JOHOR BARU: Iskandar Malaysia is well on its way to establishing itself as an education hub with a target of welcoming a dozen of international schools to set up their campuses in Johor.
Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda) chief executive officer Datuk Ismail Ibrahim said that it had achieved half its target so far with six international schools already setting up their respective campuses here.
Ismail said that the international schools here offered syllabus from the primary school level up to the O and A Levels or equivalent levels.
“Our ideal target is to have 12 international schools in Iskandar Malaysia but there is no timeframe for achieving that as we prefer for it to take its natural course.
“There are definitely interest from international education institutes that want to establish their schools here and our role is to give them guidance and assist them in ensuring a smooth process of setting up their campus here,” he said.
Ismail said this when met by reporters after witnessing an agreement signing between Chinese property developer R&F Development Sdn Bhd and Singapore-based education provider Excelsior International School here on Wednesday.
The agreement allows for children of all staff of R&F Group of companies globally to be admitted into the school, which was wholly-owned by Raffles Campus Group, on a priority basis and enjoy discounted fees when enrolling in the school in Bandar Seri Alam.
Meanwhile, Ismail added that the incoming of international schools as well as foreign universities into Iskandar Malaysia creates the right synergy to allow not only locals to enrol but also attract students from beyond Malaysian waters to study here.
“This is positive in our move to make Iskandar Malaysia also an education hub because it allows the exchange of education, experience and knowledge with our foreign counterparts,” he said.
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