06/10/2021

Sommet Education partners with Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Tourism Development Fund

Swiss Hospitality entity signs agreement contributing to boosting KSA Hospitality education

Riyadh, Wednesday, October 6th, 2021

Sommet Education, the world’s leading network of hospitality education institutes, has signed an agreement with the Tourism Development Fund (TDF) in Saudi Arabia to support the development of the Kingdom’s tourism sector.

Through the partnership, Sommet Education will work with TDF to develop the Fund’s employees and clients’ knowledge, skills, and competencies in tourism, hospitality and entrepreneurship through dedicated programs and training courses, as well as workshops, training sessions, conferences, and consulting.

In line with the objectives of the Human Capability Development Program of Saudi Vision 2030, the new partnership opens a world of opportunities for TDF’s employees and clients to study hospitality with globally accredited institutes.

“The positioning of Sommet Education and its institutions combining prestige, excellence and an international outlook, paired with the vision of the Kingdom for quality education, offers strong potential to build and grow the overall performance of the tourism sector in Saudi Arabia.” said Benoît-Etienne Domenget, Chief Executive Officer of Sommet Education.

Qusai Al-Fakhri, Chief Executive Officer of TDF, said: “The tourism sector is a key driver of Vision 2030. In order to facilitate its rapid growth, it is essential to have the right talent leading the way. Through our partnership with Sommet Education, one of the leading educational centers worldwide, we look forward to enabling TDF’s valued clients and employees by providing them with the best-in-class training they need to realize their tourism ambitions during this exciting phase in the Kingdom’s history.”

Sommet Education is a unique education group specialized in hospitality management and culinary arts encompassing Glion Institute of Higher Education, one of the world’s finest Swiss hospitality management schools, Les Roches Global Hospitality Education, ranked n°3 worldwide in employer reputation, and École Ducasse, culinary and pastry arts school founded by world-renowned chef.

Under this partnership, Sommet Education is committed to developing future talent for the service industry. Sommet Education will provide TDF’s employees and clients with the opportunity to enroll in training courses for various professions, including investment, hospitality, and tourism. Programs will be available at a variety of educational levels, making this inclusive for one and all. The services will be available for individuals, entities, and companies working across the Saudi services sector under the supervision of TDF.

With capital of USD 4 billion, TDF aims to be the key enabler of tourism development in Saudi Arabia. By providing financing solutions for investors, TDF will drive the development of distinguished tourism projects in various regions of the Kingdom, thereby accelerating the National Tourism Strategy’s goal of raising the tourism sector’s contribution to GDP from 3% to 10% and creating one million new jobs by 2030.

About Sommet Education

Sommet Education is the world’s leader in hospitality management education. Its global network of prestigious institutions comprises Swiss originated hospitality business schools Glion Institute of Higher Education and Les Roches, together with culinary and pastry arts school École Ducasse. In April 2021, Sommet Education acquired South African Education leader Invictus Education, adding four new schools to its portfolio: International Hotel School, IHS Gaming dedicated to the gaming industry; SAE Institute specialized in creative media education and Summit focused on B2B training and development. In 2021, Sommet Education also expanded in India through a majority stake in the Indian School of Hospitality (ISH) with a campus in Gurugram (Delhi NCR).
These institutions offer 400 undergraduate, graduate and technical training programs to 9,000 students from 100 nations and 10 000 learners. Teaching is offered across four continents on 18 campuses, as well as through state-of-the-art remote learning platforms. Between them, the schools have a network of 60,000 influential alumni in hospitality and beyond.

Sommet Education is the only education group with two in the Top 4 globally-ranked institutions for hospitality education and by employer reputation (QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021).

www.sommet-education.com

About the Tourism Development Fund

The Tourism Development Fund (TDF) was established in 2019 with a capital of USD 4 billion to drive tourism growth in Saudi Arabia. TDF enables local and international investors looking to benefit from the sector’s high potential by providing viable funding solutions, and leveraging its wide network of partners including government entities, public and private lenders as well as operators and service providers… all deployed to bring investments to life.

Positioned firmly at the heart of Saudi’s tourism ecosystem, TDF is well placed to offer guidance and funding options to SMEs, and tailored investment solutions to qualified investors. The Fund’s vision is to contribute towards achieving the National Tourism Strategy’s objectives by unlocking opportunities in the tourism value chain for private sector investors, while focusing on long-term sustainability.