Moldova's business services sector (BSS) is experiencing remarkable growth, becoming a point of attraction for local and international investors - Investment Agency
The agency said that the development of the BSS sector in Moldova is a key factor of economic growth and competitiveness on the world market. It was emphasized that the BSS sector in Moldova has grown significantly, becoming an important factor of the national economy. Recently, it has attracted the attention of local and international investors, who seek to capitalize on Moldova's advantages in outsourcing and business services. Moldova's total exports in 2023 reached $6.488 billion, of which $4.048 billion was goods and $2.44 billion services. At the same time, $0.16 billion was received by 2 key sectors - IT and BSS, which is 5 times the value of traditional wine exports from Moldova. In 2022, the services exports of this sector reached $180 million, double the value of previous years. In 2023, BSS exports grew unprecedentedly by $65 million (+36%), reaching $245 million. This sector, together with its exports, is expected to continue its steady growth in 2024. Director of Advisory Services, PwC Moldova Alexandru Gozun said that the company has been present on the Moldovan market for 25 years, offering quality services to different categories of clients from the public and private sector. In 2019, it launched a pilot project in Chisinau, creating a Competence Center for the Romanian and Moldovan audit departments, where colleagues took full responsibility for specific tasks according to the audit methodology. Since then, the pilot project has evolved into a business unit, covering a number of employees comparable to other combined service lines and totaling more than 70 employees in PwC Moldova. “Indeed, the quality of human resources in Moldova gives us the opportunity to look for solutions to optimize and make our operations more efficient for the benefit of our clients,” he said. Services exports are expected to exceed goods exports by the end of 2024, largely due to the rapid growth of the BSS sector. Moldova is now a strong competitor in this market, offering investors unique advantages, including favorable tax conditions and specialized parks for IT and BSS. Previously, the Moldovan government made notable progress by passing laws that allow BSS companies to operate in the IT sector and benefit from a flat tax of 7% on turnover. Crucial to the success of the BSS sector in Moldova is its flexibility and ability to provide competitively priced services that are in high demand in international markets. ABSL (Association of Business Services Leaders of Moldova), an international business association, was established in Moldova in 2021. It actively promotes the BSS sector on the global stage. Since its establishment, the Association has attracted more than 20 major foreign companies from the BSS sector to Moldova and has an ambitious plan to promote the country's BSS sector in Europe, Asia and North America. ABSL Executive Director Olga Levitscaia emphasizes the potential of the sector. According to her, the expansion of the BSS sector brings multiple benefits to Moldova on different levels. It plays a crucial role in reducing the brain drain and enables the Moldovan Diaspora to reintegrate into the national economy. It also offers our citizens alternative to low-skilled jobs abroad, allowing them to stay in Moldova, close to their families. Now the salaries in this sector are 3-4 times higher than the national average. The first companies chose Moldova as an outsourcing center two decades ago. Today, this sector offers a wide range of services, including call centers, research centers, accounting, engineering, graphic design, logistics management and sales of package tours. IDIS Viitorul economic policy expert Veaceslav Ionita suggests that along with current services, new innovative offerings are expected to emerge in the coming years, some of which are difficult to foresee today. According to former ABSL President Olivier Prado, Orange employs more than 400 people engaged in business process outsourcing (BPO). As an interesting example, he cited the fact that one of the call centers in Moldova manages the work of the famous New York cab company Yellow Cab. This is just one of many such success stories, and dozens of examples are already known. Moldova has traditionally cultivated a multilingual workforce, which sets it apart from many other countries in the region. The country can offer services in a variety of European languages, making it an attractive outsourcing destination for Western European companies. The growth of the BSS sector has had a notable impact on the Moldovan labor market. The sector employs about 16,200 people, which represents 2.5% of the country's labor force. The average salary in the BSS sector is about $800, which is 20% higher than the national average, while in the IT sector the average salary reached $2,000, which is 2.5 times higher than in BSS. However, as the new ABSL Moldova President Eugenia Danu notes, unlike IT specialists who need special knowledge and training, for the BSS sector young people can easily acquire the necessary skills. Employers mainly focus on language skills, as well as the candidate's openness and willingness to learn. As a result, most of the training takes place directly on the job. To strengthen Moldova's position in the global BSS market, the government is focusing on attracting investors in the IT and business process outsourcing (BPO) sectors. A key initiative is the Moldova IT Park (MITP), which offers a simplified tax regime with a flat tax of 7% of a company's turnover, making it very attractive to IT and BPO companies. BPO is also central to national investment attraction strategies, with a focus on promoting Moldova as an ideal outsourcing hub for global companies. In 2024, Moldova plans to increase its services exports to $1 billion, an important step towards becoming a major outsourcing hub in Eastern Europe. // 21.10.2024 - InfoMarket.
