Chile budget proposal cuts Ministry of Cultures funding by 10.1%

The 2027 budget proposal submitted by President José Antonio Kast includes a 10.1% reduction in funding for Chile's Ministry of Cultures, Arts and Heritage. The total allocation is set to decrease from a 2026 comparable base of $489,899 million to $440,518 million, representing a total cut of $49,381 million.

Significant reductions are expected in programmatic activities for arts and culture, which are projected to fall by 12.6%. Cultural investment initiatives face a sharp decline of 64.8%, dropping from $22,840 million to $8,039 million. Within this category, resources linked to the Ministry of Public Works are expected to decrease by 96.9%.

Specific programs facing cuts include: • Pase Cultural: Budget reduced by 50.8%, from $6,101 million to $3,000 million. The benefit will be restructured as a single contribution of $75,000 for approximately 40,000 families. • National Fund for Book and Reading Promotion: Decreasing by 17.6% to $10,416 million. • Memory Sites: Budget falling by 25.3% to $683 million. • Heritage Funds: The Heritage Fund (Law No. 21,045) and the Competitive Heritage Fund are expected to see reductions of 45.3% and 47%, respectively.

In contrast, some funds such as Fondart, the Music Fund, and the Audiovisual Fund will see only minimal variations, while $2,202 million has been allocated for Chile's participation in the 2027 Frankfurt International Book Fair.