Polytech spend injects $205m

Otago Polytechnic injected almost $205 million into the New Zealand economy last year, an economic impact report prepared by the institution shows.

Of that, an estimated $108.96 million remained in the Otago economy.

Business analyst Michael Nol examined direct spending by the polytechnic and its staff and students and used economic multipliers to calculate the flow-on effects of that spending for businesses in Otago and elsewhere. 

The multipliers were the same as those used by the University of Otago and the Dunedin City Council, he said.

The polytechnic has campuses in Dunedin and Cromwell and community learning centres in South Dunedin, Mosgiel, Queenstown and at the Otago Correctional Facility.

It employed 447 full-time equivalent staff last year and enrolled 3680 equivalent full-time students (efts).

The number of individual students enrolled was 8106.

Direct spending by the polytechnic, staff and students was calculated at $114.69 million, the report said. Of that figure, it was estimated $55.03 million was spent in Otago.

Flow-on spending stemming from direct spending was calculated at $90.29 million.

Direct and flow-on spending supported 1805 jobs in Otago last year, and 2447 overall.

With only 305 efts, the Cromwell campus was small, the report said. However, it made a "very significant contribution" to the Otago economy, generating just over $3 million from direct spending, and $5.98 million once multipliers were applied.

The polytechnic produced its first economic impact report last year, analysing figures from 2007, 2008 and 2009.

Last year's overall economic impact was the highest since the exercise began and almost $3.5 million ahead of the 2009 figure.

The level of economic impact was closely related to the number of efts, the report said. Efts climbed 5.2% from 2009 to last year.

Over four years, the total economic impact of the polytechnic was $803 million, the report said. The economic impact for Otago was $429.8 million.

Mr Nol said the total economic impact was actually higher because students made an economic contribution once they graduated. But graduates' economic impact had not been included because of the "extremely complex task" of gathering such data.

"It should be noted almost 10,000 qualifications have been completed since 2007, which one could assume would correspond to a staggering economic impact on the Otago and national economies."