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International Internet Magazine. Baltic States news & analytics Thursday, 28.03.2024, 10:03

Latvia's expenditure per student was 2 times smaller than on average across OECD countries in 2017

BC, Riga, 10.09.2020.Print version
In 2017, Latvia's expenditure per student was two times smaller than on average across the members states of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), informs LETA, according to the OECD's annual report Education at a Glance 2020.

Latvia also spent less per full-time student than the OECD average, investing a total of USD 7,121 (EUR 6,045) per student compared to USD 11,231 (EUR 9,534) on average across OECD countries, the report reveals. 


The way education is provided influences how resources are allocated between levels of education and between public and private institutions, according to OECD experts. In 2017, Latvia spent USD 6, 766 (EUR 5,744) per student in primary, secondary and post-secondary non-tertiary education, USD 3, 233 (EUR 2,744) lower than the OECD average of USD 9 999 (EUR 8,488). 


The OECD also indicates that expenditure per student on private educational institutions is higher than on public institutions on average across OECD countries. This is also the case in Latvia, where total expenditure on public institutions from primary to tertiary level amounts to USD 6,763 (EUR 5,741) per student, compared to USD 8,339 (EUR 7,079) on private ones.


In most OECD countries, expenditure per upper secondary student varies according to program orientation. Spending per student on upper secondary vocational programs tends to be higher

than for upper secondary general ones due to the higher cost of equipment and the work-based requirements of such programs. 


On average across OECD countries, expenditure per student in upper secondary vocational programs was USD 1,470 (EUR 1,248) higher than in general programs in 2017. Latvia follows the same pattern: spending per student amounted to USD 8,628 (EUR 7,324) in upper secondary vocational  programs, USD 1,580 (EUR 1,341) higher than spending per student on general programs at the same level.


Among OECD countries, Latvia was among the countries that spent the lowest proportion of its gross domestic product (GDP) on primary to tertiary educational institutions. In 2017, Latvia spent

4% of GDP on primary to tertiary educational institutions, which is 0.9 percentage points lower than the OECD average. Across levels of education, Latvia devoted a below average share of GDP at non-tertiary levels and a lower share at tertiary level.






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