Danladi Verheijen, co-founder of private equity firm Verod Capital Management, is bullish on the education sector in West Africa. Last year, Verod sold its stake in TAG West Africa, which operates Lancaster University Ghana. The institution offers students a UK degree at a fraction of the cost.
“There’s lots of demand for education,” Verheijen says. “Families will do anything to ensure that their children get a high-quality education. They’ll make all the sacrifices that are necessary to do that.” The trick, he explains, is backing operators who can build strong brands and earn the trust of fee-paying parents.
But traditional education is capital-intensive – campuses, classrooms, staff – and that makes it slow and expensive to expand. For Verheijen, technology offers a way around those constraints. “Most likely the way to meet the students where they are is via technology.”
For more, listen to our full interview with Verheijen: From beverage cans to gyms – Verod’s investment playbook for West Africa
