Prime Minister Julia Gillard today opened a $500 million fund to build world class education and training facilities for students in regional Australia.
The special Regional Priorities Round of the Education Investment Fund will provide a major boost to higher education institutions and vocational education and training (VET) providers across regional Australia.
The $500 million fund will ensure regional students have better quality education and training opportunities and this in turn will support increased participation in tertiary education.
This targeted investment will also contribute to economic growth and development in regional Australia by addressing the skills needs of regional communities.
The Prime Minister announced details on the fund during a visit to the University of Ballarat today.
More Australians than ever before are now able to benefit from a university education thanks to the Gillard Labor Government's historic investment in higher education.
More regional students now have access to financial support through Youth Allowance.
The number of regional students accessing Youth Allowance is up from 28,875 to 36,310 - an increase of 25% in just more than a year.
Campuses have also benefited from an additional $110 million in increased regional loading to help them meet the higher costs of delivering services in regional areas.
The Government has committed more than $6.2 billion in capital funding for infrastructure to modernise Australia's universities.
Under the Regional Priorities Round, a total of $480 million will be allocated to higher education institutions and VET providers in a competitive round, while $20 million has been be earmarked as seed funding for a multi-partner campus on the mid-north coast of New South Wales.
Higher education and VET providers will now be able to apply for the funding to construct new facilities or to refurbish and extend existing facilities.
They will also be able to access funding for technical equipment or information and communication technologies to support teaching and learning.
Funding in the EIF Regional Priorities Round is also available for research-related capital costs integral to proposed teaching and learning or VET infrastructure projects.
So far, 57 capital projects funded through the EIF have been completed and a further 121 projects are underway.
This historic investment in infrastructure has transformed our universities and TAFEs, providing modern, state-of-the-art learning and teaching facilities.
The Regional Priorities Round will involve a two-stage application process. Initial Expressions of Interest close on 4 November 2011. Applicants successful at the Expression of Interest stage will be invited to submit a full application in 2012.
Guidelines for the Regional Priorities Round of the Education Investment Fund can be found at www.deewr.gov.au/eifrpr