Kittiratt set to release Bt20 bn for unpaid rice farmers
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Caretaker Finance Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong says he is ready to release an advance payment of Bt20 billion from the national budget so overdue payments to farmers can be made under the rice-pledging scheme.
Kittiratt said Friday that he had not yet signed off on the release of the money because of the disbursement process, but he was ready to sign it so farmers owed money before last December 9 could be paid.
He said the Commerce and Finance ministries had cooperated closely to free up the money and no conflicts had been reported.
However, he said the disbursement of the Bt20 billion would be linked to the sale of rice from government stockpiles. The money has to be returned to the state’s coffers by May 31, so the Commerce Ministry has to earn up to Bt10 billion a month from its rice sales.
The Nation
