The changing international division of labour presents opportunities for developing countries to attract foreign investments and generate employment in the offshore service sector. What spatial transformations occur as a result of these investments in the Philippines, why do they occur and what is their impact on existing spatial inequalities and the broader economic landscape of the Philippines?
This research maps the location of offshore service investments on a national and regional level and shows that globalised enclaves are being formed around the delivery of offshore services in the Philippines. These ‘islands of globalisation’ arise due to location choice factors of investors, the existence of powerful private real estate developers and changing government policies on spatial zoning. The latter require skilled labour and prefer modern and secure environments modelled according to their home country, in which service delivery for global markets is paired with increasingly globalised consumption patterns.
This working paper is no longer available. The published version of the article is available at: