Montevideo

Montevideo is the largest city in Uruguay with over 1.8 million people, almost half of the country’s total population. The settlement was established in 1726 as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute. The southernmost capital city in the Americas, Montevideo is situated on the northeastern bank of the Río de la Plata.

Described as a "vibrant, eclectic place with a rich cultural life,” Montevideo is the centre for higher education in Uruguay. The city’s first university, the Universidad de la República, was founded in 1849 and remains the country's largest and most important school, with a student body of 80,000.

Business services and IT industries employ approximately 62,000 people, out of which more than 16,000 are estimated to work in IT (IT application development, maintenance and infrastructure).

Uruguay has a thriving community of technology talent stimulated by free public education provided from kindergarten through university. Six percent of the country's GDP is invested in education, and 100% of high school students at the age of 15 have already completed at least three years of English and two years of computer science.

The 2017 Mercer's report on quality of life, rated Montevideo first in Latin America, and the city has consistently held this ranking since 2005, while Uruguay is often seen as a Scandinavian-style social democracy. The country has maintained strong political and social stability for years, supported by a consolidated democracy and the rule of law. Infrastructure is improving as 100% of schools, high schools and universities have fiber-optic access, 90% of households have fiber-optic access, and a direct connection to the US through an undersea fiber-optic network was launched in 2017.