Kingdom of hope

Educators’ eyes are focusing on opportunities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, says Pam Mundy, Business Women in Education founding member and an independent educational consultant. In this contribution, she offers a street-level view of the controversial market, hitting back at consensus that it is not welcoming to Western women

Networking events are often highly entertaining, potentially good for business, yet rarely lifechanging – or so I thought. Last year, I attended an EducationInvestor Global event. One conversation, one follow-up coffee, and I have the privilege of being one of the founding members of this publication’s Business Women in Education Network. I can testify to a complete change of opinion. Having deliberately avoided similarly titled genderfocused organisations, from the naïve perspective that my gender should neither be the barrier to opportunity nor the reason for it being offered, the discussions resulting from the network powerfully indicate otherwise. Add to this my work in the K12 space, with specialism in early childhood education, which often compounds the perception of many operators and investors.

In terms of the place of women in business and education, perhaps one of the most controversial territories has always been Saudi Arabia.

Whose views? Social media has offered a variety of opinions from which one can select a preferred stance and, until relatively recently, there has been a marked reluctance to venture into Saudi Arabia from both investment and operational standpoints. But being curious by nature and, on a dark, wet and windswept January day in 2009, the prospect of a first working visit to the country was a welcome distraction from the UK winter. A new location, new clients and the opportunity to work with an established British international school all contributed to the potential for positive outcomes and further business opportunities. Interestingly, the impending visit was the initiator of a range of uninvited opinions from both professional colleagues and personal contacts.

The consensus of opinion seemed to be that if one professed to support the rights of women and children, then this was not the place to visit and certainly not to do business. The choice, it seems, is to subscribe to what may be seen as biased views and turn away, or to take the opportunity to be part of the new dawn, the Saudi 2030 vision. I chose the latter. Experiences on this visit failed to bear witness to those biased opinions. Having carefully researched and taken guidance on respectful dress, religious and cultural expectations, each working visit since then has been both professionally rewarding and commercially successful.

There were, of course, certain restrictions that I accepted – there are laws in every country! People were warm, welcoming, incredibly polite and with enormous integrity in all business negotiations. Never, in many years of international travel, has an immigration officer been quite so welcoming, nor suggested that heavy baggage could be carried on my behalf (not that I accepted). I am equally aware that what I share here is my own experience of KSA and that others may disagree. I can only be honest.

A different lens? Education has always been at a premium in Saudi Arabia – and never more so than now. Having hosted delegations from the Saudi Ministry of Education in the UK on several occasions since then, there is an emphasis on high-quality education for national and international students, and a particular focus on the development of early childhood education. It is true that since my first arrival in Dammam, and many subsequent visits to other locations in the country, there have been major developments in opportunities and social standing for women and considerable expansion in the education market, most of which are widely publicised.

The Saudi market has a large, young population in Gulf terms of over 34 million, which in itself offers major scope for business expansion. It offers huge opportunities for financially viable, indeed, lucrative business development. Even the Hilton Group has announced plans to operate more than 50 hotels, with a total of 16,000 rooms across the country within the next five years as a result of the government’s Vision 2030.

There’s also scope for high-impact educational operations and investment, but some are still nervous of identifying this location as a prime area for growth and expansion. Conversely, high-end sporting and music events, and business and education summits are already lining up to enter Saudi. This is evidence, in contradiction to social media-driven opinions, that the market is opening up. In the words of the travel writer Deborah Cater: “You have to taste a culture to understand it.”

An open invitation? One key opportunity for open-minded and future-oriented education investors and operators is currently arising through the building of Neom, described as a “futuristic cross-border mega-city”. With the aim of bringing together dynamic developments in Saudi technology, innovation and with a focus on sustainable living and working for both expat and national communities, it is located in the Northwest of Saudi Arabia, bordering the Red Sea. The scale of the project is phenomenal, offering immense opportunity for business and for potential school operators. Currently, one school is in progress, with plans for 150 more over the next decade as part of the 2030 vision.

The intention is to create opportunities for education organisations that are able to do something unique, to innovate, test out ideas, apply and conduct research in a ‘living laboratory’. Those leading the Neom project are inviting existing operators or newly established and exploratory ones to make a pitch. The proviso is that it must be those who can bring together the most unique and innovative elements of international education programmes and learning approaches, to invent that which does not yet exist – a chance to create a seismic shift in both Saudi and global education that can come in many forms – starting from the earliest years (a key focus in the Saudi market) through to tertiary education.

For investors, rather than simply ‘chasing the riyal’, this (and Saudi as a whole) is an incredible opportunity to fund the highest-quality education for both national and international students; to be part of a new Saudi partnership era and (literally) a world-changing project. For educational operators, the opportunities are equally attractive.

Alternatively, it can be left as a missed opportunity, satisfying the sentiment expressed in the words of an expat school leader, who is the principal of a very successful international school in Saudi Arabia: “Please don’t tell anyone how good life is here – we don’t want everyone coming in.” n

Business Women in Education Network

CONTACT US TO JOIN THE NETWORK

For more information: ipevents.net/ business-womeneducation