Suksamruay visited the area to inspect and set policies for advancing the village fund in Phen District, Udon Thani. She emphasized the government’s budget support to halve interest rates, unlock SML Plus, and revealed good news on reducing electricity bills.
On 24 August 2026, Mrs. Suksamruay Wantaneeyakul, Minister attached to the Prime Minister’s Office and Chairperson of the National Village and Urban Community Fund Committee, delivered operational policies for the village fund at the Wutthathikun Auditorium, Phen District Office, Udon Thani Province. Mr. Jakraphan Chantraphum, Deputy Governor of Udon Thani, and other senior officials welcomed her.
Mrs. Suksamruay said today she brings good news: the government, through the National Village and Urban Community Fund (NVUCF), has the "Thai Help Thai: Capital Increase, Half Interest" project. She asked if the fund committees here have submitted applications. The government has approved a total budget exceeding 4.4 billion baht, which will reduce loan interest burdens for members of more than 63,125 village funds nationwide. She urged fund members not to miss out. In the three subdistricts of Phen District present here, only one fund has applied so far; 38 funds have yet to apply. She urged fund committees to expedite submitting applications to the NVUCF so the process can proceed and funds can be disbursed to assist members locally, easing their financial burdens.
Additionally, the government, through NVUCF, will implement a second capital increase project using a 2012 budget carryover of 3.4 billion baht. The plan is to revitalize neglected or red-flagged village funds by increasing their capital by 1 million baht each, to be completed by 2026. The subdistricts Ban Lao and Tao Hai have already received the second million baht capital. However, in Phen subdistrict, five funds have not yet received this second capital. She urged NVUCF staff in regional branch 6 to closely monitor these funds. She encouraged all to protect their rights and for funds that have not yet received the second million baht to update and correct their documents per NVUCF guidance.
“What our members have awaited for a long time is the SML Plus project. Good news: we have broken through the SML Plus barrier. The large board meeting has approved 349 funds with a budget of over 99.5 million baht. Recently, the SML Plus subcommittee met on Monday and approved a second round for another 1,241 funds with a budget over 329 million baht. I intend to expedite approval for this next batch,” she said.
Mrs. Suksamruay added that fund members should not forget to submit their applications through the director of NVUCF branch 6, who will forward them to NVUCF headquarters for the SML Plus subcommittee to consider promptly. Another positive development is that the government has set electricity rates for the first 200 units at only 3 baht per unit. Regarding electricity costs, for over 40 years, public lighting charges on roads, highways, and secondary routes have been included in citizens’ electricity bills. From now on, these public lighting fees will be removed from the electricity bills of the people. This reflects the government's commitment to help citizens, especially village fund members. She expressed willingness to support any requests for assistance from the government or NVUCF.
In Phen District, there are a total of 165 village funds, of which 163 (99%) have registered as legal entities, with nearly 400 million baht circulating within the system. Regarding the “Thai Help Thai: Capital Increase, Half Interest” project in Udon Thani Province, 373 village funds (18.42%) have submitted applications, while the rest are gathering documents. In Phen District, 12 village funds have completed application submission, and 153 funds have received complete information and are preparing documents to apply for funding in due course.
The minister’s visit to inspect Phen District was an important opportunity to exchange development strategies to jointly advance village and urban community funds as key mechanisms to strengthen the people and the grassroots economy of the country moving forward.