Bangkok: The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance is confident that 30 million entitlements are sufficient and is pleased with the very positive public response.
According to Thai News Agency, the Permanent Secretary expressed satisfaction with the overwhelmingly positive public response, highlighting that some people stayed up all night to register. By the afternoon, the number of entitlements stabilized at 23.2 million. He encouraged merchants to confirm their entitlements on the "Thung Ngern" (Money Bag) app, which features the "Whispering Bird" tool to aid with sales analysis, accounting, and loan applications.
Mr. Lawaron Saengsanit, the Permanent Secretary, shared insights on the first day of registration for the Thai Help Thai Plus project, noting that the initial response was very good, with 10 million registrations occurring in the first 30 minutes. The registration system was prepared to handle 300,000 registrations per second, supplemented by an additional system capable of managing 700,000 registrations per second, ensuring a smooth process. By 2 PM, approximately 23.2 million registrations had been completed. Mr. Saengsanit believes that the target of 30 million registrations will be sufficient.
The Permanent Secretary emphasized the need for 1 million shops to confirm their participation, with 400,000 already confirmed and over 500,000 yet to do so. He reassured that the public registration number is expected to stabilize soon, with around 800,000 slots remaining. He assured that these would be adequate for those not yet ready or whose Paotang app is incomplete. Registration will remain open until the 30 million slots are filled, and all registered individuals will receive their slots. If any participants are found to be ineligible, their slots will be reopened for registration.
The Permanent Secretary is confident in the sufficiency of the 30 million entitlements, given that there are 53 million Thais aged 18 and above. When combined with the 13.2 million entitlements under the State Welfare Card, the total exceeds 43 million, leaving 10 million entitlements for those not previously involved in government programs. The highest participation in past programs was 28 million, reinforcing his belief in the adequacy of the current allocation.
Participating merchants are set to benefit from increased customers, with the Thung Ngern app's AI assistant, "Whispering Bird," offering transaction data analysis and simplified accounting tools, useful for loan applications from government financial institutions.
The Permanent Secretary expressed gratitude to Krung Thai Bank for their diligent service in preparing for the influx of registrations. He acknowledged the high level of public interest, with some individuals staying up overnight out of concern they might miss the opportunity to register. He concluded with optimism about the project's potential to alleviate hardship for many, advising people to rest easy and not worry.