Nearshore Americas
Andean tech talent college

Colombia’s Tech Ministry Expects IT Talent Shortage to Worsen

Colombia’s Ministry of Information and Communication Technologies (MinTiC) warned that the country may run short of 112,000 software developers by 2025, adding that easing the talent crisis should be a priority.

Today, more than 80,000 IT positions are lying vacant across the country, according to the Colombian Society of Engineers.

IT’s outlook is worrisome, to say the least, as there’s no guarantee that the talent crisis will be dealt with efficiently.

Demand for software developers and digital marketing managers is already huge. Some startups are offering exorbitant salaries to attract people armed with programming and product design skills.

The IT sector accounts for more than 10% of Colombia’s economy, with Medellin trying to become the epicenter of technological activities in the country. With more than 10,800 workers, the IT and software services sector represents 6% of foreign investment in the city.

A lack of English skills is a major obstacle preventing Colombians from excelling in the global IT services industry, according to local software firm SoftServe.

“One of the main reasons […] is that a large percentage of employees in the industry do not speak English,” stated SoftServe. “The need is based on the fact that a large part of the software and technology development companies have organizations from the United States and Europe as clients. Therefore, to meet their requirements, fluent communication in English is needed.”

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At 77, Colombia sits at the lower end of the rankings in the EF English Proficiency Index, which measures the level of English in countries around the globe. A lack of grassroots English language adoption is holding it back.

Narayan Ammachchi

News Editor for Nearshore Americas, Narayan Ammachchi is a career journalist with a decade of experience in politics and international business. He works out of his base in the Indian Silicon City of Bangalore.

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