“The National Village and Urban Community Fund moving forward to the 3rd decade”

Prime Minister chairs “The National Village and Urban Community Fund moving forward to the 3rd decade” event to appreciate fund member’s work, promises to push forward Grassroots Economy to build a sustainable nation

Today (10 February, 2023) 14:00, Exhibition Hall 6, IMPACT Arena Exhibition & Convention Center, Muang Thong Thani, Pak Kret district, Nonthaburi province, General Prayuth Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand and Defence Minister presided over the opening ceremony “The National Village and Urban Community Fund moving forward to the 3rd decade,” hosted by The National Village and Urban Community Fund Office to publicize the project’s success over the last 20 years. The Prime Minister also awarded outstanding fund members to encourage and set good example for other members to keep up good progress. Deputy Prime Minister and Committee Chairman of The National Village and Urban Community Fund Office Mr. Supattanapong Punmeechaow, Interior Minister General Anupong Paochinda and Prime Minister’s Office Minister Anucha Nakasai, official overseeing the Village Fund joined the event.

General Prayuth Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand and Defence Minister praised over The National Village and Urban Community Fund Office’s success in strengthening the Grassroots Economy which is key fundament in developing the country. 13 million other members were appreciated for bringing together their full potentials and driving local operations to full success, allowing each local community to gain supplemental income revolving in the community. People in community become self-reliant and live more sustainably as a result. General Prayuth insisted the government will encourage and offer needed supports to all activities by the Village Fund through budget allocation using the “Grassroots Economy for stronger nation” approach. The Village Fund will be driven forward, strengthened and continuously adjusted in order to meet the rapidly changing world. The government is ready to provide supporting tools so everyone in the community can enjoy living and working sustainably.

The Prime Minister flagged off the ceremony to mark the project’s success over the past 20 years before moving forward into its 3rd decade to ensure that all Thai people in different communities have sustainable living in every aspect. The Prime Minister and committee then visited the Village Fund Expo which consists of goods and products from villages around the country, the 3S Expo “Grassroots Economy for stronger nation” which aims at finding solutions for poverty, finding sustainable career and wealth, the BCG economy model which includes 4 sectors (food-agriculture, energy-materials, health-wellness and tourism), the Thai Rice NAMA Project, the Smart Farm and the “Ko Lan Krobkrua” (Million cattle families)

Prime Minister’s Office Minister Anucha Nakasai, official overseeing The National Village and Urban Community Fund said, the government led by General Prayuth Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand and Defence Minister has been working on various projects through The National Village and Urban Community Fund to strengthen the Grassroots Economy. Today the government continued to focus on solving poverty problem for fund members as their number one priority. The “Ko Lan Krobkrua” project is therefore introduced with purpose to build career and stimulate employment for the fund members. The government has allocated budget and negotiated with banks, requesting loans to be released to different village funds. Fund members can borrow to purchase up to 2 breeding cattle, not exceeding 50,000 baht per household, free of interest for a period of 3 years. It takes a year for a cow to yield a calf before the calf can continue to reproduce. It is estimated that within a period of not more than 3 years, an average of 6 cattle can be bred, generating incomes of more than 150,000 baht per year. “The longer, the higher the production can double” If raised properly, within 6 years fund members could generate millions in revenue. A good reason for raising cattle is because cattle are easy to take care of. It can be practically achieved without requiring any complicated skills and can generate substantial income.

Mr. Anucha also stated that in order to sustainably drive the Grassroots Economy, the government needs to emphasize on agricultural sector which is key fundament to push forward the country’s Grassroots Economy since most of the country’s population are farmers, they are considered country’s main purchasing power. This group of people must be encouraged, supported, and guided to pursue the right careers in order to strengthen the Grassroots Economy and sustainably build a strong nation. At the same time, other more-ready members need to adapt themselves in doing business in the digital era in order expand business opportunity as it could be an additional way to generate income for the Village Fund.

Mr. Benjapol Nakprasert, Director of the National Village and Urban Community Fund said “The National Village and Urban Community Fund moving forward to the 3rd decade” event is held for 3 days from 10-12 February. The Village Fund focuses on educating, creating careers, and enhancing future skills for its members. Therefore, seminars on financial knowledge, product development and digital skill enhancement activity are held at the event. Participants can join a competition to practice selling real product after completing the seminar to win a scholarship worth 30,000 baht in order to get themselves ready for the rapidly changing world. The Village Fund also invited following partners to join the event – Dhipaya Insurance, the Government Savings Bank, Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC), the Office of SMEs Promotion, the National Savings Fund, PTT Global Chemical Public Company Limited and Circular Living, promoting the management of recyclable waste to generate income for the community.

Mr. Benjapol added that over 4,000 fund members around the country have gathered to join the ceremony. Members have opportunity to exchange ideas for work, unite their strengths and build positive attitudes towards good directions. To successfully keep the Grassroots Economy moving forward, we need everyone, every community and every sector to collaborate and sustainably grow together as a strong nation.