MANILA - European companies are looking to outsource operations in the Philippines to capitalize on a young workforce, whose skills need to be upgraded to meet demand, officials said.

The Nordic Chamber of Commerce considers the Philippines as "outsourcing destination" for information technology, accounting and graphic design jobs, said its president, Bo Lundqvist.

"The opportunities are amazing, there are so many opportunities, there's not just enough talent," Lundqvist told ABS-CBN News.

As Europe taps Filipino workers, the Philippines can benefit from technology transfers, said EU Ambassador to the Philippines Franz Jessen, who also chairs the EU-Philippines Business Network committee.

"Europe does not have a young workforce so we focus very much on technology," Jessen said.

European Chamber of Commerce of the the Philippines president Guenter Taus cited Austria as example, wherein the government offers graduates free courses to give them skills that meet job demand.

The European Union is home to some 800,000 Filipino workers and the bloc is the second largest source of remittances. Seafarers alone account for 30,000 of the total, he said.