The Cabinet meeting approved the 2027 spending plan of the Education Equity Fund (EEF) with a budget of 8.99 billion baht to reduce educational disparities and support over 1.3 million impoverished children.
On 28 April 2026, Ms. Ratchada Thanadirek, spokesperson for the Prime Minister's Office, announced that the Cabinet approved the Education Equity Fund's (EEF) budget plan totaling 8,998.48 million baht. This plan will be submitted to the Budget Bureau for consideration as part of the fiscal year 2027 expenditure budget. It comprises five main programs, including:
Program 1: Support for education and learning to reach full potential with a budget of 6,794.23 million baht. It aims to create educational opportunities for children from poor households, from early childhood to compulsory education. The fund will provide "conditional grants" (equity scholarships) from kindergarten through primary to lower secondary levels at a rate of 4,200 baht per child per year, covering more than 1.3 million severely disadvantaged students to reduce household expenses.
Program 2: Development of teachers, learning units, and flexible education and learning management models with a budget of 633.33 million baht. This focuses on improving the quality of schools, teachers, and learning ecosystems, including developing teacher production and training systems for schools in remote areas.
Program 3: Strengthening partnerships for educational equity with a budget of 818.80 million baht. It emphasizes developing localized educational innovations, promoting the "All for Education" concept, and decentralizing authority to enable local agencies to manage quality education and reach vulnerable children and youth.
Program 4: Development of knowledge, research, innovation, and public communication for educational equity with a budget of 337.20 million baht. This supports efforts to reduce educational disparities and promote equity across all programs through research development and integrated information systems to serve as a knowledge base for the EEF's mission.
Program 5: Administration and development of the EEF as a learning organization with a budget of 414.93 million baht. It aims to enhance internal management efficiency to effectively collaborate with partner networks in driving its mission.
The spokesperson for the Prime Minister's Office stated that this plan will bring significant benefits to Thai children and youth, including equal access to educational opportunities, reduction of barriers inside and outside the education system, and targeted identification of disadvantaged children to ensure continuous support.
Additionally, the plan supports the development of diverse and flexible learning models, creating an inclusive educational ecosystem for children, youth, and informal sector workers, as well as encouraging all sectors to participate in owning educational development to sustainably drive systemic change.