< Previous20 Vol. 23/12, December 2022 SPOTLIGHT | 40% The SME sector’s contribution to the UAE’s GDP The country’s Operation 300bn, is also ambitiously aiming to develop the industrial sector and enhance the economy, driving indus- trial innovation. The impact of startups is seen rst-hand by London Business School and its Gulf Associa- tion Club, which consists of almost 2,300 LBS alumni professionals across the Gulf region. Less than a year ago the Gulf Association set up a Middle East entrepreneurship club covering all industries from ntech to medtech, and full of aspirations as they aim to support the region’s entrepreneurs. Leading arti cial intelligence (AI) dubbing tech startup Ollang was recently crowned the winner of the inaugural London Business School MENA Startup Competition 2022, which was established through the collaboration between the LBS Institute of Entrepreneurship and Private Capital, the Entrepreneurship Club in London and the Middle East Entrepreneur- ship Club. The competition, backed by global giants Amazon Web Services Activate, Strategy&, part of the PWC network, and regional telecommu- nications powerhouse Zain, marks the rst time the London Business School has brought its highly successful entrepreneurship model to the Middle East. The region’s position as a global leader of innovation is most obviously seen as it tops the lists of the best place for entrepreneurs, and it no doubt will continue to maintain this position as its initiatives across government, business and institutions are driven forward. By bringing together ambition and enthusi- asm, with the vibrant entrepreneurial ecosys- tem, enterprise will continue to thrive in the region and enable it to compete with the world’s leading tech hubs. Enthusiasm and an entrepreneurial ecosystem This enthusiasm may well be innate, but it is also certainly helped along in the most practical sense by governments and wider body of ecosys- tems and adjacent business support. Ambition, entrepreneurship, and innovation can be found in droves across the UAE. As a global hub, it is rivalling some of the great tech hubs around the world from Tokyo to Singapore. Earlier in the year the UAE ranked rst glob- ally in entrepreneurship and was deemed The Most Supportive Environment for Entrepre- neurship last year. In the Global Entrepreneur- ship Monitor, the UAE has been rewarded for its actions across innovation and has excitingly been rated the best country for entrepreneurs in 2022. One wouldn’t want to presume and lay claim to any of these locations as examples of greater prominence and success as spawning grounds for new enterprises and innovation, but it might be worth observing that one cannot create an entrepreneurial ecosystem just by posting, for example, the word ‘Silicon’ in front of a natural geographical feature. What is key to entrepreneurs is having access to nancial support and government behind them who is supporting them to achieve their ambitions, prepared to be backed by investment and innovative policies to make their dreams a reality. Location key to the success of today’s innovators That is exactly the case in Dubai and other hubs in the region. Location is proving to be vital to the success of today’s innovators, with the local landscape now offering entrepre- neurs access to excellent resources and unprecedented support. The UAE continues to rank highly among several world economies over the past few years, and it is fascinating to note that 95 percent of the Gulf country’s rms are small and medium-sized businesses, or startups, employing 42 percent of the UAE’s workforce and accounting for over 40 percent of its GDP. Startups recognise the entrepreneurial environment available to them in the UAE, as it aims to become the top startup nation by 2031. The country also launched the Entrepreneurial Nation project, a one-stop-shop platform that uni es the entrepreneurial ecosystem, brings together public and private sector entities and aids innovative companies to help them better establish and develop their businesses. Vibrant community Hub71 is Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem Supporting businesses Boustantzi has been closely involved in the creation of the Entrepreneur Club $3.7 BN The FDI inflows Dubai attracted in the rst half of 2022FUTURE OF BIM & DIGITAL TWINS STARTS HERE! Event theme is Enabling Digital Transformation and includes a 2-day conference plus workshop on latest developments for BIM, Digital Twins, GIS, and related technology. Presentations focus on the role of digital construction from project concept and design, project management, to full lifecycle asset management. This is the Kingdom’s leading event for BIM & Digital Twins! Presentations are by government and private sector organizations at the forefront of the Kingdom’s construction industry, and mega projects. Plus, international organizations that are leaders in smart sustainable construction and built asset management. Event website with further details is: www.bimdtksa.com NETWORK, MEET YOUR TARGET MARKET, AND DO BUSINESS! Adjacent to the strategic level conference is the expo area where event sponsors and exhibitors showcase the latest digital construction and asset management technology and services to delegates during the conference breaks. If this is your target market, then book now as the 2022 event booked out. For further details including event sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities call: Anthony Sprange Director of Conferences at ITP Media Group +971 (0)58 598 9062 or email: anthony.sprange@itp.com 14 & 15 FEBRUARY 2023, RIYADH ORGANIZED BYDIAMOND SPONSORPOWERED BYMEDIA PARTNER BIM & DIGITAL TWINS SAUDI ARABIA 2023 CONFERENCE & EXPO OPEN BIM & DIGITAL TWINS: THE KEY TO INDUSTRY 4.0 TM EVENT PARTNER: STR ATEGIC PARTNER: Scan the QR code to learn more about the event and register KEYNOTE PRESENTATIONS INCLUDE: CASEY RUTLAND Vice Chair, UK BIM Alliance & Chair, buildingSMART UK & Ireland DAVID GLENNON Senior Digital Delivery Director, The Red Sea Development Company DR. ABDULLAH AL-HALAFI Digital Twin Consultant & VP, ISA Saudi Arabia MOSTAFA ELASHMAWY Senior BIM & GIS Manager Middle East, WSP BADR BURSHAID President, PMI KSA Chapter JUAN TENA FLOREZ Regional Digital Design Manager, KEO InternationalCOVER STORY | 22 Vol. 23/12 December 2022 SCHOOL OF LIFE Sunny Varkey ’s GEMS Education has grown from a single school in Dubai to a multibillion-dollar education empire and an iconic global education brand born in the UAE. It has also helped him create one of the world’s most prolific philanthrop- ic organisations. In his first interview for a decade, the world’s most famous educator looks back on his remarkable career, and what the future holds COVER STORY BY ANIL BHOYRULarabianbusiness.com 23 | SUNNY VARKEY arabianbusiness.com 2324 Vol. 23/12, December 2022 COVER STORY | Meeting Sunny Varkey is like stepping into a boxing ring. He’s good though, very good. He opens with a few quick jabs. “You can’t punish someone for being successful.” Then an uppercut. “Don’t tell me what I’m doing right. That’s my job. Tell me what I’m doing wrong.” Followed by a thunderous left hook. “If you can find $1m in my account, anywhere, keep it. It’s yours.” It’s only at the very end of our two-hour session at his villa in Jumeirah, walking distance from the Burj Al Arab, that he finally tells me what really matters to him. “You know one of the main reasons why people move to Dubai? It’s because of the quality of education. That’s why we could build GEMS into a global brand out of city like Dubai. No other place in the world can do that.” No o er of a $1m if I can nd such a city, but welcome to the complex, Giving back GEMS Education founder Sunny Varkey and his family with billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates 140,000 The number of students enrolled at GEMS schools from 175 countries around the world prestigious prize in education. The Global Education and Skills Forum, which he founded nine years ago to promote educational philanthropy, is better known as the Davos of education. A UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, Varkey has signed up to The Giving Pledge, which will see half of his wealth go to charity. Along the way, the Pope, US presidents, prime ministers and celebrities have become admirers and friends. Oh, and there is the small matter of his schools: GEMS now owns and operates over 60 schools in the MENA region alone, plus schools in Asia, Europe and North America. It goes without saying that the 65-year-old would probably do a decent job if he actually stepped into the ring, thanks to a relentless tness regime. He has shown, throughout his life, a remarkable ability to take the knocks, dust himself o the canvas and roll again. “Do I feel pressure? One hundred percent. One hundred percent. It’s a riveting and fascinating world of Sunny Varkey, the man who created a global education empire from scratch which is valued at anywhere between $6 to $10bn. Under his leadership, GEMS Education has grown to become the largest non-governmental operator of private K-12 schools in the world, teaching 140,000 students from 175 countries. Nobody does it bigger. Nobody does it better. All this has helped him pursue his passion for philanthropy, quite literally changing thousands of young lives for the better. His Varkey Foundation established the $1m Global Teacher Prize, widely recognised as the most arabianbusiness.com 25 | SUNNY VARKEY impact. I have always believed that education is key to xing so many of the world’s greatest problems: Violence, poverty and health. It all starts with education. “We are probably the oldest for-profit education company in the world. I said ‘listen, if healthcare can be for pro t, why not education?’ In 1975, Dubai Petroleum used to send 25,000 dirhams to the schools because running a school was all charity. I used to send it back. I said we are a for pro t company I don’t take donations,” he says. Varkey’s model was to create price points in fees between $40,000 a year and $2,000 a year. Or as he says: “When you enter a plane, you can choose to turn left or right, depending what seat you paid for. But both seats will get you to the same place, and safely.” Varkey’s pursuit of perfection and choice in education has been never ending. His Varkey Group had also been highly successful in healthcare, found- ing Welcare in 1984 – which then launched a series of hospitals and clin- ics, including the City Hospital in Oud Metha. He exited the industry in 2012 by selling the operation to Mediclinic International, allowing him to focus solely on education and philanthropy. Not that it has always been a smooth ride. Google the name Varkey and there is no shortage of appears on power lists and rich lists. The tag “billionaire” is often attached to his name, and critics suggest he is pro ting from education. privilege and a pressure. At the end of the day, we change people’s lives, we change communities. For me, I mean, it’s a huge responsibility. Parents depend on their children. The worst thing a school can do is have an unqual- ified or wrong teacher in front of a classroom. We don’t tolerate that. If you have a bad teacher in a class, you are actually playing with those students’ lives. I feel that every day. We just don’t compromise,” he says. Family history Compromise is not a word that is likely to appear in any of the Varkey family’s vocabulary. Born in Kerala in India, his father KS Varkey and mother Mariamma, were Syrian Christians when they moved the family – and a two-year-old Sunny – to Dubai in 1959. His father worked at the British Bank of the Middle East, and both parents taught English to local Arabs. By the age of just four, he was back in Kerala to attend boarding school, and by the age of seven was already begin- ning his entrepreneurial journey by sell- ing fruits on the side of a road. He returned to Dubai in 1970, by which time his parents had already capitalised on the soaring demand for English education from Indian expatri- ates, and opened what they called “Our Own English High School.” Varkey himself followed his family’s footsteps and took over the school in 1980. “It had about 350 kids and was in a very old part of Dubai called Bastakiya. We were charging around AED100 a month in fees,” he says. By then, Varkey had already a trading company, a maintenance company, was a part owner of the Dubai Plaza Hotel and even made a foray into the healthcare business (to which he would return later). But all were dropped or put on the sidelines. With the oil boom fuelling Dubai’s sudden growth, and the result- ing in ux of thousands of expats, the schools business was becoming big business. Indian, Pakistani and British schools were opened, di erent curric- ulums, di erent models and di erent price points introduced to the market. “We set a new minimum bar. We created beautiful schools, so if anyone Education counts GEMS is the largest non-governmental operator of private K-12 schools in the world Leader Sunny Varkey pays a courtesy call to UAE President Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan I have always believed that education is key to xing so many of the world’s greatest problems: Violence, poverty and health. It all starts with education wanted to enter into education, they had to reach that level. We upped the game,” he says. Soon, Varkey was running a network of schools across the Arab world, before o cially establishing GEMS Education in 2000. Within four years, he had expanded into the UK and India, followed by Kenya, Uganda, Egypt, Jordan, Europe and even the US. By 2007, as the rst ever iPhone was launched, Varkey had already created the Apple of education. “It’s how can we nd solutions to a problem, how can we make a positive 26 Vol. 23/12, December 2022 COVER STORY | “People think I have money. I see all these rich lists. Well, you know what? If you can find $1m in my account, anywhere, keep it, it’s yours. Shake me upside down, you won’t get much. I’m not into money. We have always been education first, even today. I believe that you came into this world with nothing, and you go back with nothing. It was always about growing a business,” he says. But does the criticism bother him? “It does a bit especially when it’s from people who do not know you. I’m not into social media so I don’t get involved in these things. You can’t punish some- body for being successful after working hard and honestly. If you have come up the hard way, why is that wrong?” For all his success in the education business, Varkey’s tone of voice only really changes when he starts talking about philanthropy. If building GEMS tives. The guiding principle is simple: for every single child enrolled at a GEMS school, another 100 impoverished chil- dren around the world must be posi- tively impacted. Apart from building schools, classrooms and learning centres, there have been several ongo- ing initiatives, teacher training programmes and advocacy campaigns. In 2011, $1m was pledged with UNSECO to help train 10,000 school principals in India, Ghana and Kenya. His Teacher Training Programme, which was set up in 2014, aims to train 250,000 teachers in under-served communities. “I think it comes down to values,” he says, adding: “In education, value systems are very important. Values that are there which I grew up with. When you pray, you are taught to be humble. Every religion has the same meaning, in a sense, to be humble and a good person.” Educator The $1m Global Teacher Prize is awarded by the Varkey Foundation under the guidance of Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum 250,000 The number of teachers in under-served communities Sunny Varkey’s Teacher Training Programme aims to train was his passion, helping others is his pride. “We are good citizens, that’s what we are and that’s important. You have to do your bit, whatever you can. I’ve always believed that, my parents always believed that and my children believe that,” he says, adding: “Our philosophy is that good giving “pinches”, meaning that the sacri ce you make has to be felt, else, the act remains just another nancial trans- action in our lives.” The Varkey Foundation was created 12 years ago as an umbrella organisation to house his various charitable initia-arabianbusiness.com 27 | SUNNY VARKEY and in most cases, become close to. He stops for a moment staring at a picture of him with Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence and says that he has been one of his closest friends and mentors and has always stood by his side through thick and thin. His memoirs are certain to be a best-seller, and he says he plans to put pen to paper someday. It will be some read. Fame, fortune, power. Varkey has all three, and e uses strength, determi- nation and leadership qualities throughout our meeting. But as the interview ends, he tells me of an interesting statistic. GEMS has around 450,000 alumni over the years, estimated to have average earnings of $40,000 a year. Measured across the last 40 years, after Varkey took over, that amounts to a contribution of around $1 trillion to the global economy. It is unlikely that any single person in the education sector, past present or future, will beat those numbers. Religion is clearly a huge driving force in everything he does today. His great grandfather started a church in India, and soon after Sunny was born, he fell extremely sick and nearly died. “My family made a vow then, that if I lived, they would make me a priest,” he says. He didn’t become a priest, but says he still prays up to seven times a day. “You can put many zeros as you like, but it has no value. It’s about putting a one in front of them. One is God. I say God a lot. I’ve seen a lot of people say ‘Thank God.’ I really want to publicly say my testimonies. I want to tell this to the world, that if you are a good human being, if you have faith in God, things will work out for you.” Things have worked out pretty well for Varkey, but he is far from nished. If anything, he is just getting started. He admits he is looking into something new, education and technology related, but won’t give away too much. He explains: “When you have been in the business for 63 years and have access to so many experts globally, you are able to think and do something new and di erent. We are on it. All I can tell you is this. When you look at someone’s CV how much importance do you give to what school they went to? None is the answer. That needs to change, and we are working on something very special, very big and very disruptive.” Varkey has already totally trans- formed the world of education once. Will his new idea do it again? “Yes… I’ve created a legacy and we want to continue to do innovative things in the industry. But I’m not going to give away what I know or what is going to happen in the future.” Friends in high places Nobody can argue that Varkey has lived an incredibly rewarding and ful lling life. His walls are lined with pictures of the great and the good, alongside Varkey. The Pope. Bill Clinton. Tony Blair. Sir Elton John. Sir Edward Heath. John Major. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum. There are few world leaders or global celebrities that Varkey hasn’t met, UAE royal Sunny Varkey with mentor Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence Faith Pope Francis and Sunny Varkey both share a strong belief in God $3.18TR The estimated value of the global educational services market in 2022, according to the Business Research Company28 Vol. 23/12, December 2022 bene ts are realised, entrepreneurship for women also means decreased depen- dency, more financial control, and greater income security. Barriers in place and soft skills to cultivate Although running a business might look like an identical process for both genders, women face some unique barriers. In some cultures, opposition can come from families and societies that expect men to take more of a leading role. In addition, women are often raised with a different focus to men, which conditions them to look at the world in a di erent way – a research report from Mckinsey famously said that women were raised to please, while men were raised to perform. Funding is another barrier – by way of example, October saw $646m raised in venture capital across the MENA region, but all-male leadership accounted for more than 99 percent of that money. From employment to ownership: What female entrepreneurship entails Women empowerment The MENA could achieve $600bn in economic impact annually if gender inequality is removed Risk, never forget, is a four-letter word. It is always scary starting something new. It is even more daunting when it means leaving your salaried employment to follow your passion. What happens if you fail? For women, entrepreneurial debuts can be signi cantly more intimidating than for men. According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), although women entre- preneurship is growing, men still outnumber women threeto one in busi- ness ownership. That’s an economic travesty, according to a Boston Consult- ing Group (BCG) report, which states that if there was a gender parity in the number of entrepreneurs, global GDP could rise to 6 percent, and the world economy could be boosted by up to $5 trillion. Here in the MENA, the report suggests that if gender inequality is removed for entrepreneurs, the region could achieve $6 bn in economic impact annually, or $ .7 trillion, by 5. Starting a business can be demand- ing, and women face unique challenges when doing so that their male counter- parts do not. But when the economic Driving female entrepreneurship will be crucial to the future success of the Middle East COMMENT | Professor Heather McGregor, Provost and Vice Principal at Heriot-Watt University Dubai The ability to set your own schedule makes it easier to make time for family, recreation, and focus on a healthy lifestyle COMMENT | Professor Heather SMART HEALTHCARE STARTS HERE! As part of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, the Health Sector Transformation Program will restructure the healthcare industry. Integral to this restructuring is a move to e-health services and digital solutions, as well as improving the quality of health services. Keynote presentations by government and healthcare sector will explore topics in detail, with an eye towards examining key takeaways and valuable information for industry leaders on developing a smart healthcare system. NETWORK, MEET YOUR TARGET MARKET, AND DO BUSINESS! Adjacent to the strategic level conference is the expo area where event sponsors and exhibitors will showcase the latest in smart healthcare technology to delegates during the conference breaks. It provides the perfect one-stop-shop to network with the industry and increase your business potential! Event website with further details is: www.smarthealthcareksa.com 7 & 8 MARCH 2023, RIYADH Event focuses on digital transformation of the healthcare sector to achieve Industry 4.0, and how this will improve efficiency, efficacy, meet patient demand, and realize objectives of the Health Sector Transformation Program AN ITP MEDIA GROUP EVENT SMART HEALTHCARE KSA CONFERENCE & EXPO 2023 ENABLING HEALTHCARE 4.0 LAYLA ALSALEHI Director of Virtual Healthcare Service Activation, Ministry of Health AFNAN CHOWDHURY Director of IT Applications, Al-Ahsa Health Cluster GOETZ F. KURAS Chief Executive Officer, MEDGULF AHMED ALZAHRANI Director of Healthcare Technology Development, Ministry of National Guard, Health Affairs MOHAMMED ALHEFZI MD, KSA Digital Health Lead, Novartis ZYAD ALDAHAM Strategy and Transformation Expert For further details including event sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities call: Krishna Mahbubani Tel: +971 (0)52 874 2175 or email: Krishna.Mahbubani@itp.com CONFIRMED KEYNOTE SPEAKERS INCLUDE:Next >