Johannesburg - Private school operator Curro Holdings said on Thursday that it had acquired 100 percent shares of the South African School of Motion Picture Medium and Live Performance [AFDA] for an undisclosed amount through its subsidiary, Stadio Holdings.
AFDA is a South African-registered higher education institution with nine accredited programmes, ranging from higher certificates to masters degrees, primarily focused on the film, television and live performance industry.
It is rated as the number one film school in Africa.
AFDA was founded by Garth Holmes and Bata Passchier in 1994, and has since grown from six students to approximately 2 000 students in 2017, with campuses in Gauteng, Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth.
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In 2016, AFDA launched a Bachelor of Commerce in Business Innovation, as well as a Bachelor of Computer Technology, as part of its strategy to expand its product offering, as well as to meet the demands and opportunities of the creative economy.
In addition, AFDA is in the process of seeking out opportunities to expand its offerings geographically.
Curro said this strategy was aligned with Stadio's strategy of creating further access to tertiary education through the expansion and development of its core brands. Stadio is Curro's wholly-owned tertiary education business.
The JSE-listed independent schools group also re-affirmed its intention to unbundle and list Stadio Holdings separately during the course of this year after it expressed confidence in the tertiary education market in February.
"Curro re-affirms its intention to unbundle and list Stadio separately during the course of this year.
Shareholders are advised that further details in respect of such unbundling and listing will be released on SENS in due course."
The acquisition of AFDA is subject to the fulfilment of certain conditions, including the approval of the Competition Tribunal.