Next Wave Cities Philippines
Definition
Next Wave Cities Philippines
Next wave cities Philippines was the first joint government and industry push to name provincial towns as future outsourcing sites. The term is now legacy, replaced by later branding, though it still turns up in older decks and market reports.
It began as a countryside development push — Metro Manila was absorbing almost all new capacity, and both government and industry wanted a mechanism to point investors elsewhere.
The programme worked by publishing an assessed shortlist. Cities were judged on workforce, infrastructure, cost and local government support, then promoted to investors as ready for a first delivery site.
Buyers still meet the phrase in provider decks and older market reports. Recognising it as a dated label, rather than a current certification, is most of what you need from the term.
Key takeaways
- Next wave cities was the first structured push to move IT-BPM work outside Metro Manila.
- The label named provincial locations assessed as ready for their first delivery sites.
- It has since been superseded, so treat it as historical vocabulary rather than live status.
- Several named cities did become real markets; others never developed past the designation.
How it works
The mechanism was promotional rather than regulatory. A committee assessed candidate cities against published criteria, the results were released as a list, and investors were encouraged to treat the list as a pre-screened shortlist.
That design explains both the programme’s reach and its limits. Being named brought attention and sometimes local government support — but it conferred no incentive, no tax treatment and no obligation on anyone to invest.
Reporting from 2020 records next wave cities as developing locations that support IT-BPM operations, naming Baguio, Cagayan de Oro, Dasmariñas, Dumaguete, Lipa, Naga and Sta. Rosa.
| City | What made it a candidate | How it developed |
|---|---|---|
| Baguio | University city, cool climate, graduate supply | Became a genuine secondary market |
| Cagayan de Oro | Regional hub for northern Mindanao | Steady but modest delivery presence |
| Dumaguete | Strong university relative to population | Small-scale, low-churn operations |
| Sta. Rosa | Proximity to Manila and to industrial estates | Absorbed into the wider capital corridor |
| Naga | Regional centre with local government backing | Limited outsourcing presence to date |
The national context has moved on considerably since the programme’s peak. The World Bank records GDP growth of 5.6 percent in 2024, averaging 5.8 percent annually from 2021 to 2025, alongside 11.7 million new jobs.
The candid assessment is that the list predicted unevenly. Baguio and Sta. Rosa developed — several others still have the assessment on paper and very little delivery on the ground.
Examples
The label’s practical value now lies in reading older documents correctly rather than in shortlisting sites. What follows happened somewhere, which is a lower bar than marketing usually clears.
A provider’s 2018 capability deck still describes its provincial site as being in a next wave city. The claim is accurate as history and tells a buyer nothing about current headcount.
A buyer comparing two provincial quotes finds both cities on the old list. The list cannot separate them, so the decision comes down to local attrition data and supervisory availability.
A shared-services team shortlisting for a second site uses the roster as a starting point, then discards two cities after discovering neither has an operating provider of meaningful scale.
Related terms
The Philippine location vocabulary has accumulated several overlapping programme names, and the entries below keep them apart. Below, every entry is pinned to a single meaning and fenced off from its neighbours.
- Baguio outsourcing: the northern university city that developed furthest under the label.
- Bacolod outsourcing: a Visayan provincial market known for low churn and modest scale.
- Iloilo outsourcing: a mid-sized regional site handling rule-based and document work.
- Davao outsourcing: the principal southern location, cheaper with a thinner management layer.
- Cebu outsourcing: the established second city, well beyond next-wave status.
- Metro Manila BPO: the capital region the programme was designed to relieve.
- Philippines BPO: the national industry these location programmes were built to spread.
FAQ
Is next wave cities still an active programme?
Not in its original form. The countryside push continues under later branding, and the older phrase now mostly appears in archived material.
Which cities were named?
Reporting from 2020 lists Baguio, Cagayan de Oro, Dasmariñas, Dumaguete, Lipa, Naga and Sta. Rosa as next wave cities.
Did the designation come with incentives?
No. It was a promotional shortlist. Fiscal incentives come from zone registration, which is a separate process run by a different authority.
Why does the term still appear in provider decks?
Because it was widely used for years, and older marketing material was never updated. Treat it as vintage rather than as a current claim.
Did the programme actually work?
Partly. A few named cities built real delivery markets, while others attracted little investment despite scoring well on paper.
Should the list influence my site selection?
Only as a prompt. Verify current graduate output, provider presence and supervisory depth before treating any named city as viable.
Browse verified partners in the Outsource Accelerator directory and verify current conditions before trusting any older roster.
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