In early November NCVER released Governments’ VET expenditure figures for 2021. Australian and state and territory governments spent $10.4 billion on vocational education and training (VET) during the year which showed a $2.9 billion increase and up 38.6% from 2020. Of these funds, $5.4 billion was for direct VET delivery and $3.7 billion provided employer assistance to engage in VET – up over 150% from 2020 levels.
The Australian Government was the big contributor, providing $6.3 billion, which was an increase of $2.5 billion, or around 64% over 2020 levels. State and territory governments provided $4.2 billion, which was an increase of $379.9 million, or about 10%.
As NCVER’s press release points out:
“The largest increase in expenditure was on employer assistance, particularly temporary COVID-19 pandemic wage subsidies for apprentices and trainees under the Australian government’s Australian Apprenticeships Incentives Program. Employer assistance totalled $3.7 billion in 2021, up by 155.7% when compared to 2020.”
This link will allow readers to access the report and data tables.
The report provides details of Commonwealth and state and territory contributions and allocations. It also provides time series data.
For those wanting some further history on VET funding, read Gerald Burke’s paper in VOCED’s landmark paper series which explores VET funding from 1970 to 2020.
