With a strong focus on skills development and employment participation, the Building Australia’s Future Workforce package in the 2011-12 Budget invests $3 billion over six years in skills and training initiatives to contribute to Australia’s future economic growth and prosperity.

The key highlights include:

• investing to meet the longer-term needs of the economy through a reform focused National Partnership with States and Territories worth $1.75 billion over five years (from 2012-13)
• an additional $25 million has been provided to establish a new National Workforce and Productivity Agency, which will deliver $558 million directly to industry for industry based training initiatives over the next four years
• $8.5 billion investment over the next four years in employment services to give unemployed Australians a better chance of finding a job and
• up to $103 million over four years to support single parents in their parenting role as well as preparing them for work once their child is settled in school
• a further $1.2 billion in higher education over the next four years, changing the lives of hundreds of thousands of Australians. This funding includes more than $674 million for improved higher education, training and employment outcomes across regional Australia.

For further information about the Building Australia’s Future Workforce package, visit the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations website.

To view the latest announcements, visit the Ministers’ media portals.