Thailand’s Cabinet has approved a framework for the spending of 170 billion baht to kick-start the economy and alleviate the severe social impacts of the COVID-19 crisis.
Deputy government spokeswoman Traisuree Traisoranakul said the spending will be injected into programs to maintain employment and jobs at risk of being lost during the crisis and could save almost 400,000 jobs. The spending will cover a wide range of workforce segments, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), farmers and community enterprises.
She said the funds will also be used to strengthen the competitiveness of the production and service sectors, as well as to help spur demand and consumption, which have slumped since the pandemic struck last year. The projects must be ready for implementation by December 31st with details of their progress made public for the sake of transparency.
Meanwhile, government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said the Cabinet has disbursed 27 billion baht of the central fund to extend the discounts on household water and electricity bills. The Cabinet also extended a scheme, to boost domestic travel, to the end of February 2022. (NNT)
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