Govt to launch Bt100 bn package to bolster grassroots economy

[rooster59]

Govt to launch Bt100 bn package to bolster grassroots economy

By The Nation

 

Prasong Phunthanes

 

Prasong Phunthanes, permanent secretary of the Finance Ministry, said on Friday (September 20) that the government is preparing a brand-new stimulus package aimed at developing the grassroots economy.

 

 

“The Finance Ministry and related agencies will spend more than Bt100 billion on approximately 30 million low-income households nationwide,” he said.

 

Prasong explained that this measure was pioneered by Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Somkid Jatusripitak, who will assign the Finance Ministry and related agencies such as the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives and Government Saving Bank to implement the measures.

 

“We also expect to work with Industry and Energy ministries to push the project forward,” Prasong said, adding that this new package will not overlap with existing measures.

 

“For instance, we aim to help community-level financial institutions grant special loans at an interest of less than 1.25 per cent per month in order to solve the loan-shark problem."

 

“The objective of this measure is to not only boost the gross domestic product [GDP], but to also guarantee economic stability at the grassroots level,” he said.

 

“Currently there are about 7,000 community-level financial institutions, but only 2,000 of them are strong enough to provide adequate financial support to their communities. This is where state-backed banks come in to inject additional funds.”

 

Separately, Prasong said that the Finance Ministry was confident that the government’s “Eat, Shop, Spend” campaign will attract 10 million participants as targeted.

 

“More than 160,000 businesses have already registered and the number of people registering for the Bt1,000 subsidy to spend at these venues is constantly rising,” he said. “Once we hit the 10-million target, the Finance Ministry will close the registration.”

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30376495

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2019-09-21

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[George Bowman]

1 hour ago, rooster59 said:

the Finance Ministry and related agencies such as the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives and Government Saving Bank to implement the measures.

I have seen this over and over again in rural Thailand from all of the previous governments. In a couple of months or so all of the poor people and farmers will meet somewhere in the village to collect B1,000 or so. And then they wait until the next time...

[norbra]

1.25% PM is still loan sharking

 

[Sydebolle]

How much of those THB 100 billion will end up at its originally anticipated destination? 

And the government is not giving out anything; they redistribute money the took from someone else! 

[Isaan sailor]

Want to get the Thai economy humming again?  Drop the damned Baht...

[justin case]

On 9/21/2019 at 7:52 AM, rooster59 said:

will spend more than Bt100 billion on approximately 30 million low-income households nationwide

 

30 million households ?

 

I thought Thailand had about 66 million people ...