The rise of GCC’s higher education sector

By Dr Björn Kjerfve/SharjahThere is no denying that the GCC has become one of the most attractive hubs for global higher education institutions which have set their sights on the area to launch their operations to a wider and new audience. This is due to the significant investments that have been made over the years by GCC governments which truly believed in the power of education and the role it plays in their countries’ development and progress.In 2014, a total of $90bn was predicted to have been spent by the GCC on education-related construction projects. Qatar specifically and as an example allocated $7.2bn to the sector according to the “The Big 5” report by Ventures Middle East. The UAE has no less than 107 universities, of which 37 are international campuses. Qatar has 11, Bahrain three and Saudi Arabia one international campus.Despite recent political tensions in the greater Mena region, the GCC is continuing to witness rising higher education enrollment rates, due to its excellent climate and growing presence of world-class universities, some home-grown and some international. With women making up 60% of GCC tertiary education enrolments in 2012, the strong commitment of Gulf governments to promote and provide equal opportunities for education to all cannot be underestimated. There are several important steps that should be taken into consideration for the GCC’s education sector to maintain its strength moving forward. Universities in this region need to place greater focus on increasing specialisation in fields of study to respond to marketplace needs. Another critical priority is promoting the growth of the research sector, both in terms of increasing funding in addition to monitoring the quality of work produced. Research is an essential component of tertiary education and allows the local universities to develop further into world-class institutions. A national funding agency based on peer-review of multi-year proposals would go a long way towards improving the research capabilities of GCC universities and at the same time bolster innovation and commercialisation with the help of both government and business sectors.- Dr Björn Kjerfve is chancellor of the American University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates.