The shortage of programmers and engineers is not only a regional issue. It is happening worldwide. The new digital economy requires more graduates in scientific disciplines and engineering. Higher education institutions provide this offer with training programs in digital technologies. The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean registers 1,611 institutions (52% of the total) offering programs in digital technologies for seven Latin American countries. The highest proportion corresponds to Argentina, where 66% of institutions offer this type of education. By normalizing the number of universities by the population of each country, Chile, Mexico, and Colombia register the highest density of institutions. Most of the programs include courses related to robotics and control, artificial intelligence and machine learning, big data, and analytics. Despite this, the supply of qualified software developers is not enough in most countries.
For the regional economy, developing computer-related talent is key for the next few decades, as technologically-related GDP is starting to grow exponentially. However, few steps have been taken regarding technical and college education access. For example, the Inter-American Development Bank recommends deepening and universalizing initiatives to incorporate training in computer science in schools; promote a sustained increase in enrollment in technical careers; generate mechanisms of public and private signage to increase the demand for technical careers, and establish monitoring systems between the secondary level and the programs technical and scientific tertiary to facilitate the choice of technological careers. Creating research centers and excellence for using new digital technologies that combine different disciplines (programming, economics, business administration, social sciences) at the university level will break the natural departmental silos and promote collaboration more efficiently between the private and academic sectors.
In addition to that, the demand for programmers in Latin America has not been met for two other reasons, according to economist Alejandro Melamed. On the one hand, local entrepreneurs are creating startups in the digital ecosystem, competing in resources with traditional companies trying to catch up with the digital revolution. On the other hand, computer science is not tied up to a specific geographical context, making it a globalized career and diluting the already scarce talent pool even further, as someone in Santiago or Mexico City can be working for a US company.
Remote work and the possibility of studying from home and doing it quickly, for example, greatly influence when deciding to train in the area. A world of opportunities is now waiting for thousands of new programmers in companies like Mahisoft. For our job listings, visit: https://mahisoft.com/careers/#vacancies
