Calls for Thai rice scheme review get louder

[webfact]

Calls for rice scheme review get louder
By English News



BANGKOK, Oct 15 – Several leading members of Thai society today called on the government to revise its highly-criticised rice pledging scheme which has plunged the country into heavy debt since 2011.

Former deputy prime minister/finance minister Pridiyathorn Devakula said the government’s rice purchase at Bt15,000 per tonne has created the worst havoc in Thai history, given the declining rice price in the global market and oversupply from Thailand.

Worse than that, opportunists have cashed in on the government’s scheme, inflicting a severe loss to the state, he said.

Mr Pridiyathorn spoke at a seminar on “From Rice Pledging Saga to Massive Corruption Salvation” to mark the 100th birthday of Dr Puey Ungphakorn, one of Thailand’s most distinguished economists.

He said the financial loss in the 2011/2012 harvest was over Bt200 billion, not including more than one million tonnes of rice which disappeared from government’s stocks as reported by the National Police Bureau, but no legal action has been taken.

The combined losses from two harvest years of 2011/2012 and 2012/2013 could be as high as Bt425 billion, he said, adding that he would submit an open letter to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra calling for a revision of the scheme.

Pramon Sutheewong, chairman of the Anti-Corruption Organisation of Thailand, said the rice subsidy programme has caused severe damage to the country which has become heavily indebted by the budget allocation to intervene in rice purchases.

The government can find other means to help farmers such as direct subsidy to farmers and let market mechanisms regulate the rice price, he said, warning that the financial damage would be massive if the government continues with the rice pledging programme while the quality of rice in the state’s stockpiles would be too low to be exported.

Nipon Puapongsakorn, honorary academic of the Thailand Development Research Institute, said the country would have an accounting loss of over Bt400 billion if it manages to sell rice in its stockpiles in five years but the accumulated loss would be at least Bt400-500 billion if it takes eight years to completely release the purchased rice.

The government has pleased farmers but created heavy loss to the country and it is impossible that the government will sell rice at higher than the pledging price, he said.

He called on the government to be more transparent in carrying out the rice subsidy programme.

Vichai Sriprasert, honorary chairman of the Thai Rice Exporters Association, said several quarters in society have been concerned with the government’s lavish spending to intervene in the rice market which has damaged Thailand’s rice exports for the last two consecutive years.

Now that the government has inflicted damage to the country, it should let rice trading go along the market mechanisms since Thai exporters strongly believe that Thai rice has remained in great demand in the global market, he said.

Rice in the stockpiles nationwide is at least 15-16 million tonnes and the high volume would affect Thailand’s future rice farming, he said.

Instead of pursuing the rice purchase policy, the government should spend the national budget on improvement of irrigation system, reducing farmers’ production cost and finding rice seed for farmers, he said. (MCOT online news)


-- TNA 2013-10-15

related:
Open Letter: Pridiyathorn writes to PM Yingluck opposing rice pledging
http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/674737-open-letter-pridiyathorn-writes-to-pm-yingluck-opposing-rice-pledging/

[webfact]

Cabinet earmarks added Bt6.6 billion for rice pledging programme
By English News



BANGKOK, Oct 15 – The Cabinet today approved an additional budget of Bt6.66 billion to purchase paddy from farmers in the 2012/2013 crop, a government spokesman said.

Pakdiharn Himathongkam said the allocation was in response to a request by the National Rice Policy Committee which said farmers in several provinces, including Suphan Buri, Ayutthaya, Ang Thong, Chai Nat and Lop Buri, failed to meet the September 15 deadline in selling their paddy under the rice pledging scheme.

Meanwhile, Chalitrat Chandrubeksa, deputy spokesman for the Prime Minister’s Office, said the Cabinet agreed to liberalise soybean imports under the World Trade Organisation framework once in three years between 2014 and 2016.

Volumes and timing of the imports will be unlimited with a zero per cent import duty and 80 per cent export duty.

The Thai Biofuels Committee will work out measures on soybean imports on an annual basis, he said. (MCOT online news)


-- TNA 2013-10-15

[David48]

Humm ... maybe all the decent back-handed profits have been made form the Rice pledging scheme ...

Time to move onto something else ...

Looks like they'll become soy bean importers ... the list seems endless!

Meanwhile, Chalitrat Chandrubeksa, deputy spokesman for the Prime Minister’s Office, said the Cabinet agreed to liberalise soybean imports under the World Trade Organisation framework once in three years between 2014 and 2016.

[Thait Spot]

Bottomless pit

PTP is a pitiless bottom

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[David48]

BTW ... want to see that beautifully stored rice, free from insect and mould contamination looks like?

In a airtight silo maybe?

In protective bags as often shown in the media reports?

...

This is what a few thousand tones looks like.

Local warehouse, not far from Bangkok taken last week-end.

The problem is a little more then what is being portrayed by the government.

[nong38]

It does seem to consume vast amounts of moneu doesn't it, pity its not wine, the European lake was something to behold.

[gl555]

PTP cronies have profited from this while the country suffers.

But no worries, the idiots who keep voting for them will continue doing so because 'PTP and Thaksin cares for them and makes their lives better'.

All's good!

[Robby nz]

Things will get worse it seems.

Bloomberg estimates that he price of 5-percent broken Thai white rice will fall 12% to US$ 390 a ton by April which is a 5 year low.

It is also estimated that stockpiles of the worlds 5 largest exporters will expand 6.8% to 42.6 million tons in the 2013-2014 year.

It has also been reported that the commerce minister is asking that 7.6 billion baht be set aside to cover rice given away to flood victims and as overseas aid.

That amounts to 500,000 tons of rice.

The flood victims must have got some very big bags of rice.

[realfunster]

And so it begins ....

[bigbamboo]

This is like watching a gambler digging himself into a bigger and bigger hole knowing there is no way out...... but he keeps going because it's not his money he's losing.

[Thai at Heart]

It does seem to consume vast amounts of moneu doesn't it, pity its not wine, the European lake was something to behold.

Ah but at least some of that for better with age, or could be sold despite going off adjust to naive buyers in Asia. Lol

[Thai at Heart]

Things will get worse it seems.

Bloomberg estimates that he price of 5-percent broken Thai white rice will fall 12% to US$ 390 a ton by April which is a 5 year low.

It is also estimated that stockpiles of the worlds 5 largest exporters will expand 6.8% to 42.6 million tons in the 2013-2014 year.

It has also been reported that the commerce minister is asking that 7.6 billion baht be set aside to cover rice given away to flood victims and as overseas aid.

That amounts to 500,000 tons of rice.

The flood victims must have got some very big bags of rice.

They have asked for 7.6bn to cover rice donated to people in the floods. Silly question, but what good is uncooked rice if you are waist deep in water?

How the hell did they deliver this much rice into a flood disaster? The lies are just incredible m

[zakk9]

Good thing there won't be any floodings this year

BTW ... want to see that beautifully stored rice, free from insect and mould contamination looks like?

In a airtight silo maybe?

In protective bags as often shown in the media reports?

...

Rice Mtn.jpg

This is what a few thousand tones looks like.

Local warehouse, not far from Bangkok taken last week-end.

The problem is a little more then what is being portrayed by the government.

[Sydebolle]

Well, one question - how can you make one million tons of rice "disappearing"?
That is 1'000'000'000 kilogrammes or 14 kgs per citizen.
As they have not been given away free of charge nor sold I would assume that we have to be grateful for the floods now. The rodents here would weigh more than the average dog (does this explain the stray dog increase) and the bugs cannot fly anymore as their "zero fuel weight" exceeds the maximum stress allowance on the wings.