Neglecting India and other popular call center destinations, HP has chosen the region of Northern Africa.

Tech giant Hewlett-Packard has expressed interest in creating tech support centers in Africa, though which countries it wants to help develop still aren't disclosed.
"We see Africa as a potential base for providing all sort of services and technical support for customers outside of Africa," said Rainer Koch, HP Managing Director, in a statement to Reuters. "We plan to invest more in the future on the continent on that perspective."

At a time when the U.S. unemployment is at record levels, the company may suffer from some public criticism -- especially from consumers who do not enjoy dealing with tech support that is obviously in foreign countries. Popular foreign nations for call centers are often times located in India, Singapore, the Philippines, and Mexico, with these nations chosen for several selected reasons.

India and the Philippines are popular due to cheaper labor, and both nations have large populations of young people familiar with western culture. Furthermore, India also has a large labor force of workers who have attended university classes, along with a strong familiarization with English.

Singapore also has a large number of English speakers, and is a nation that has a stronger IT infrastructure than other possible markets.

Unlike these other nations, Northern Africa doesn't have these advantages, which HP will have to slowly develop over time. The company plans to hire at least 1,000 employees by the end of 2010 for its first call center -- HP officials didn't disclose how many facilities they plan to develop.

Also, it will be interesting to see which countries HP chooses, and why the nation was selected. Many nations in Africa are having problems with war and extreme poverty, so HP must select a North African nation carefully.

Source : Dailytech.com