Japan Press Weekly

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2016 September 14 - 20 [SOCIAL ISSUES]

Japan ranks 2nd-worst among OECD in public funding for educational institutions

Japan’s public expenditure on educational institutions in 2013 accounted for only 3.2% of its GDP, according to a survey result released by the OECD on September 15.

Japan avoided being at the bottom for the first time in seven years among 33 OECD countries, ranking the second-worst after Hungary.

Norway comes at the top of the list with 6.2% followed by Denmark at 6.1% and Belgium, Finland, and Iceland at 5.6% each.

Regarding the ratio of public spending to total spending for higher educational institutions, including universities, the percentage was 35% in Japan, the second lowest after 32% in South Korea, indicating that a large portion of educational expenditures are paid by individuals.

The OECD pointed out that public expenditure on education is low in Japan despite the high demand for advanced education in the country. Andreas Schleicher, the director for Education and Skills at the OECD commented that Japan needs to provide some kind of relief measures for people who give up on going to university due to high tuition fees.

Past related article:
> Japan occupies bottom rank for 6th consecutive year among OECD countries in public spending for education [November 25, 2015]