The joint venture has already built two learning centres in India which offer pre-kindergarten and after-school essential skills, and EMPGI has also built 90 centres catering to 30,000 children through joint ventures in China. The centres aim to deliver a new teaching and learning approach which encourages children to discover the fun side of learning and prepare themselves for the demands of growing knowledge economies.

Welcoming the announcement, Minister Bruton said:  “This is great news. E-learning is a high-value area in which Ireland’s reputation is growing every year across the world, and Irish-developed products in this area are developing into important exports. EMPGI is a dynamic, innovative Irish company and an important player in this sector.

“Today’s announcement and the success of this joint venture with a long-established Indian educational publishing company demonstrates how, with the right local partner, Irish companies can take on challenging markets such as India and achieve expansion that supports growth and employment in Ireland.

“I, together with my Department and its agencies, will continue to support dynamic companies like EMPGI seeking to expand exports and market share abroad. I am formulating plans to ensure that high-value, innovative Irish products like those of this company can continue to be developed and commercialised and can become a key part of a new Irish economic success story.”

The second full day of Minister Bruton’s trade mission was spent mainly in Mumbai and included:
·    Breakfast meeting with PM Group (45 minutes)
·    Meeting with CRH and visit to the company’s India corporate offices (45 minutes)
·    Meeting with Idea Cellular (1hr)
·    Ireland India Business Lunch, including speech by the Minister (1hr)
·    Interview with Press Trust of India news agency (45 minutes) 

The joint venture has already built two RISE and RISEKIDS learning centres in India which offer pre-kindergarten and after-school essential skills.

These Indian based centres build on the successful RISE English Language Learning business that EMPGI, with local Chinese partners, has operated in China since October 2007. RISE China presently has 90 centres across China with over 30,000 children aged from 3 years to 11 years of age. It is anticipated that RISE China will IPO in New York in 2012.

Mr. Justin Cahill, President of EMPGI & Chairman of S.Chand Harcourt said:  “We are very excited by the business opportunities which we have developed in India. What continues to drive our success in this market is the unique synergy of EMPGI’s pioneering leadership in interactive K-12 learning (EMPGI has a exclusive license / partnership with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt - the largest US K-12 education publisher) combined with S. Chand’s local educational heritage. S. Chand Harcourt have helped us understand the implications of the unique demographic dynamics at play in India which are driving exponential and sustained market growth.”

EMPGI’s Chairman is Mr. Barry O’Callaghan, formerly of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Mr. O’Callaghan said:  “In India, educators and students need tools that reflect the time in which we live, as well as the era into which we're moving. That means they need technology to be a powerful bridge to sustain their economic growth rates.

“From our Riverdeep heritage to today, EMPGI has been a pioneer in the development and integration of technology into education. The S. Chand Harcourt joint venture is a fantastic example of the further development and application of this technology in a global context.”

Mr. Amit Gupta, CEO of S. Chand Harcourt, further commented:  “With our Irish partners we have created an impressive pedigree, combining two international education greats. S. Chand, India’s leading educational and technical publisher is a pan-Indian household name in textbooks, with the brand carefully built up over 70 years through unmatched quality. Adding to the considerable strengths of S. Chand is EMPGI which has an exclusive partnership with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt - the leading global K–12 educational publishing company, a trendsetter in the deployment and integration of digital technology and content in education worldwide. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has an unmatched heritage in educational technology.”