How to get fiscal dividend from a jobs, skills and training virtuous cycle
Reforms in vocational and higher education, and migration, can realistically aim to promote economic growth and would more than repay the upfront investment cost.
Although the economy has started to slow, Australia still has a tight labour market with severe skill shortages. And many more skilled workers will be needed in the future, not least to enable the clean energy transformation and help boost our productivity performance.
Upfront investment will be required from government, industry and students, but the returns should justify the investment. Better value for money will be achieved by creating greater synergy between vocational education and training (VET) and higher education, appropriately complemented by the migration system. Pleasingly, current reform processes in VET, higher education and migration are emphasising the need for greater complementarity.
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Peter Dawkins is an emeritus professor of economics at the Mitchell Institute of Education and Health Policy at Victoria University.
