Finance Minister confident income distribution project will benefit GDP

BANGKOK, 22 October 2009 (NNT) – Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij is confident the government’s project on equal income distribution will help bring Thailand’s GDP next year up to 3%.

The minister said the project would tackle informal debts of low income earners who would be allowed to register with the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives and the Government Savings Bank for assistance. The Department of Special Investigation, the Excise Department and the Ministry of Interior will participate in the project to mediate between the debtors and lenders next month.

Mr Korn added that he would submit a draft of the Fair Debt Collection Bill to the cabinet as soon as possible.

The equal income distribution project will also provide vocational training and allocate land plots of 1 million Rai for people who had no land to use. The Land and Building Tax Bill and community land title deeds are included in the project.