A World Bank study shows that Jamaica’s expenditure on education, as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) and budget, compares favourably with the ratio for several other regional countries and is within the international norm.
Education, Youth and Information Minister, Hon. Fayval Williams, who made the disclosure, noted that Government expenditure, on a per-student basis, “is comparable to the best… and higher than most regional peers”.
She pointed out, for example, that “we are ahead of Estonia, a country with a very good pre-primary education system,” noting that the country was behind some Caribbean states and Finland.
She was making her contribution to the 2021/22 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on Wednesday (April 28).
Additionally, Mrs. Williams said Jamaica’s expenditure on staff compensation is “relatively high”, when the composition of the sector’s budget is analysed.
She pointed out that 76 per cent of the budget is spent on all staff compensation, adding that another 22 per cent is programmed for recurrent expenditure other than compensation; and the remaining two per cent on capital expenditure, primarily relating to school buildings.
“When we drill down into staff compensation, most of the budget goes to deliver instruction, especially at primary and secondary levels. At the primary level, 97 per cent of the budget goes to deliver instruction,” the Minister informed
While noting that the high percentage of the budget earmarked for instructional delivery was welcome. Mrs. Williams expressed concern that the mix at the pre-primary level is different, at 49 per cent versus 51 per cent, adding that “this is being interrogated to help us understand the reasons”.
She said that, comparatively, staff compensations account for 51 per cent of the education budget in Guyana, 56 per cent in Finland, Barbados – 57 per cent, Caribbean small states – 64 per cent, Estonia – 66 per cent, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) – 70 per cent.
She pointed out that only St. Lucia, with 85 per cent, spends more of its budget on staff compensation.
For the 2021/22 fiscal year, the budget for the education sector is $114.5 billion plus an additional $2.8 billion for child protection, as administered by the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA), for a total of $117.3 Billion.