U.S. believes Africa a call center alternative to India
By siliconindia   |   Wednesday, 01 July 2009, 00:05 IST   |    3 Comments
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U.S. believes Africa a call center alternative to India
Bangalore: The call centers of India may soon face stiff competition from their counterparts in the African shores. In the discussion during a Congressional hearing on U.S. - Africa Trade relations, some U.S. lawmakers and think tanks believe that Africa can be a much cheaper alternative to call centers in India. "Is there any possibility of having call centers in Africa, in your opinion?", asked Congressman Donald Payne, at the joint hearing convened by Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. According to Karen Tandy, the Senior Vice-President of Public Affairs and Communications at Motorola, the company is investing and giving grant money to the huge number of entrepreneurs coming up across the continent. "So there is no reason why a call center couldn�t be a part of the future in Africa," she added. "Certainly, there is some market maturation in India right now and one could argue there might be cost-competitive advantages in Africa. So I think that, to Tandy's point, that's a sensible area in which to look," said Greg Lebedev, Advisor to the President U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Chairman, Center for International Private Enterprise. He also said that Africa has wonderful resource of English language speakers.

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