Suksomruay drives Village Funds in Phen, Udon Thani

Thairath•Politics•2d ago

Reader Briefing

Minister Suksomruay Wantaneeyakul delivered policies and announced government financial aid and electricity bill reductions during a visit to Phen District, Udon Thani.

•Suksomruay Wantaneeyakul visited Phen District, Udon Thani on August 24, 2026.
•The government approved over 4,400 million baht for the 'Thai Help Thai, Increase Capital, Half-Interest' project.
•The SML Plus project has been approved for 349 funds with a budget of over 99,500,000 baht.
•A new electricity measure will charge 3 baht per unit for the first 200 units and remove street lighting costs from citizens' bills.

Overview

•On August 24, 2026, Suksomruay Wantaneeyakul visited the Wutthathikhun Auditorium at Phen District Office, Udon Thani.
•Suksomruay Wantaneeyakul announced the 'Thai Help Thai, Increase Capital, Half-Interest' project to reduce loan interest burdens for over 63,125 village funds nationwide.
•Suksomruay Wantaneeyakul urged fund committees in Phen District to expedite applications to the National Village and Urban Community Fund Office (NVUCO).
•The government is using 3,400 million baht from the 2012 pending budget to increase capital by 1 million baht per fund for lagging or 'red' funds by the end of 2026.
•349 funds have received SML Plus approval, with another 1,241 funds approved by a subcommittee to enter the second board round with a 329 million baht budget.
•Suksomruay Wantaneeyakul announced the removal of street lighting electricity costs from residential electricity bills.
•In Phen District, 163 out of 165 village funds have been registered as legal entities, with nearly 400 million baht circulating in the system.

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Source: Thairath (Original)

Key Quotes

Suksomruay Wantaneeyakul

"What the parents and siblings of fund members have long awaited is the SML Plus project. Good news: we have now broken through the SML Plus wall."

สิ่งที่พ่อแม่พี่น้องสมาชิกกองทุนรอคอยมาเป็นระยะเวลานาน คือ โครงการ SML พลัส ข่าวดี ตอนนี้ เราทะลายกำแพง SML พลัส ได้แล้ว

Key Entities

Person

Suksomruay Wantaneeyakul(สุขสมรวย วันทนียกุล)

Minister attached to the Prime Minister's Office and Chairperson of the National Village and Urban Community Fund.

Jakrapan Chantraphum(จักรพันธ์ จันทรภูมิ)

Deputy Governor of Udon Thani Province.

Organization

National Village and Urban Community Fund(กองทุนหมู่บ้านและชุมชนเมืองแห่งชาติ)

A national fund organization whose operational policies were delivered by Suksomruay Wantaneeyakul.

NVUCO(สทบ.)

The National Village and Urban Community Fund Office responsible for processing fund applications.

Place

Phen District(อ.เพ็ญ)ℹ️

A district in Udon Thani Province where the fund inspection took place.

Udon Thani Province(จ.อุดรธานี)ℹ️

The province where the official visit and policy delivery occurred.

Policy

Thai Help Thai, Increase Capital, Half-Interest(ไทยช่วยไทย เพิ่มทุน ดอกเบี้ย คนละครึ่ง)

A government project with a budget of over 4,400 million baht to reduce interest burdens for village funds.

SML Plus(SML พลัส)

A fund project recently approved for 349 funds with an initial budget of over 99,500,000 baht.