16-01-2018. Mediterrania Capital Partners, the private equity firm focused on growth investments for SMEs in North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa, in conjunction with its investment partner DPI announce the acquisition of Université Internationale de Casablanca (UIC) by KMR Holding Pédagogique, subject to regulatory approvals.
Founded in 2010, Université Internationale de Casablanca (UIC) was created by Laureate Education, Inc., the world’s largest global network of higher education institutions, to meet the fast-growing need for higher education in Morocco. During that time, UIC became the first multidisciplinary private university in Morocco and won the accreditation of the Moroccan Ministry of Education.
KMR Holding Pédagogique, which owns UPM (Université Privée de Marrakech), is managed by a team led by the company’s founder and CEO Mr Mohamed Kabbadj. The group is supported by DPI since 2014 and by Mediterrania Capital Partners since the second half of 2016. The acquisition of UIC is part of KMR’s mission to deliver affordable, quality higher education and strong employability for its students.
Daniel Viñas, Partner at Mediterrania Capital Partners, said: “Nowadays Africa has a shortage of quality education centres at all levels (from pre-school to master’s and postgraduate education, through primary to higher education) and the demand in the continent continues to grow. We are delighted to continue supporting KMR in their expansion objectives with new investment for the acquisition of UIC. This university is highly complementary to UPM’s current offer in Morocco and will allow the group to become the leader in the private higher education sector not only in Morocco but also in French-speaking Africa.”
Following the acquisition, KMR now serves over 7,500 students across four state-of-the-art campuses in Casablanca, Marrakech and Dakar, with seven fields of expertise tailored to both country and employer needs, in medicine & health sciences, engineering, business & management, hospitality, art & culture, sport and executive programs.
The expanded KMR platform offers African students international exposure through a network of over 240 reputable universities and higher education institutions globally, and degrees with multi-campus curriculums including courses in North and sub-Saharan Africa and Europe. It has exemplary employability rates (80% within three months of graduation and 100% within six months) and state diploma equivalent qualifications.
KMR CEO Mr Mohamed Kabbadj said: “We are delighted to continue our growth trajectory and welcome UIC and their students to the KMR group. When we first entered into the partnership with our partners, our ambition was to grow our student base to 5,000, develop new degree programmes and expand our presence into Africa. Our investors have been instrumental in helping us exceed these goals in less than four years and we are excited about the continuation of this journey and the prospect of reaching 10,000 students.”
About Mediterrania Capital Partners
Mediterrania Capital Partners (www.mcapitalp.com) is a private equity firm focusing on African and mainly North African growth investments in SMEs and mid-cap companies.
Headquartered in Malta and with offices in Abidjan, Algiers, Barcelona, Cairo and Casablanca, Mediterrania Capital Partners takes an intensely proactive, hands-on approach to implementing its growth strategy by leading the governance of the companies and driving the key internal value creation process.
Mediterrania Capital Partners is a regulated financial investment manager licensed by the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) and the Financial Services Commission (FSC) in Mauritius.
For further information, contact:
Montserrat Petit, Communications Manager
mpetit@mcapitalp.com
+356 9914 7237
www.mcapitalp.com
www.linkedin.com/company/mediterrania-capital-partners
