The World Bank has offered Thailand a $1 billion loan for the creation of flood-prevention projects, one of the many offers the flood-hit country has received from funding agencies such as the Asian Development Bank, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation and the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Kittirat Na-Ranong, who represented Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra at the APEC meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii, said the government is considering the offer.
“Borrowing from the bank would help guarantee that any projects undertaken would be transparent as the bank would witness the procedure,” he said, adding that the government is also open to offers from foreign investors who are interested in forming a consortium with Thai investors on flood-prevention projects.
Apart from the loan, the World Bank offered to provide advice on water management.
The government is releasing a $10 billion budget for its relief and recovery operations and post-flood rehabilitation projects. A portion of the funding will go to big businesses ($2 billion) and SMEs ($5.5 billion) to help them resume operations “as soon as possible.”
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