The Philippines’ information technology-business process outsourcing (IT-BPO) sector exceeded its revenue target for 2012 according to the Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP).

In an interview with InterAksyon.com, IBPAP president Jose Mari P. Mercado cited preliminary data which showed that IT-BPO firms in the Philippines reached combined revenues of $13.4 billion in 2012. This is higher than the $13 billion target set for the year and 22 percent more than the 2011 revenue which is at $11 billion.

By the end of 2012, employment in the IT-BPO sector was at 720,000.

Mercado added that jobs in the IT-BPO industry are projected to hit one million by the first quarter of 2014 thanks to the increased demand from clients that prefer Philippine IT-BPO firms.

The healthcare outsourcing industry and the call center sector also reported that their revenues for last year exceeded their respective targets.

The IBPAP exec also said that the sector is sticking to the targets outlined in Road Map 2016 despite the faster-than-expected growth in the industry. For 2013, the targets are revenues of at least $16 billion and jobs in the sector of at least 920,000. And by 2016: $25-billion in revenues and 1.3 million jobs.