Special budgets to ease flood impacts
The Cabinet successfully built up a Bt80 billion fund for post-flood reconstruction.
Government Spokesman Thitima Chaisaeng said that of total, ministries agreed to reduce their annual budgets by a total of Bt48.86 billion but they were assigned to further reduce the budget by another Bt21.14 billion.
"Plus Bt10 billion to be allocated to local administrative bodies, the total amount for rehabilitation efforts will reach Bt80 billion," she said.
The Cabinet today also approved the widened budget deficit to Bt400 billion, with hope to channel the extra Bt50 billion for post-flood reconstruction.
At Bt400 billion, the deficit accounts for 3.4 per cent of gross domestic product. In the 2012 fiscal year, the government estimated that its expenditure would total Bt2.38 trillion, against revenue of Bt1.98 trillion.
The Cabinet today also approved a Bt6 billion budget under the SML project, to create post-flood jobs.
Deputy Government Spokeswoman Anuttama Amornwiwat said that this amount, part of the central budget, would create jobs in flooded areas. While Bt80 million is for the operating cost, the remaining Bt5.29 billion would be distributed to 156,310 villages: Bt300,000 each for 7,850 small villages; Bt400,000 each for 6,650 medium-sized villages; and Bt500,000 each for 1,810 large-sized villages.
