MANILA (UPDATE)— The University of the Philippines is facing an almost P3 billion cut in its proposed budget for 2024.

Based on the proposed National Expenditure Program for 2024, the UP system will have a P22.587 billion allocation. This is lower by P2.9 billion than the P25.516 total budget it got for this year.

The nearly P3 billion reduction in the proposed budget of the UP system next year could be attributed to completed projects, the Department of Budget said Thursday.

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Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said UP's budget went through "amendments."

"I was able to get the projects, iyong mga amendments nila and most of it po are completion of existing infrastructure projects. So ‘pag completion na po siya sa 2023, we don’t need the funding for 2024," she said.

Pangandaman said she doesn't expect the budget cuts to affect student admissions.

In a statement, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said the "seeming decrease" was due to "congressional initiatives" in the government budget this year.

This includes "various capital outlay projects for infrastructure projects, which are one-time or non-recurring expenditures, hence no longer included in the [fiscal year] 2024 NEP," it read.

In a statement to ABS-CBN News, the UP Office of the Vice President for Planning and Finance said the nearly P3 billion budget dip was just an "estimate" and still not final.

It can also be attributed, Balmores said, from the reduction in both the capital outlay (P1.7 billion) and in maintenance and other operating expenses (P1.6 billion).

"Since this is still NEP and not yet the final budget under the [General Appropriations Act], UP's budget may still increase after the budget hearings," VP for Finance Iryn Balmores told ABS-CBN News.

"While there may have been infrastructure projects that have been completed already, many still require funds for completion. Also, these projects would require additional [maintenance and operating expenses] to operate and maintain," she said.

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