Local and international suppliers of products and solutions geared for the education market are optimistic about their business prospects in the Middle East. Exhibiting companies at the ongoing GESS Dubai exhibition and conference at the Dubai World Trade Centre see the growing demand for schools and increasing student population as massive growth drivers for their business throughout the region. Experts estimate the current supply requirement for new schools by 2020 is at 50,000 across the GCC alone, with student population reaching close to 13 million in four years' time. "I am very optimistic about the prospects for our business in the region. Over the last three or four years we have seen sustainable growth. There is a lot of demand from the market about what we are doing and how they can be utilized by teachers and students in classrooms throughout the region and so we are confident going forward," said Steen V. Lund, Head of Emerging Markets, Lego Education. The demand for new schools is also a boon for Rediker Software, a US-based company exhibiting at GESS. Toni Jacobs, Business Development Manager, said "there are a lot of schools that are being built now and more are in the pipeline in the years to come, and they will be looking at student information systems to help manage their operations so we are quite optimistic about this market being very big in terms of opportunities as well as looking at sustainable growth over a period of time." Lego Education and Redijer Software are just two of the many international companies that have set their sights on growing their Middle East business due to an anticipated increase in demand. According to recent studies, more than $150bn will be spent technology related investments in the education sector, to enable schools and universities to develop and implement programs that will boost innovation and their capability to hone students' readiness for the future. "More and more companies are looking at the Gulf region for future growth. With billions of dollars budgeted for new school buildings as well as investments on smart tools and digital devices and applications, local and international companies are benefiting from the networking platform offered by GESS that connects them to decision makers in schools and governments throughout the GCC," said Matt Thompson, Director, F&E Education, organizers of GESS Dubai which will culminate today at the Dubai World Trade Centre. Looking at the future, many of the companies are looking at developing trends such as STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math), digitization the learning process and developing students to become future-ready, capable of gaining employment in a much more competitive global environment. "The UAE has to get STEM right. So many people talk about 21st century skills for students, but the key is to how to make them come to life in the classroom. Now is the time to get it right and make it right in the classroom. The other trend we see happening more and more is the digitalization of the learning process, which is not just about adding a tablet or smart board, but actually digitizing the learning environment with these things as important tools," added Lund. For Shameema Parveen, CEO, edutech having a new mindset is critical for students to become more innovative and to be ready for a challenging future. "Robotics has been here for a while now, as a breakthrough in getting students more interested in STEM. But more needs to be done to help students have an invention mindset, and we are edutech are helping schools create the right environment for this invention-thinking to thrive. Looking into the immediate future, we need to be able to enable students to develop coding skills and create things from scratch and get more immersed in the IoT which will make them more future-ready by way of having skills that will allow them to function properly in a highly digital world," she added. GESS Dubai is still ongoing and is free to attend for education professionals. Further information may be obtained at www.gessdubai.com. — SG
