For the current fiscal year, before any adjustment that will come in the supplementary estimates - which will most likely be upwards - the Government's budget for education is $58.3 billion.

Or, think of it this way: each week, the education ministry has a budget of over $1.12 billion, which translates to more than $160 million a day.

The people who run the education system from the head office at National Heroes Circle in Kingston were allocated $1.1 billion, or more than $20.3 million a week, for what is called executive direction and administration. That, we believe, means that they are responsible for making things work and that our children get a decent education.

But, in addition to what was doled out for Heroes Circle, another $669.27 million, more than half a billion dollars, was allocated to the ministry's six regional offices, so that they can oversee the schools in their districts. This, therefore, has to be added to the $1.12 billion budgeted for Heroes Circle, to get a truer picture of what is being spent on executive direction and administration.

Economic situation

Of course, there is the argument that compared to Jamaica's partners in Caricom, this country does not spend enough on education. Which is perhaps true. But, that statement of itself doesn't tell the whole story, including the context of Jamaica's economic situation, which determines how much we can spend on education.

In the current budget, education accounts for 11 per cent of proposed spending. Maybe that should be in the region of 15 per cent. However, without the revised figures, Jamaica allocated $267 billion for debt repayment, which is 54.5 per cent of the overall budget. That leaves $222.5 billion for all other services, including education, which accounts for 24.5 per cent of the non-debt spending.

Literacy problems

In the circumstances, it cannot credibly be argued that education is neglected. Nor ought it to be claimed that Jamaica is getting either a decent or fair return on the more than $160 million a day it pumps into education. Not when fewer than a third of the children entering grade one are ready for primary education; or, when hardly more than 40 per cent of the students at grade four show mastery of the four areas of readiness inventory; or, when a third of students who leave primary school have literacy problems.

It certainly can't be the case when fewer than 15 per cent of high school students gain five subjects in secondary education exams at a single sitting, or when only 20 per cent of secondary school graduates have the required qualifications for decent employment or to go on to post-secondary education. And certainly not with the abysmal test scores that are returned each year.

Yet, no one, it seems, is being held accountable. The education establishment just moseys along, stirring itself occasionally to swish away a bit of criticism. Perhaps it is time to dissolve the education ministry and reconstitute it as an executive agency, with accountable staff who are compensated based on performance and outcomes. Teachers, too, must be placed on performance-based pay.

After all, taxpayers who put out a billion dollars each week for education deserve far better than they currently get.

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