Cash-for-tourists campaign a hit with businesses
Finance Minister Uttama Savanayana is confident that 40,000 retailers, restaurateurs and service agencies will soon be signed up for the government’s “Eat, Shop, Use” tourism-stimulus campaign now that 32,000 have already registered.
Uttama said on Friday (September 13) that 32,000 businesspeople had registered via the Thung Ngern Pracharat mobile application.
“We set a target of 40,000 shops and that should be achieved before the September 20 deadline,” he said. “Combined with 80,000 entrepreneurs who registered earlier this year, we will have about 120,000 shops where tourists can spend the Bt1,000 they’ll receive from the government.”
Participating stores, restaurants and service outlets will display a sticker in their front windows letting visitors know they can spend their government “coupon” there.
Uttama had a second announcement on Friday, saying financial aid for in-season rice farmers would be distributed next week.
“This is part of the government’s policy to help farmers affected by the drought earlier this year,” he said. “The Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives is ready to deliver cash to two million farmers starting next week at the rate of Bt500 per rai, up to maximum of 20 rai per person.”
