Thai Tourism Agencies Get Huge Budget Boost For Post-Covid Recovery

[webfact]

 

 

LED by a record 60% increase in the 2023/24 fiscal year budget of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), the Thai government is positioning the tourism industry as “the primary engine of economic growth” this year. However, those hopes are likely to be dashed in the event of a wider conflict in the Middle East.

 

A detailed analysis of the Thai Budget Bill, currently going through Parliament, shows that the budget allocation for the TAT is up from 3,258 million baht in fiscal year 2022/23 (beginning in October) to 5,201 million baht in fiscal year 2023/24, the largest percentage increase of any government agency. In the same period, the budget allocation for the Thai Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) is up from 637 million baht to 826 million baht and the Department of Tourism in the Ministry of Tourism and Sports up from 1,753 million baht to 1,896 million baht.

 

This is in addition to the billions of baht to be spent by other travel, transportation and tourism related enterprises such as Thai Airways International and the Airports of Thailand. The Bangkok city governorate plus each of the country’s 77 provinces also have allocations for multiple tourism-related projects, especially infrastructure and facilitation.

 

Although the Budget Bill was approved by the Cabinet of the former government under Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha last June, its formal passage through Parliament has been hit by delays in forming the post-election government of Mr. Srettha Thavisin.

 

by TNR Staff

 

Full story: THAI NEWSROOM 2024-01-15

 

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[hotchilli]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

A detailed analysis of the Thai Budget Bill, currently going through Parliament, shows that the budget allocation for the TAT is up from 3,258 million baht in fiscal year 2022/23 (beginning in October) to 5,201 million baht in fiscal year 2023/24, the largest percentage increase of any government agency. In the same period, the budget allocation for the Thai Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) is up from 637 million baht to 826 million baht and the Department of Tourism in the Ministry of Tourism and Sports up from 1,753 million baht to 1,896 million baht.

Millions to throw away instead of helping those in poverty.

[ikke1959]

Is there a post Covid recovery in Thailand?? I see still a lot of people wearing facemasks and it is still promoted by the officials to keep it doing.. There almost every week news about how much Covid there still is in THailand, as we can read again in the news about the new strain... and there is still pushing to get vaccines or boosters.. It seems Thailand still struggles with Covid while the rest of the world goes on

[jacko45k]

6 minutes ago, ikke1959 said:

Is there a post Covid recovery in Thailand?? I see still a lot of people wearing facemasks and it is still promoted by the officials to keep it doing.. There almost every week news about how much Covid there still is in THailand, as we can read again in the news about the new strain... and there is still pushing to get vaccines or boosters.. It seems Thailand still struggles with Covid while the rest of the world goes on

I was in Pattaya City just yesterday. Very few folks are wearing facemasks.....Some, but I would not go as far as to say 'lots'... and I was in a barbers and supermarket, places where I would expect to see them. 

[Blumpie]

Theres only so many pineapples that will grow.  

[Purdey]

1 hour ago, ikke1959 said:

Is there a post Covid recovery in Thailand?? I see still a lot of people wearing facemasks and it is still promoted by the officials to keep it doing.. There almost every week news about how much Covid there still is in THailand, as we can read again in the news about the new strain... and there is still pushing to get vaccines or boosters.. It seems Thailand still struggles with Covid while the rest of the world goes on

Apparently the world is still worse off than Thailand in terms of COVID-19. Can't imagine the reason.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1043366/novel-coronavirus-2019ncov-cases-worldwide-by-country/

[mikebell]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

LED by a record 60% increase in the 2023/24 fiscal year budget of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT)

Scandalous waste of money funded by taxing the dwindling numbers of retirees as they prepare to take their 800K to more sympathetic climes.

[Blumpie]

4 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

 

Oh 

Edited January 15 by Blumpie

[Blumpie]

1 hour ago, mikebell said:

Scandalous waste of money funded by taxing the dwindling numbers of retirees as they prepare to take their 800K to more sympathetic climes.

I often wonder how hard is it to get your money out of Thailand.  Understandably you have to have an amount invested there to get your visas, but to leave... 

 

Thailand is simply dead in the water without mass tourism.  They got addicted to the cheap candy available to them and now with Chinas tourism numbers in the dump and high airline fees, costs, and general PITA travel conditions the numbers in for 2023 and 2024 will be a shadow of its former self.  

To me their numbers of how many they want is nothing short of madness and insanity.  I cant see 30 million tourists a year going there.  

[newnative]

Over 5 billion for TAT?  Disgraceful.  Should have been kept at its current level and the extra 2 billion given to the Education Dept.

[JimGant]

6 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Millions to throw away instead of helping those in poverty.

 

Presumably, this money helps create jobs, particularly for the lower tier, non skilled hotel cleaners (hasn't the hotel industry reported labor shortages at their lower ends?).

"Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." 

[BigStar]

This is so upsetting. Wonder how I can sleep tonight.

[DonniePeverley]

Mass tourism turning Thailand into a tourist state. 

 

Horrific for anyone living here. 

[DonniePeverley]

4 hours ago, mikebell said:

Scandalous waste of money funded by taxing the dwindling numbers of retirees as they prepare to take their 800K to more sympathetic climes.

 

They're aiming for 40 million tourists this year. Most from India and China. 

 

I expect some 'youtubers' 'tiktokers' from these countries etc doing 'RANDOM' content videos around Thailand.