Support for strengthening the software industry in Ecuador

(Quito, April 6, 2009).- The closure of the project “Improvement of the Competitiveness of the Software Chain” promoted by the Ecuadorian Software Association (AESOFT), the Ministry of Industry and Competitiveness (MIC), and the Andean Development Corporation (CAF) took place today in Quito.

This initiative focused on implementation of Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) and development of business management through adoption of project management programs (PMPs). The project aimed to strengthen and promote the Ecuadorian software industry as an indispensable alternative for technological development, by implementation of international quality standards in processes, providing a set of good practices to increase productivity, optimizing results, reducing costs and increasing the satisfaction of the agents involved with the participating organizations.

The companies recognize that thanks to the project they were able to diagnose their weaknesses and apply corrective measures in an effort to improve their competitiveness at local and international level, although it will take some time to fully complete the implementation required by the model. The organizations that participated in the project were: Compuseg, Cotecna, Loja Technological University, Grupo Infoelect, Inveligent, Pointec, Logic Studio, RedPartner.

The strengthening of the software cluster in the country is essential not only for the actors directly involved, but also for the competitiveness of all the industries in the country. Technology and software are tools which add competitiveness and efficiency to companies. In Ecuador the software industry associates about 265 companies with sales of around US$99 million. The sector currently exports mainly to the markets of the Andean Community, Central America and the United States.

This initiative is part of the actions of the Competitiveness Support Program (PAC) which CAF promotes in its partner countries to improve productivity in strategic sectors in the region.