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Baht/$ 34.08/10 (Bid/Ask)
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12,800
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Villages in Nakhon Ratchasima are making impressive progress and building their own social safety net under the initiative of the BAAC, reports Walailak Keeratipipatpong
Thirty percent of the one-baht fund goes to creating many activities that would help generate additional income for villagers, says Ms Ratree at the store. |
Unlike the convenience store next door, the shop of Krabueng Noi carries only a few goods and has a small sales volume of merely 100 baht a day. But it serves the villagers who are committed to self-reliant living so that they would need to depend less on the government budgets and handouts.
''It's a community store that's run by the villagers and the income will go to developing the community,'' says Ratree Kadnok, the sub-head of Baan Krabueng Noi, a village in Phimai district, Nakhon Ratchasima.
Despite the lack of extras like fancy snacks, soft drinks or ice-cream, the shelves contain all of the necessary items one would need in daily life _ sugar, fish sauce, milk, rubbing alcohol, fertilisers and broomsticks. Many products including herbal soap and shampoo are made by villagers nearby.
''We sell no alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, or any 'sin' products, so sales income is just about 100 baht a day with a record 800 baht at its peak since it opened last month,'' she said.
The community store is one among the many activities launched by the One Baht a Day savings programme run by the villagers of Tambon Krabueng Yai and Tambon Samrith, which cover 11 communities including Krabueng Noi village.
Ennoo: Villagers very loyal in repayment |
The community members contribute one baht a day to the fund, which sets aside a portion for welfare and the rest for activities that help the members generate more incomes.
Half of the one-baht fund is set aside for welfare purposes for members who have contributed for at least six months or 180 baht. They will then get 1,000 baht for child delivery and 100 baht per day during hospitalisation. Those who have contributed up to 15 years will get cremation support of 30,000 baht.
The fund also received 50,000 baht from the SML (small, medium, large) budget _ state funds to finance community investments for villages according to their sizes, and 20,000 baht from the BAAC's branch in Phimai.
The fund of Krabueng Yai and Samrith was set up in October 2006, grouping 11 communities with 704 members. Its outstanding amount at the end of June was in excess of 300,000 baht.
The two tambons are sub-districts of Phimai, where people make a living growing rice and crops, particularly vegetables and fruit. But economic expansion, rapid urbanisation, and most importantly, the emergence of rock salt manufacturing plants, have led to a critical decline in farm productivity and many villagers have left home to work in towns.
Ennoo Suesuwan, senior executive vice-president of the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Co-operatives (BAAC), said that many communities had been affected by the development.
To strengthen local communities, the BAAC developed in 2005 a sufficiency-economy community project, following the initiative of His Majesty the King's philosophy.
The bank has a target to strengthen 999 communities across the country by achieving three key goals: promote self-reliance, trade with other villages and, ultimately, build a community network.
According to Mr Ennoo, 661 communities have achieved the first goal and nearly 300, including Phimai, are moving to the second and third stages _ linking up with communities in other provinces.
In order to do so, villagers need to have enough funds and they were encouraged to set up the Community Welfare Fund Network, of which the One Baht a Day fund is a part. The money would be used to create products, jobs, and community shops to add incomes for members.
''Actually, the members could contribute one baht a day in other forms such as recycled garbage, labour service or cash,'' he said.
According to Ms Ratree, 30% of the one-baht fund goes to creating many activities that would help generate additional incomes to villagers, such as setting up a community shop and a tree bank, recycling garbage, making organic fertilisers, growing organic vegetables and fruit and processing rice.
If the members decide to implement a project that requires a bigger sum, they could apply for financial assistance with the BAAC, which would arrange for a grant from the SML budget and the bank itself.
Mr Ennoo said that the success of the Community Welfare Fund Network project would not only strengthen communities by promoting their self-reliance, the bank would benefit from the scheme as well.
He expects that the bank's non-performing loans will definitely be reduced thanks to the loyalty of villagers, who opt to pay the bank whenever they get money.
He believes it would decrease the NPLs of the BAAC, which stood at 4.9% last year of its total of 420 billion baht in loans.
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