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The Ministry of Economy and Commerce said yesterday that it has offered eleven plots of land for private schools to potential investors.
The plots are spread over Al Wakra, Al Rayyan and Al Khor municipalities.
Four plots are located in Al Wakra, two in Al Khor, and one each in Umm Qarn, Rawdat Al Hamama, Al Ab, Al Thamid and Smaisma, said the Technical Committee to Stimulate Private Sector Participation in Economic Development Projects at the Ministry in a statement yesterday.
Area of each plot estimated at 15,000 sqm
The area of each plot is estimated at 15,000 sqm. Potential investors have been invited to present their offers by June 18. There is a joint committee from the MEC and the Ministry of Education and Higher Education to assess the offers. The committee has offered the investment opportunities in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education for development and operation of private schools.
The projects will be managed based on Design, Building, Financing and Operation (DBFO) contracts for educational institutions.
The investor who achieves 70% and higher in the evaluation will be eligible and one investor will be selected for each plot. If more than one investor has submitted offers for the same plot, the one who gets a better assessment will be given preference, said the committee.
The Technical Committee had conducted a survey seeking investors’ views and suggestions on how to invest in these projects, the type of educational projects they are planning to establish, target group of students (co-education or single-sex), time needed to develop designs, construction and conditions needed to be fulfilled by developers and investors.
Seventy six percent of interested investors participated in the survey said that there were interested to invest in education serving children between the age of 4 and 18 years (from pre-schools to higher secondary schools). A total of 45 people participated in the survey and 87 percent of them were companies and 51 percent said they would introduce British curriculum.
The initiative aims to provide quality education by improving the infrastructure and also to accommodate international students over the coming years, the Committee added.The committee comprises representatives from different ministries and government bodies concerned.
