Raffles Education to invest S$33mln in India

Company expects to break even in 3 years in its JV with a local education firm.

Raffles Education Corporation Ltd (REC) will invest US$24 million (S$33 million) to expand its operations in India to offer design skills in multiple sectors, a top company official said Monday.

As part of its expansion, the company will set up five more design colleges across the country in Chandigarh, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Hyderabad this year.

In a joint venture with the New Delhi-based technology driven education firm Educomp Solutions Ltd, REC opened three design colleges in Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai in 2009.

"In the long term, we are planning to operate about 20 colleges in India keeping in view the growing demand for design skills in fashion, interiors, graphics, multimedia, animation and jewellery," Raffles chief executive Chew Hua Seng told reporters in Bangalore.

With foreign faculty, high-end technology and quality infrastructure, REC offers one-year and two-year diploma courses and three-year degree programme. Fee for degree course is Rs.1.5 million (S$ 46,394).

"We expect to break-even in three years, with an in-take of 100 students in each college and return on investment in five years," Chew said.

View the full story in The Indian News.