By The Rio Times | Created at 2026-10-03 08:50:20 | Updated at 2026-10-03 09:27:51
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EDUCATION · CHILE
Key Facts
- —The country Chile, where President José Antonio Kast presented his first budget bill, for 2027, on 30 September. Congress must pass it by 30 November.
- —What happened The bill gives no money to the school laptop grants that began in 2009 as Yo Elijo mi PC. Finance Minister Jorge Quiroz confirmed this on 2 October.
- —The numbers 96,100 pupils received laptops in 2026 (The Clinic, La Tercera, El País). This year’s allocation was about CLP 35 billion (about US$35.6 million), El País reported on 2 October.
- —What it means for you Families of seventh-graders in public schools may get no state laptop in 2027. Peñalolén will pay for its own pupils; Las Condes is studying the same.
- —Still open Whether Congress restores the money, as it partly did for 2026. The education budget detail is due on Monday 5 October.
Chile’s 2027 budget bill leaves Yo Elijo mi PC, the 17-year-old scheme giving laptops to seventh-grade pupils, without funding. The programme reached 96,100 pupils this year, according to The Clinic, La Tercera and El País.
The cut drew criticism from the left and from parts of the governing right on Friday. One Santiago district, Peñalolén, said it will buy the computers for its own pupils with municipal money.
What the budget bill removes
The scheme started in 2009 under President Michelle Bachelet. It now runs as the Becas TIC technology grants of Junaeb, the national school aid and scholarships board.
It covers seventh-graders in public schools and selected pupils in subsidised private schools, chosen for need or special educational needs. The 2026 laptop came with 12 months of mobile internet and educational software, The Clinic reported.
The Clinic first reported on 1 October that the 2027 bill assigns the programme no money. El País put this year’s allocation at about CLP 35 billion (about US$35.6 million at 982 pesos per dollar, 2 October close).
Overall, the bill raises spending 1.5% over projected 2026 outlays, El País reported. The wider plan is set out in Kast Raises Chile’s 2027 Spending 1.5% in Budget.
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The government’s case
Finance Minister Jorge Quiroz told Radio Infinita that more than 600 programmes had been reviewed, many with “findings”. Asked about this one, he said he did not recall its details but it “surely had findings”.
Interior Undersecretary Máximo Pavez said the grant “has been badly evaluated” and shows no relevant effect on learning. He cited a 2024 report by the Comptroller General that found about 9,000 computers undelivered since 2015.
Republican deputies backed the decision, The Clinic reported. Deputy Cristian Araya said an evaluation by Dipres, the budget office, found zero impact on results and attendance.
Peñalolén steps in
Peñalolén mayor Miguel Concha, of the left-wing Frente Amplio, said the district will fund the laptops itself. “Peñalolén’s children will not pay for the indolence of this government’s cuts,” he wrote, El Ciudadano reported.
He said more than 500 local seventh-graders received their computers on Monday, 28 September. The municipality has not published what continuing the scheme will cost.
In Las Condes, mayor Catalina San Martín said she had asked staff to assess municipal funding, Chilevisión reported. “Improving a programme is one thing, eliminating it is very different,” she said.
Congress holds the final say
Sergio Bobadilla of the conservative UDI, which backs the government, chairs the lower house education committee. He told El País that balancing the books should not come at the cost of successful programmes.
Communist deputy Luis Cuello said he would go to the Constitutional Court. Students marched on Thursday against education cuts, as the Rio Times reported in Chile Students March Against 2027 Budget Cuts.
There is precedent for a reversal. During last year’s debate, Congress restored CLP 9.8 billion (about US$10.0 million) to keep the grant’s 2026 coverage, The Clinic reported.
What Is Not Yet Known
The full education chapter of the bill is due on Monday 5 October, Pavez said. It may show whether any replacement for the laptops is planned.
The Dipres evaluation cited by Republican deputies was not independently reviewed for this report. Peñalolén has not said how much it will spend or for how many years.
Sources: The Clinic, 1 October 2026; The Clinic, 2 October 2026; La Tercera, 2 October 2026; El Ciudadano, 2 October 2026; El País, 2 October 2026; Chilevisión, 2 October 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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