Budget Allocation for Water Management to Tackle Flooding

(10/11/2011)

The Government has allocated more than 53 billion baht in the 2012 fiscal year to promote integrated water management and water resources management. Out of the amount, 45.28 billion baht has been set aside for better and more systematic water management to enhance the efficiency of Thailand in preventing, mitigating, and tackling recurring floods and droughts. Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra on November 9 presented a draft bill on the 2.38-trillion-baht national budget to the House of Representatives for a two-day debate. In her statement, the Prime Minister said that the Government would support the royal rainmaking operations, expand irrigation zones, divert and distribute water in critical areas, and develop community water sources. As for water resources management, she said that 7.92 billion baht had been allocated in the 2012 national budget in order to develop management mechanisms and rehabilitate water resources. Knowledge about water would be disseminated through people’s network and local administrative organizations. She said that the Government would develop 287 water sources to solve flood and drought problems. The Prime Minister stated that the current flooding situation would have adverse effects on Thailand’s economy, at both macro and household levels. The impact on the production sector would be evident in late 2011. She said that the Government would do everything possible to cope with this problem and that when the problem eased, it would accelerate investment in rebuilding infrastructure and speed up rehabilitation measures to help affected people and businesses whose property had been damaged by the flooding. The Prime Minister has decided to cancel her trip to attend the 19th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Hawaii, scheduled for November 12-14, as she would like to stay in the country during the period in order to deal with the flooding situation. Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister, Kittiratt Na-Ranong, was assigned to represent the Prime Minister at the APEC meeting. Prime Minister Yingluck’s trip to attend the upcoming ASEAN summit in Bali, Indonesia, between November 17 and 19 remains unchanged. In order to bring about recovery to flood-hit people and businesses, the Prime Minister has signed an order appointing various committees to handle flood relief and rehabilitation. They include the Flood Recovery and Restoration Committee, the Flood Recovery and Restoration Committee on Infrastructure, the Flood Recovery and Restoration Committee on Economy, Industry, and Livelihood, the Flood Recovery and Restoration Committee on Quality of Life, the Executive Committee of the Center for Peacekeeping, Public Safety, and Traffic, the Executive Committee of the Center for Operations Support, the Public Communication Committee, the Water Resources Management Advisory Committee, and the Executive Committee of the Center for Recovery Management System.