According to the latest IDC statistics, Brazil is the fifth largest market for ICT in the world, valued at approximately $198 billion (£123 billion). It has 1.2 million professionals working in the IT industry.

SAP's president of Brazil, Luis Cesar Verdi, expressed a similar viewpoint to Gil and stated that Brazil was "no longer a source of cheap labour".

"With cheap labour you can do many things. You can export cheap products without needing a level of operational excellence, because you already have low production costs. This is not the case in Brazil," explained Verdi.

"The appreciation of the local currency against the Euro over time, and the maturity of the Brazilian market, means that we are no longer a source of cheap labour."

Verdi said that Brazilian companies now needed to compete on the quality of their products and services, which he believes can be achieved by using IT to improve operations and supply chains.