Doha is among the most attractive markets for school developers, with eight to 12 new schools required each year up to 2022, according to a report.
The Doha Education Overview 2015 notes that school developers and operators are increasingly recognising opportunities for growth in Qatar’s education sector as the country continues to develop.
The report is published by Colliers International, a global leader in real estate advisory in different sectors, including education and healthcare.
Among the drivers of this growth, the report points out, includes a high population growth rate, with current projections anticipating a further increase to 3.09mn at a 4% growth rate and 3.53mn at a 6% growth rate by 2022.
Given that Qatar’s population primarily consists of expatriates, falling within “Generation X, Y and Z”, this translates into a wide base of young parents and school attendees, it is observed. Further, the transient nature of Doha’s population leads to a preference for international curriculums, typically American or English, due to their transferable nature and for private education choices.
Additionally, a large number of Qatari nationals also prefer to send their children to private rather than government schools. All of these factors are attracting private education providers and operators with the resultant growth in new K-12 schools within Doha, the report adds.
Mansoor Ahmed, director of healthcare, education and PPP at Colliers International, said: “Given that a well-run school can achieve profit margins of around 20% once the stabilisation years are complete, private investors and operators are increasingly looking at the Qatar market as a major
opportunity.”
Already, Qatar ranks among the top countries that host over 100 international schools. Lusail Education City is a massive development that will have 34 school plots catering to a diverse range of residents and needs and with a forecast capacity of approximately 28,000 children of school age plus KG.
Speaking at the just-concluded IPSEF Dubai conference, Simon Lucas, head of education, Arcadis, which is helping build the infrastructure for the upcoming city, said the development offers “a unique opportunity to apply a well-considered vision and strategy to and for an entirely new city education infrastructure from the outset, and in creating a genuinely strategic development comprising a ‘system’ of schools working collaboratively”.
In his presentation, Lucas mentioned the strategy set in place by the developers for education in Lusail City, saying “it will have ambitious learning communities that recognise and nurture unique strengths and abilities and are a source of inspiration, as well as outstanding schools serving the community, both present and future, in which children and their families take pride”.
Meanwhile, the report also notes that the quality of teaching staff is critical to the long-term success of a school; however, similar to other countries in the GCC, attracting and retaining quality staff is a major challenge in Qatar.