Bangkok (VNA) – The Thai cabinet on September 17 formally approved the distribution of 145 billion THB (4.3 billion USD) starting September 25, with the beneficiaries including 12.4 million state welfare cardholders and 2.15 million people with disabilities, the local English-language daily newspaper Bangkok Post reported.
About 14.5 million people will receive payments next week, directly to their bank accounts via PromptPay, according to the country’s Ministry of Finance.
“From the figures we found, the first vulnerable group that receives 10,000 baht has a high spending rate and so there will certainly be a jolt to the economy,” Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra was quoted by the Bangkok Post as saying to reporters.
The first injection will increase economic growth by 0.35 percentage points, said Pornchai Thiraveja, head of the Fiscal Policy Office.
The measure is the flagship policy of the Pheu Thai Party, which is keen to boost an underperforming economy shackled by high household debt, weak spending and a slow recovery in exports. The Bank of Thailand expects the economy to grow just 2.6% this year./.
