A 1,500-baht handout to spur Thai tourism

Sunday, July 21, 2019

The Finance Ministry of Thailand is ready to dust off a planned cash handout for travel to 55 secondary provinces by incorporating it in the economic stimulus package going before new Finance Minister Uttama Savanayana.

For the anticipated cash handout for spending in secondary provinces, the government will have to shed tens of billions of baht if the measure comes to life; a source at the Finance Ministry informed the Bangkok Post.

In April, for travel in secondary provinces, the ministry planned that the military-led government offer a 1,500-baht one-off cash handout, targeting to boost up tourism to these provinces, but the plan got crumbled after being criticized as being politically motivated.

As per the suspended scheme, the 1,500-baht cash handout for spending in 55 second-tier provinces will be distributed to 10 million people who register to take part in the scheme on a first-come, first-served basis.

After registering, qualified recipients have to show up in person to get the handout from the location they prefer in the 55 second-tier provinces. The money will then be transferred through PromptPay to their e-wallets or bank accounts linked by mobile banking apps.

The new economic stimulus measures are hoped to come into effect during the final three months of this year to perk up the stuttering economy of the country and counterbalance impacts from a three-month delay in the fiscal 2020 budget disbursement, normally scheduled for Oct 1.

The economy of Thailand will probably grow by less than 3.5% in 2019 as a result of lower-than-expected export growth, and stimulating the domestic economy is needed to cushion against the global economic slowdown, the source said.

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