MEGATREND Phuket's Education Hub
One of my favorite reads is the International Herald Tribune.
One morning a few weeks ago I thumbed past an article in the business section talking about the looming shortage of educational facilities for expat families in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore and Tokyo.
Quotes that included facts like Asia already having over 50% of the world's 6,000 international schools, and forecasts calling for a doubling of this amount within the next decade are revealing.
Phuket continues to be an ideal environment as a regional learning hub and critical mass of quality international offerings. Given the existing schools such as British International and the impressive Thanyapura destination offering, there looks to be more room to grow the industry.
Certainly for challenged property developers the prospect of a new surge in island residents is an appetizing thought.
One clear trend continues to be the relocation of expatriates from urban regional cities such as Hong Kong who are attracted to the island lifestyle and key drivers which not only include schools, but medical facilities, marinas and an evolving business community.