Malaysia's Smart Reader Eyes More Centres In Middle East

LANGKAWI (Kedah, Malaysia), Nov 11 (Bernama) -- Smart Reader Worldwide, Malaysia's leading early childhood education provider, is seeking strategic locations in the Middle East for its Smart Reader Kids Centres. Chief Executive Officer Dr Richard Ong said Oman and Qatar are possible locations for such centres, which were introduced to the region in 2014. "Our Abu Dhabi centre is currently running at full capacity while our Al Ain centre (in the United Arab Emirates) launched last year is growing as fast as the one in Abu Dhabi," he said at the Smart Readers' Franchisee Awards Night here recently. He said a similar centre set up in Melbourne, Australia earlier this year has also gained a good reputation, with enrolment growing rapidly. Australia is the first English-speaking nation to have the Smart Reader name and programmes. "Being able to penetrate a country where English is the first language is highly noteworthy," he added. Ong said during the first quarter of this year, the Smart Reader centre in Medan, Indonesia also took off on a good note despite the presence of other preschools with an established phonics system nearby. Within Malaysia, he said, a Tamil programme and a Reading Vision project were introduced this year to strengthen parental support and confidence in the company's pre-school education programme. "Our programmes speak of quality and excellence and are well-received by parents, not only in Malaysia but all over the world," he said. -- BERNAMA