Tourism Fund too Small

Chumpol vows second fund for operators

The 5 Billion Baht fund for tourism operators is not enough for them to all survive the slump, said Tourism and Sports Minister Chumpol Silpa-archa. The financial support programme was officially launched yesterday and will run until April 30. The Federation of Thai Tourism Associations (FTTA) predicted that at least four hundred and fifty tour operators would seek financial help worth at least 1.8 billion Baht.

More than one thousand restaurant operators are expected to submit loan applications for five hundred million Baht, with small hotels likely to seek up to two Billion Baht.

Soft loans to help tourism-related operators will charge an interest rate at 2% in the first 2 years, followed by the minimum lending rate (MLR) -3%.

''The requests for loans during the 1.5-month period will exceed 5 billion Baht for sure. If demand is excessive, we will go forward with the second fund,'' Mr Chumpol said.

The minister estimated that the tourism business would pick up near the end of this year if the private and Government sectors worked hand-in-hand to promote the country in the same direction.

Apichart Sankary, the FTTA president, said the tourism industry in Thailand would be sluggish in the next 2 years, particularly for inbound business.

''I can say that this year is the poorest since I have been in business. This summer, tourist arrivals from Europe and the United States will drop more than 30%. Instead, most operators should pin their hopes on Asian tourists particularly from Japan and China,'' he said.

However, Mr Apichart said arrivals from China and Japan were still poor in the first two months because they were concerned about the economic downturn and local political problems.

''In my opinion, the number of international tourist arrivals will be lower than twelve million this year. I want the Government to promote the country in the right direction. It should have a focus and deliver promotional messages through the media or billboards in targeted nations instead of using mass media, for example,'' he added.

Prakit Chinamourphong, president of the Thai Hotels Association (THA), said the fund would help only small and medium-sized hotels. The association plans to ask for some financial aid for big hotels, which are facing similar difficulties.

''I am just back from ITB (the world's biggest travel fair) in Berlin. This year, the situation there was very sluggish. Most buyers came to the fair to bargain prices and Thai tour operators were pressured with no choices,'' he said.

Source - The Bangkok Post