Public spending on education in the world and the Western Balkans
Education is an investment in the future as it brings numerous economic and social benefits to individuals and societies. Usually measured in relation to a nation’s wealth, expenditure on education comes from public budgets, but it includes funding from individual students, their families, and other private sources as well.
In 2020, OECD countries spent an average of 5.1% of their GDP on educational institutions from primary to tertiary level. Expenditure on primary and tertiary education institutions ranges from 6.6% of GDP or more in Colombia and Norway to 3.4% or less in Ireland, Luxembourg, and Romania.
In 2021, general government spending on education in the EU reached €701 billion or 4.8% of GDP. Of this, ‘pre-primary and primary education’ accounted for 1.7% of GDP and secondary education 1.8% of GDP.
The average for education expenditure to GDP in the Western Balkans is 4.6 percent.
By comparison, the world average in 2019 based on 165 countries is 4.43 percent.
Spending on education in Albania accounted for 3.1 percent of GDP in 2019 and 3.4 percent of GDP in 2020, falling to 2.1% of GDP in 2023.
The average expenditure for Serbia during 2021 was 4.01 percent with a minimum of 3.58 percent in 2018 and a maximum of 4.48 percent in 2009. The latest value from 2019 is 3.62 percent.
Expenditure on education in North Macedonia is projected at 2.72% of GDP in 2023.
According to the data available for 2017, Montenegro has maintained a ratio of spending on education at the level of 4.2% of GDP.
Kosovo continues to spend less on education compared to the EU, but more than other countries in the region.
The level of public spending on education in 2020 was 4.7% as a percentage of GDP.
Public expenditure on education includes direct expenditure on educational institutions as well as public subsidies related to education. Public entities include ministries other than ministries of education, local and regional governments, and other public agencies. Public expenditure includes expenditure on schools, universities and other public and private institutions that provide or support educational services. This indicator shows the priority that governments give to education in relation to other areas of investment, such as health care, social security, defense, and security. Expenditure on education covers expenditure on schools, universities and other public and private institutions that provide or support educational services.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.