Tuition fees in Saudi Arabia lowest in GCC: NCLE CEO

Mohammed Al-Khudair, CEO of National Company for Learning and Education 

Saudi Arabia has the lowest tuition fees among the GCC countries, Mohammad Al-Khudair, CEO of National Company for Learning and Education (NCLE), told Argaam.

Increases in tuition fees is linked to market supply and demand, he said, adding that raising fees is not the best option to boost revenue in the long term amid the current competitive atmosphere.

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Saudi Arabia has a promising education industry. The number of the K-12 students grew 5% year-on-year (YoY) over the last five years, and private schools saw 13% growth YoY, Al-Khudair noted on the sidelines of the Saudi Capital Market Forum 2024.

Education, like any other sector, has challenges, but the Ministry of Education and the private sector are aligned to address these challenges and enhance the industry on investment and educational levels, he said.

NCLE has three under-construction complexes in Hetteen, Qurtubah, and Al-Narjis neighbourhoods in Riyadh. These will open next year. Additionally, two educational complexes started operations as of the current academic year 2023/24 in the districts of Al-Qairawan and Al-Arid, Al-Khudair said.

Since its listing on Tadawul in November 2018, the company opened over 10 educational complexes—either by building schools or through acquisitions.

NCLE’s government grants and subsidies accounted for 3% of revenue as of Q1 ended on Nov. 30, 2023, Al-Khudair indicated, adding that it was divided between the Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) and to a lesser extent, the Ministry of Education. These grants would be directed to the fresh graduates, in line with the initiative of wages’ subsidies for Saudi employees from the HRDF.

NCLE’s net profit increased to SAR 31.1 million by the end of Q1 ended on Nov. 30, 2023, from SAR 25.9 million a year earlier, Argaam reported.