Ekniti pushes to finalise extension of Thai Chuay Thai Plus Phase 2 by end of September
Macro
Ekniti Nitithanprapas, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, said the Ministry of Finance is accelerating its review of an extension for Phase 2 of the Thai Chuay Thai Plus (60/40) programme, citing still-high energy prices and the ongoing war, which make it necessary to help the public cope with the cost of living. He said the ministry will also consider the form the assistance should take. Ekniti said the Ministry of Finance still has remaining assistance funds, and that a majority of market vendors want the programme extended by another one to two months. A conclusion is expected within the next two to three weeks, or by the end of September. Currently, the Thai Chuay Thai Plus programme has 26 million users, plus 13 million users of the state welfare card, bringing the total to about 40 million people, while roughly 1.2 million shops are participating in the programme. The funding involved is about 150 billion baht, with about 16 to 17 percent of it in Bangkok and the rest spread across the country and to small and micro-sized shops.
