HDFC Plans :- HDFC plans strategic foray into education sector

FROM- http://profit.ndtv.com

HDFC plans strategic foray into education sector

Housing Development Finance Corporation Limited (HDFC) on Wednesday announced its plans to enter the education sector.

HDFC said the sector will provide the company an opportunity to play a transformational role in providing access to affordable education across all segments.

“Our education initiative has been conceived as an answer to the question ‘Why can’t equal opportunities be provided to middle income households to secure affordable and quality education  for their children leading to better careers and better lives? To support such an initiative, we will start with some baby steps and envisage building an education organisation on the principles of efficiency, effectiveness, integrity and transparency which have been so successfully applied and institutionalised within HDFC,” said Deepak Parekh, chairman of HDFC.

HDFC said that it plans to enter India’s vast education sector by way of participating in the segment of schools, with a long term objective of providing school management and other allied services, apart from setting up initial flagship schools.

“There is an opportunity to treat education as a long-term investment theme providing yet another opportunity like housing to fulfill social objective at the same time to create value for all stakeholders,” said Keki Mistry, vice chairman and CEO of HDFC.

HDFC also plans to enter the segment of Vocational Education and Training by undertaking career enhancement programs, initially offered to graduates across the country. It said that the objective would be to address the twin challenges of employability and deployability being increasingly experienced across several industry sectors including the financial sector.

Mrs Renu Sud Karnad, managing director at HDFC, who is overseeing this initiative said, “HDFC plans to add value in the student’s entire life cycle  from the first mile of a school to the last mile of a career. HDFC’s foray into the education sector will be undertaken through a wholly owned subsidiary which will serve as a platform to provide a portfolio of education and allied services.”

HDFC had earlier entered the education finance sector through its subsidiary, Credila Financial Services Private Limited. Credila is India’s first and only fully dedicated education loan company.