, in an estimate published in 2008, says that the value of global IT and ITES is $475 billion from which less than 15% was exploited in 2007. So there is a huge market of IT-ITES industry still untapped globally. According to IDC, NASSCOM and KPMG, global market size of IT-ITES industry was US$ 1,184 billion and it will stand at US$ 3,391 billion. Gartner in its December 2011 report says that worldwide IT spending, excluding telecom services but including computing hardware, was US$ 1,823 billion and it will reach US$ 2,493 billion in 2015. And global outsourcing market reached US$ 106 billion in 2010 from US$ 51 in 2005.

According to NASSCOM-Everest, 2008 report, India secured top position in acquiring global ITES market having 37% share followed by Canada (27%) and Philippines (15%). India also gained the top position of IT services market by securing 54% of the global market share followed by Canada having 29% of the global market.

The size of Bangladesh IT-ITES market is US$ 300 million according to a recent World Bank report and about 30,000 professionals work in the industry as BASIS published in 2011. There are about 800 BASIS member companies working in IT-ITES sector while BASIS ITES Survey found 1,934 ITES companies in 10 major cities of Bangladesh. Most of the companies are very small in size. BASIS ITES Survey 2009 focused only on six segments of ITES namely, BPO, Data entry, Call centre, GDS, Multimedia & 3D, Service Bureau which are the main ITES businesses in Bangladesh until now. Though the first Bangladesh ITES company was established in 1956, the modern phenomenon of ITES industry grew in this country in the 1990s. Investment in Bangladesh ITES sector is a meager US$ 3.88 billion. Total exports revenue from IT-ITES sector of the country was US$ 56.57 million in the first ten months of FY 2011-12 while the sector earned US$ 45.31 million in FY 2010-11 from exports. (EPB) According to BASIS ITES Survey 2009, ITES sector of the country earned US$ 13.85 million from exports in FY 2008-09. It may be assumed that about 200 IT-ITES companies have exports portfolio in Bangladesh since 160 BASIS member companies export IT-ITES services mostly to North America, Europe, Australia, East Asia and the Middle East.

Major strengths of Bangladesh ITES industry are creativity, quality control and compliance while the major weaknesses of the sector are internet cost, followed by infrastructure and cost of business as the key informants of the sector believe.
Access to finance, internet, market access, human resource, quality control, infrastructure, law and order, government policy, uneven competition and political situation, are the major hindrances to ITES exports from Bangladesh identified by the industry people. Financial institutions do not have products matching the business of this sector; internet is slow and costly; industry players do not have that capability yet to enter into international market; the industry lack skilled human resources; they cannot provide quality services for whatever reasons; there is lack of sufficient infrastructure needed for the sector especially power and high bandwidth internet; existing laws of the land are not commensurate with the industry; government policies are not that favourable to the business of the sector; there is uneven competition among the players of the sector since most of them are competing for a pie from the domestic market not having the capacity to enter into international market; lastly, the image of the country as a business destination is yet to be uplifted owing to political instability.

On the other hand, Indian IT-ITES sector generated 2.5 million jobs and earned US$ 88.1 billion in FY 2011. The sector in India has been growing with a CAGR of 24% for the last ten years. It contributed 5.6% to the GDP of India in FY 2010.

According to an OECD study, annual growth of Indian IT services industry, which includes software and ITES, which had been growing at a double digit rates yearly, was slowed down to 6% in 2010 due to global recession though total revenue was increased to US$ 64 billion.

In 2009-10, Indian IT-ITES industry earned US$ 73.1 billion combining domestic and exports revenues including US$ 9.4 billion from hardware and US$ 14.7 billion from IT Enabled Services. It is noted here that hardware segment earned US$ 9 billion from domestic market and US$ 0.4 billion from exports and ITES earned US$ 2.3 billion from the domestic market and US$ 12.4 billion from exports.

It is observed that hardware sales in the domestic market of India is still higher i.e. US$ 9 billion in FY 2009-10. So it may be conferred that India has not yet reached its optimum in IT-ITES sector.

Financial Institutions, Telecom, Manufacturing and Retail industries are the principal revenue sources of Indian IT-ITES industry contributing 41%, 20%, 16% and 9% respectively to its total exports. As regards the domestic market, Financial Institutions, Telecom, Manufacturing and Retail industries are contributing 41%, 20%, 19% and 6% respectively. These top four sectors i.e. Financial Institutions, Telecom, Manufacturing and Retail contribute 86% to the total IT-ITES revenues of India considering both the exports and domestic market.

US, UK and Continental Europe are the major markets of Indian IT-ITES industry contributing 61%, 18% and 12% respectively to the export revenues of the sector.

According to a study of Evalueserve, a global specialist in knowledge processes, Indian IT-ITES industry has captured 45% of the global IT-ITES market in 2010 increased from 36% in 2003. More than 60% of the industry’s revenue comes from exports. (NASSCOM)

In 2009-10 India exported IT-ITES services to 154 countries of the world which also proves the industry’s robustness.

A NASSCOM McKinsey report forecasts that Indian IT-ITES industry exports would reach US$ 328.9 billion with a CAGR of 20.7% by 2019-20 from US$ 23.6 billion in 2005-06.

OECD, in a report published in 2009, projected that by 2020 India will be ahead of its competitors e.g. Philippines, Mexico, Israel, Ireland, Indonesia, Turkey, Brazil and Malaysia in terms of quantity and quality of people required in the IT-ITES sector though these newly emerged competitors have thrown challenges to the Indian industry.

India achieved the top position according to the assessment of A.T. Kearney’s Global Services Location Index (GSLI) in terms of its financial attractiveness, business environment, skills and people availability.

Indian IT-ITES sector has been emerged as the major driver of growth within the services industry contributing directly to its economy. A few indicators of the industry’s contribution are:
⦁ Contribution to GDP (6.4% in FY 2011)
⦁ Exports revenue (US$ 50.1 billion in 2009-10)
⦁ Projected employment of 3.7 million by 2012

The development of Indian IT-ITES sector has indirect positive impacts on its economy. Following indicators are examples of indirect contribution to the economy.
⦁ Further employment generation
⦁ Enhancing growth of other sectors of Indian economy
⦁ Balanced regional development

Indian IT-ITES industry has been able to achieve capability of performing complex and critical business processes starting from low end back office and call centre business within a decade. Huge investment of the Indian IT giants like TCS and Infosys in infrastructure development and training to build human resources was one of the important reasons behind its success story.

Major challenges faced by Indian ITES-BPO industry are infrastructure, talent shortage, data security and attrition.

As per IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2012, rated by IMD, a Swiss business school, India is ranked 35, down from 32 in 2011, in the club of 59 most competitive economies of the world.

The phenomenon of outsourcing has been transitioning from Outsourcing 1.0 to Outsourcing 3.0. The parameters of outsourcing are: Responsible Business Climate; Smart Philanthropy; Talent; Standards and Compliance; Supply Chains; Innovation; and Communications.

Locational attractiveness and e-readiness are wide acknowledged issues for outsourcing. A few renowned consulting firms like A.T. Kearney, Gartner, Hewitt’s International and McKinsey formulated benchmarking frameworks based on criteria like available employable skills, especially IT skills, competitive cost of business, necessary infrastructure for IT-ITES industry, and business friendly environment.

The main driver behind India’s success in the industry was huge investment by the IT giants like TCS and Infosys. They invested a lot on infrastructure and training to secure stable position in the global market. They have been able to prove their worth and became the back office of large global corporate houses. They are on track to reach the target of earning US$ 329 billion per year by 2020 according to a NASSCOM McKinsey estimate.

India has gained the number one position in the A.T. Kearney’s Global Services Location Index and achieved the 32nd position among 59 most competitive economies in the world.

Bangladesh is yet to get its foot hold in the global market of IT-ITES. Bangladesh has neither been able to secure a position in the top 40 outsourcing countries of the world rated by A.T. Kearny’s Global Service Location Index, nor one among the most competitive economies in the world measured by IMD. But the good news is Gartner for the first time included Bangladesh in top 30 off shore destinations in its December 2011 report mentioning two important weaknesses – one is infrastructure and the other is proficiency in English. Bangladesh fared worst with a rating of “poor” in the report.

It needs to put emphasis on development of infrastructure and human resource development along with other incentives as provided to other sectors. The Hi Tech Park that is under construction at Kaliakoir, Gazipur should be ready at the earliest. Community of Bangladeshi diaspora should be encouraged to invest in the local IT-ITES industry. The employees’ poor level of proficiency in English is another barrier to our IT-ITES sector. So, proper attention to acquire English as a second language by our students and employees is necessary.

Bangladesh government has formulated and adopted an ICT Policy and also declared a vision of “Digital Bangladesh” by 2021. But it lacks in terms of implementation. There is tremendous gap in FDI in IT-ITES sector of Bangladesh. The government and business associations combined should work to attract FDI to the ICT industry of the country.

Courses on different ITES segments like graphic design, CAD etc. along with English Language may be introduced in the technical training institutes. ITES industry needs skilled people but not necessarily many highly qualified employees like software companies. It is observed that due to lack of infrastructural facility and low proficiency in English Call Centre business could not make headway in Bangladesh. Collaboration between the industry and the academia is also necessary for building human resources as per industry needs.

Focus should be given to provide electricity and internet facilities to the small towns at least up to the sub-district level of the country to help spread IT-ITES industry to the length and breadth of the country and reduce youth unemployment.

Banks and financial institutions should be made understood about the nature of IT-ITES business and encouraged to offer products commensurate with the industry to meet its financing needs. Government also may try to provide incentives in procuring local services and solutions within the purview of WTO provisions.

Due importance should be given to compliance issues to make footprints in the global market. It is observed that the industry people are yet to give appropriate importance to the issue. The industry associations may initiate to make the industry people understand and realise its importance in the world market.

Students and Teachers Involvement into Politics: The Practice in Bangladesh

M Masud Hossain Khan

I think it is high time for us to ban student politics and teachers’ involvement in politics. It is the bane of our beloved nation now. I know there exist lots of arguments and there’s no want of people, intellectuals and civil society members stand in favour of student politics. Most of their line of reasoning is based on the contribution of our students to different national movements – Language Movement, Liberation Movement and movement against autocracy. The nation always remembers with pride the contribution students of this land made to these movements and to our nation building efforts. But shouldn’t we think on the issue in the present perspective - where the student politics is heading to and what contributions are they making now to this country and her wretched people? Are they not working for the vested interest groups playing pawns on the hands of the politicians and many students leaders are after making their fortunes through whatever ways and means they can? There are lots of news reports on how student leaders are involved in tender business and fighting with each other to have control over the dormitories making the general students captive in their evil hands.

The question we should raise: is the student politics doing any good to the countrymen and even themselves at present and do we need it for our future development? May be the answer is yes for a few leaders, not even the common students let alone the citizens. It is now very much clear that students politics are not doing any good to our society any more rather it is harming our society and the students themselves but helps benefit our rogue politicians for whom we haven’t progressed that much what we should have by this time. For students leaders, common students are not getting their due rights and access to different facilities e.g. it’s not that easy for a non-political students to have a seat in the university dormitories; they are terrorized by the leaders and afraid of them always. We have not forgot the killing of innocent students like Sabequnnahar Sony in Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology campus a few years back. Because of fighting with arms and weapons among different wings of students parties many lives have not been able to reach their fulfillment and the dreams of their parents have gone astray and sometimes their parents’ lives were at a stake due to unending pain and owes of losing their beloved offspring. We have got a strange jargon in the education sector and in our national life as well i.e. session jam which you can’t find in any other country of the world I think. This is the fruit of the tree called Student Politics, which we have sown and nurtured and helped to grow poisonous fruits.

But I am in favour of students union in the educational institutions without involvement in national politics or working as wing of political parties. These unions will only care about students and institutions welfare and organize different co-curricula activities which will ultimately help the students, institutions and the society at large. They can engage themselves in different social needs like standing by the side of the flood affected people of the country.

To make a clear vision for our progress we may look at how other democratic and progressive countries and societies are doing with student politics. Are the students directly involved in national politics becoming members of political organizations affiliated with national political parties in those countries? Even we can look at the private universities in this country. If it is good and helps better grooming of our children why shouldn’t we commence student politics in those?

About keeping law enforcement agencies stationed in the university campuses, I would say it is necessary in our present political practices but it won’t be needed any more if we are able to discard direct political campaign involving students and teachers inside the institutions academia. Can’t we see that there’s no police force in the private universities. It is because political campaign is prohibited in those places. There’s always high possibility of clashes in the campus among the rival political parties and/or groups if students are permitted to do politics inside the educational institutions.

What about the teachers’ involvement in politics? Is it helping to our society and the institutions they are engaged with? It is also helping corruption and nepotism for sure. To be a teacher in any public university you need to be affiliated with political parties or at least support their agenda and have good relations with the political high ups with or without required qualifications. This is the product of teachers’ involvement in national politics. To be aware and making students aware in politics and be a member or devoted oneself to any political party is another thing. We are going to see another example soon how teachers and students engagement in national politics is helping this wretched country if the recent spate in the universities, colleges and the country as a whole be proved. 

The author is a development consultant, writer, columnist and the Editor of the StarAvis. He may be contacted at masud.magister@gmail.com 

JUST WORLD

We're living in the 21st century. The world economy and the communication technology is growing very fast though there are lot of people living under poverty line. The common mass of this wretched earth want peace and progress of their individual nation or country and the world at large but shouldn't we assess how much have we achieved so far ? Shouldn't we ask ourselves whether it's a just world ? The present world affairs says 'might is the right'. Do we have the right and courage enough to question who are responsible for this all pervading chaos throughout the world ? Should we not discard extreme religious and nationalistic attitude, which is hindering the hope of peaceful and progressive integration of the world community that would help different communities to know, understand and work together towards an all progressive world. Am I talking like an utopian, I think not, we'd not have a completely perfect world but we must will have been able to secure a peaceful world where people from different backgrounds will have the opportunity of knowing, understanding and working together for a few common goals of peace and progress. I believe that most of the people of this world are good and able enough to understand and work together for some common goals though there are different views and thoughts in some other issues. In this context, we should think who are making barriers for the people and creating unwanted environment for the common people towards working together.

I am strongly asking your wise comments on this issue and I wish it discussing further.

Mutual Respect

These days people don't have enough respect for one another. If people have enough respect for other cultures and religions the world might be a worthwhile place to live. Personally I believe in an integrated global village where people have love, respect and sympathy for each other.