Impact of Thai Emergency Stimulus Package to Suffer Delay.

Byline: Chatrudee Theparat

Nov. 5--Spending of the 58-billion-baht emergency stimulus package is unlikely to happen in time to help the economy this year, according to the National Economic and Social Development Board.

The board, which is reviewing project requests, has received from state agencies just over 700 proposals totalling 100 billion baht. To date, the board has approved projects with a total value of only eight billion baht, with no disbursements made to date, even though spending was expected to begin on Oct 1, the start of the 2002 fiscal year.

When the government set the emergency budget several months ago, it projected that spending of 10-12 billion baht in the fourth quarter would lift growth in 2001 by 0.3 percent. Overall, the stimulus package is expected to boost growth by one full point in 2002.

However, Sansern Wongcha-um, the board's secretary-general, said misconceptions among state agencies had contributed to delays. The government has said that priority will be given to stimulating job growth and supporting community development.

"The big problem is that some agencies simply didn't understand the objective of the package and others put up project requests with only three pages of information on why they should be supported," he said.

On Oct 23, the Cabinet approved a new framework for the overall programme. Of the 58 billion baht, 23 billion would go to the agriculture sector, 12.5 billion for job training, 8.5 billion for community development, eight billion for industrial development and six billion for tourism.