Bangkok: The Prime Minister has announced the Cabinet’s approval of flood relief payments for households in the southern region, amounting to 9,000 baht each. The Cabinet has also decided to expand the reserve fund framework for six provinces affected by recent flooding, increasing it from 20 million baht to 50 million baht.
According to Thai News Agency, Ms. Paethongtarn Shinawatra, the Prime Minister, revealed the outcomes of the Cabinet meeting. The meeting addressed the flooding issue in the southern region, as proposed by the Ministry of Interior. The expansion of the provincial reserve fund is specifically for the provinces declared as disaster-affected areas, namely Nakhon Si Thammarat, Surat Thani, Songkhla, Yala, Pattani, and Narathiwat.
Additionally, the Cabinet has sanctioned further assistance payments for disaster victims during the rainy season in 2024. This will be executed within the budget framework based on adjusted criteria, conditions, and payment methods. The assistance covers cases whe
re permanent residences are impacted by floods, landslides, flash floods, forest runoff, or overflowing rivers for no more than seven days. It also includes situations where residences are flooded for over seven consecutive days, with the assistance rate set at 9,000 baht per household. This applies to the original 57 provinces and includes an additional 16 provinces, totaling 5 billion baht allocated for relief until the end of 2024. The Ministry of Interior has been tasked with expediting the implementation of these measures.