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Thailand introduces new subsidies for rubber growers

2019-03-28

[Global Network Comprehensive Report] According to a report by Reuters on November 20, the Thai government passed a new subsidy policy and other measures to help rubber farmers on the 20th. In view of the sharp drop in rubber prices, Thai rubber farmers are struggling and threatening to hold protests in the near future.

As the world's largest rubber producer, Thai rubber prices have fallen by 40% in the past two years. With the recent decline in external demand, the rubber price situation is even more severe.

The Thai government has already adopted a package of measures at a cabinet meeting, with a total investment of 18.6 billion baht (about 567 million US dollars, or 3.934 billion yuan). The measure will be implemented in January next year, including direct subsidies of $33 per land (about 0.16 hectares) to small-scale rubber farmers registered with the Thai Rubber Association, up to a maximum of $500.

Luck Wajananawat, deputy director of the Thai Agricultural Cooperative, said the new subsidy would benefit 1 million rubber farmers and 300,000 tapers.

However, Manat Boonphat, president of the Thai Small Household Glue and Rubber Farmers Association, criticized that this measure would only benefit 10% of the rubber farmers. He suggested that the government should buy rubber at a price higher than the market price.

According to reports, rubber farmers in Thailand are a very powerful force in the country. The Thai government does not want to repeat the situation of the rubber farmers protest in 2013. At that time, hundreds of rubber farmers protested across the country, blocking roads and a regional airport in the south. They are also part of a larger demonstration in Thailand. This large-scale demonstration eventually turned into a larger political movement, paving the way for the 2014 Thai military coup. (Internship Compilation: Zheng Huaiyu's Review: Tan Liya)

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