UAE provides a platform to promote education
BACk in 1969, Sunny Varkey’s parents saw a real need for schooling facilities and opened Our Own English High School, which has now been in existence for 48 years and is considered an institution which is synonymous with consistent, quality education.
“My family began to carve a niche for themselves in the education sector and soon we had established ourselves as the primary choice for parents when it came to school choices,” said Sunny Varkey, founder and chairman, Gems Education.
In 2000, after building a strong network of schools in the region, offering various types of curricula customised to the education people wanted for their children, Varkey established Gems Education to provide a standard quality of education on a global platform.
“Today, we have the privilege of educating over 190,000 students from over 176 countries through Gems owned and managed schools globally and we will impact the lives of 20 million students by 2020 through the initiatives of the Varkey Foundation,” he said.
“We benefit from the talent of over 20,000 education professionals and are the largest private education company in the world ,” Varkey added.
He is grateful to the leaders of the UAE for providing him with a platform to contribute towards the growth of this sector.
“This country has offered entrepreneurs like me plenty of opportunities. With their support and encouragement, we are able to raise the bar of excellence every year by offering an outstanding quality of education to our students.
“We have also received incredible support from the government of the UAE for the philanthropic partner of Gems Education — The Varkey Foundation, which is a non-profit organisation established to improve the quality of education for underprivileged children around the world.
The foundation launched the Global Teacher Prize in 2015, under the patronage of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maketoum, the Vice-President and Prime
The initiatives of the varkey Foundation will impact the lives of 20 million students by 2020
Minister of the UAE, which is now in its third year.
The $1 million prize was set up to recognise one exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to the profession. “Investing in shaping our next generation is crucial in this regard. As a proud UAE company, we have dedicated considerable resources to ensuring the highest quality education for young people across the nation, and beyond,” Varkey said.