BUENG KAN, May 16 – Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra on Thursday launched the third phase of her government’s village fund in the northeastern region to spur the economy at the grassroots level.
The premier officially launched the new allocation in an event in Bueng Kan province. The third phase of the fund is being applied in 8,089 local communities of 20 northeastern provinces, each having a start-up cash of Bt1 million.
Ms Yingluck said her government gives importance on strengthening the local communities. The village fund was initiated 12 years ago and is up and running as it helps local people to reach direct sources of capital and reduce informal debt.
The premier said the village fund is aimed at improving quality of life for the grassroots and giving local people the opportunity to seek the use of funds for their own benefit and for their communities.
The village fund project, the brainchild of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra under what he termed as his populist policy, currently has about 80,000 local funds nationwide.
