Asia: Bhutan to open first call center in English
07/26/2007
Source :www.asahi.com(Japanese website)
Article link: http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200707260093.html
BY TETSUO KOGURE THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
THIMPHU, Bhutan--The first English-language call center in the Himalayan kingdom is preparing to open next month.
The call center, launched by local company Drukonnet Business Services Ltd., is expected to produce job opportunities for young people in a country whose major industries are only agriculture and hydroelectric power generation.
Domestic phone calls made in the United States will be forwarded to the country northeast of India, and Bhutanese operators will answer questions.
A new 5-story building will accommodate the call center. Initially, there will be 500 operators, and it will increase to 2,000.
Young people wearing ethnic costumes have been training since May. Their classes are not only on listening and speaking in English, but also on basic knowledge of American culture.
In Bhutan, many young people speak English, as schools teach subjects in English, except for classes on Dzongkha, the national language.
However, due to the lack of industries, many young people face difficulties in landing jobs. The most popular jobs are said to be public servants.
All the instructors at the new call center are also Indians.
Drukonnet already has contracts with American telephone companies, banks and travel agencies.
When American firms' clients call designated numbers in the United States, the calls will be forwarded to the center in Bhutan. The operators will handle inquiries about service details, implement procedures for opening bank accounts or checking balances, and take travel reservations.
Domestic calls made in the United States from morning to night will be accepted in two shifts by Bhutanese operators from evening to the next morning, local time.
DBS is planning to launch a similar service for Britain and Australia.
"We are planning to nurture Bhutanese operators and instructors in five years, and entrust the entire operation of the call center to them," Management said.(IHT/Asahi: July 26,2007)
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The first call Center in Bhutan
Drukonnet, the first call center in Thimphu, hopes to be fully operational in three to four months. The call center has been training around 200 people in English and computer since October lastyear.
“We are very close to starting our operation but it again depends on how soon we can implement the technologies,” said the Drukonnet Management.
They also said that the call centers in the neighboring India started around 1996 and what they achieved within ten years, they wish to achieve that in Bhutan within two years. “There are challenges in terms of technologies and other factors, but the center has come a long way and everything will be ready soon,” said the management.
Going by the good governance plus report of 2005, a number of call centers and Business
Process Outsourcing (BPO) should be established before July 2007.
According to the Department of Information Technology (DIT) officials, call centers and BPOs have the potential to create more job opportunities.
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