Recently, the Ministry of Education, the National Bureau of Statistics and the Ministry of Finance co-released the 2019 Statistical Bulletin on Education Spending. According to the published data, national spending on education totaled RMB 5.017812 trillion for the year, exceeding RMB 5 trillion for the first time, and marking an increase of 8.74%, from RMB 4.6143 trillion in 2018. Funds channeled into education through government finance in 2019 reached RMB 4.004655 trillion, exceeding RMB 4 trillion for the first time, marking an increase of 8.25% from RMB 3.699577 trillion of 2018, and accounting for 4.04% of national GDP in 2018, a proportion that has remained stable for 8 consecutive years since 2012. General public expenditure on education totaled RMB 3.464857 trillion, marking a 8.30% increase from RMB 3.199273 trillion in the previous year; and it represented 14.51% of the national public budget (RMB 23.885837 trillion in total), 0.03% higher than 14.48% in 2018.

According to the Bulletin, in 2019, general public expenditure on education (including operating expenditure, investments in infrastructure, and education surcharges) per student in kindergartens, primary schools, junior high schools, senior high schools, secondary vocational schools and higher education institutions increased 12.30%, 5.48%, 5.00%, 8.36%, 5.99% and 5.43%, respectively. Meanwhile, general public operating expenditure for education per student in kindergartens, primary schools, junior high schools, senior high schools, secondary vocational schools and higher education institutions increased 14.32%, 5.97%, 5.33%, 9.23%, 8.31% and 5.09%, respectively. Public funding per student in kindergartens, primary schools, junior high schools, senior high schools, secondary vocational schools, and higher education institutions increased 11.50%, 1.76%, 2.68%, 8.17%, 5.84% and 3.81%, respectively.