Cabinet orders acceleration of budget spending

The Cabinet on Tuesday approved the Finance Ministry’s proposal for government agencies and state enterprises to accelerate disbursement of investment budgets for fiscal 2026, in the hope of boosting GDP before the year’s end.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas said the Cabinet had endorsed measures for all government agencies and state enterprises to speed up investment spending from their approved budgets.

Ekniti said the accelerated spending would come from three major budget sources, totalling 4.37 trillion baht, comprising:

• 3.78 trillion baht from the fiscal 2026 budget;
• 321 billion baht allocated for disbursement during the transition between budget years; and
• 265 billion baht in investment budgets from state enterprises.

“This measure is part of the government’s ‘Quick Big Win’ policy, which aims to inject funds into the economy continuously and rapidly to stimulate growth nationwide,” Ekniti said.

He added that the government had set clear disbursement and commitment targets for fiscal 2026, expecting at least 93% of the total budget to be spent by the end of the fiscal year — including 98% of fixed allocations and 75% of investment allocations.

Ekniti also said state enterprises must disburse at least 95% of their investment budgets, while all government agencies must commit 100% of their approved project budgets.

The Cabinet has laid down strict operational guidelines for all agencies to ensure these targets are met:

1. Accelerate budget commitments:

- For single-year procurement projects, commitments must be completed within the first quarter of fiscal 2026 (October–December 2025).

- For multi-year projects under the new fiscal year, commitments must be completed within the second quarter of fiscal 2026 (January–March 2026).

2. Ensure prompt payment:

Once work inspection and acceptance are completed, payments to contractors must be made within five working days.

3. Evaluate performance:

Disbursement and commitment results will serve as key indicators in evaluating the performance of agency heads and will also be considered in next year’s budget allocations.

4. Front-load investment by state enterprises:

State enterprises must accelerate disbursement of investment budgets in the first half of the fiscal year, with a 95% disbursement target as a key performance indicator (KPI) for top executives.