ADFD grants Dh53m in financing to Bloom Education

The funding is part of a Dh1bn initiative rolled out by ADFD last year to support Emirati-owned businesses through the coronavirus pandemic

Mona Al Marzooqi / The National

Abu Dhabi Fund for Development extended Dh53 million in financing to Bloom Education to help the company weather the coronavirus pandemic and scale up its operations.

The funding is part of a Dh1 billion initiative rolled out by ADFD last year to support Emirati-owned businesses through the pandemic and allow them to emerge stronger.

Bloom Education operates eight schools in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

“The ADFD initiative met with an overwhelming response from national companies,” said Rashid Al Kaabi, director of investment at the fund, adding that its technical committee had already studied requests from 51 companies in recent months, of which it identified 20 as prospective candidates.

“A series of applications have been approved, while the remainder are under review, with the final decision expected to be taken within the first half of this year.”

To qualify for funding, a company must be registered in the UAE and its annual returns should not be less than Dh80m.

The initiative is one of several measures taken by ADFD to support the country's economy and encourage joint investment in the development and implementation of new projects on a global scale. Over the past 10 years, the fund has provided Dh16.5bn in financing for Emirati companies to set up projects abroad.

“The financing will help us perform better as we make bigger plans for the future,” Rashid Khalfan bin Amer Althakhri, member of the board of governors of Bloom Education's Brighton College in the UAE, said.

The UAE has rolled out economic support packages worth more than Dh388bn since the coronavirus pandemic began to help businesses and individuals.