Freelance software programmers can double the income with govt backing

Freelance software programmers outsourcing jobs from the Western countries may double their income if they are supported by the government, sources said.
Former president of Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS) Fahim Masroor said more than 50,000 active programmers exported products worth US$ 40 million last year.
He said if the outsourcing programmers get support from the government institutions, the export amount could be double.
According to BASIS, earnings from freelance outsourcing were $ 28 million in the year 2013 and with a 30 per cent increase it stood at $ 40 million last year.
As entrepreneurs of the Western and a few Eastern countries are already convinced that Bangladeshi software engineers are skilled and can complete jobs within time limit; so this could be utilised with more efforts, the former BASIS president said.
He said the exporters can earn $ 100 million from the world's big corporate offices with support from different institutions of the government.
Muhaimin Kader, a young freelance programmer, said: "I do not have any office and the speed of internet is slow at my home in Comilla."
He said as the internet is the main raw material of his outsourcing jobs; so if he gets high speed internet at cheaper costs, it will help him to bag more jobs at competitive prices.
Secretary of Basis Hashim Ahmed said approximately 50,000 freelance outsourcing programmers are active as they work regularly and there are more than 0.2 million outsourcing exporters who do not work full time.
Mr Mashroor said if the government provides high speed internet across the country and reduces its current costs, more people would invest money in outsourcing software programming.
He said the government has taken up plans to train 50,000 software programmers across the country.
Manjurul Islam, another freelance software programmer, said it would be effective if a small number of people are trained for a long period instead of providing short-term training to many people.
He said, "I am currently getting training from a government institution in my district headquarters and it is helping me to understand more and marketing my jobs to the Western buyers."
He said, "I have already done some high-profile jobs outsourced from the world's renowned companies."
He said the jobs outsourced from Western firms were delivered within timeframe despite hurdles in getting slow internet connections and high costs.
He said, "Along with the government, we need infrastructural facilities in broadband spectrum, branding the country to the buyers so that they can have confidence on us."
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