Jamaica has carved a niche as a business process outsourcing hub. Anthony Hylton, Jamaica's minister of industry, investment and commerce, explains how government plans will further build on the growth already experienced by what is quickly becoming a key sector within the country's economy.

Yoni Epstein, the president of the Business Process Industry Association of Jamaica and Itel BPO Solutions’ chief executive, has a vision. He tells Natasha Turak about his plan to turn the Caribbean island into a world-leading BPO destination over the next 10 years.

The importance of training is recognised at all levels throughout Jamaica, to the point where many of its government-sponsored programmes are developed to cater to the specific needs of the industries investing in the country. Natasha Turak reports on the impact this has had with regards to FDI. 

To realise its ambition of becoming a globally known hub for BPO operators, Jamaica needed to attract big-name players. The Barnett Tech Park – in bringing in Vistaprint, and then Advanced Call Centre Technologies and Xerox – did just this, giving the country international credibility. Natasha Turak looks at how these essential first steps were taken.

Jamaica is eager to claim its share of the international outsourcing market and with a young, educated population, strong links to the US and the UK, a government committed to business-friendly policies, and an aptitude for customer service, the sector is expanding fast. 

Renowned as a holiday destination, Jamaica is keen to position itself as a hub for professional services and business process outsourcing in a bid to attract more FDI and create much-needed jobs.

Jamaica has set itself the target of becoming the number one global trade hub in the Americas, exploiting its position near the Panama Canal and playing to its strengths as a service-based economy. The country's minister of industry, investment and commerce, Anthony Hylton, tells Courtney Fingar how this ambitious plan is progressing.

Jamaica's negotiations with the IMF, which culminated in its four-year Extended Fund Facility, were long and arduous, and the country is now coming to terms with the requirements of the agreement, such as a public sector wage freeze. However, its minister of finance, Peter Phillips, is confident the rewards will now come.

Dogged by preconceptions of the region being a little more than a holiday retreat or a tax haven, investment promotion agencies in the Caribbean are focusing upon providing the best possible service to would-be investors – both large and small – in order to attract international businesses to their countries.