CEBU CITY, Philippines – An Information Technology (IT) service company based in Finland is considering Cebu as one of their locations for expansion in Asia, citing Cebu's business-friendly environment and the availability of IT-skilled workers here.

Asian Development Bank and FinPro Solutions analyst Joona Selin said Finnish investors are considering Cebu for expansion because of the hospitable environment of the province and its numerous IT-skilled and knowledgeable graduates.

Selin, together with representatives of Tieto, an IT service company based in Finland, met with Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday to discuss possible investments in the province in the field of knowledge process outsourcing (KPO).

Tieto, one of the largest IT firm in Northern Europe with branches in 25 countries, is planning to expand in Asia and is contemplating on pouring investment in either Vietnam or the Philippines. In the Philippines, the company is eyeing Cebu or Manila for their expansion program.

“It's very positive considering that Cebu has a lot of universities offering IT related courses,” said Selin. IT Consultant Cesar Atienza said Tieto's investment will bring Cebu ahead of the others in the field of KPO.

Atienza said KPO is the future of business process outsourcing (BPO) and only a few countries are capable of offering such services. “The nice thing about Tieto is that it is in KPO, not BPO. KPO is now the trend. That means we are going up the value chain,” said Atienza.

Meanwhile, the Cebu provincial government is looking at the entire island of Cebu’s being connected to the internet through WiMax or Worldwide Inter-operability for Microwave Access Technology.