International Finance Corporation Announces Investment For GIIS Expansion

Oct. 18, 2012 - PRLog -- In a strong nod for a Singapore-based Global Indian International School, International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank group, has invested SGD25 million to enable GIIS expand its network of educational institutions, allowing more students in the region to benefit from its proven academic systems. The investment will also increase access to affordable, high quality primary and secondary education in Asia.

Speaking to members of the international media in Singapore at the signing ceremony for IFC funding held on July 9, GSF Chairman and Co-founder, Mr Atul Temurnikar said, “We are benchmarking ourselves against some of the best schools in the world, including in Singapore and we are glad that so far we have done extremely well and continue to do so. IFC is going to be very helpful in providing the growth capital needed for expansion in India as well as in Vietnam and Indonesia. The IFC’s long-term loan will allow us to accelerate our expansion plans and reach more students throughout the region. As we enter new countries, we also expect to benefit from the IFC’s deep industry knowledge and on-the-ground expertise in local markets.”

“IFC has an office in Singapore for about a year now and this is our first investment in a Singapore based provider and also the first investment since the office opened so its quite a landmark from our perspective,” said IFC Director for Manufacturing, Agribusiness, and Services in Asia, Mr Vipul Prakash. “GIIS as you learned from Atul’s remarks is a high quality institution but at the same time an institution that provides a very affordable education for what it does. For us at IFC, the footprint is very important. It’s a Singapore-based education provider but which is then exporting its knowledge and standards to emerging markets like India, Vietnam and Indonesia.

We support the growth of GIIS as it expands its academic expertise and operational know-how to developing countries. Global Indian International Schools’ ability to implement high standards of educational delivery helps drive innovation in the private primary and secondary education sector. And most importantly, it fulfills the growing need for quality education in emerging markets. We look forward to working more with GIIS over the years.”

On the occasion of the signing ceremony held at Singapore, GIIS in India marked the event with a press conference on the same day in New Delhi. Media teams interacted with a board of panellists - Mr Chandrakant Borde (Vice President, GSF), Mr Subodh Gore (Trustee, GSF), Mr Harish Doraiswamy (Deputy CEO & Chief Operating Officer, GSF), Mr Rajeev Katyal (Country Director, GIIS, India) and Ms Meenakshi Seth of IFC.

For more details about the Global Indian International School (GIIS) Whitefield campus (Bengaluru) visit http://www.giisbangalore.org/