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Published on Jul 31, 2007

Ban Sam Kha village is a model project in which residents have reduced their total debt from Bt20 million, accumulated over the past eight years, to Bt16 million after beginning their austerity campaign in late 2006. They now also have up to Bt6 million in savings.

Many self-development projects are being carried out along with the austerity campaign, ranging from forest conservation, basic natural resource management, fire-fighting and vocational training. In addition, sale of local products generates income for the 677 residents

in 154 households.

The village also gains revenue from offering home-stay accommodation for visitors, although the rates are as cheap as Bt100 for a room and Bt50 per head for three meals a day. Many products and souvenirs made from jungle products are also sold to visitors.

Charn Utthiya, a member of Nong Sua Tambon Administrative Organisation (TAO), said around 20 per cent of the residents earned several hundred thousand baht each year through natural products from a vast area of forest totalling 12,000 rai.

He said Sam Kha villagers had come to realise that their huge debts stemmed from populists policies widely promoted by the previous government.

"We spent money on motorcycles, trucks and electrical appliances immediately after we received money and subsidised loans from the government, although these items were not necessities in our life before," he said.

Charn said many villages in Tambon Hua Sua were following suit by starting their own austerity campaigns, as well as two villages in the more developed Muang district.

"Now they are doing well after copying what was done in our village," he added.

Some of the households that saved enough money have bought out their debts to the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) and refinanced them with other banks that offer more convenient repayment terms.

Village head Jamnong Janhom agreed with Charn, saying that all the debts had been incurred from bad habits and materialism.

"It's like we were out of our minds for quite some time. We wanted more and more, beyond our ability to afford what we bought, while our incomes remained limited," he said.

After the austerity campaign began, villagers obtained loans to invest only in what would give them returns, as opposed to getting money for whatever they wanted through populist policies and funding offered by the previous government.

Jamnong said the key to success was self-discipline in spending and cutting out entrenched bad habits such as alcohol, cigarettes and other vices. Many men agreed to cut their traditional heavy drinking or even quit for good. Whisky has been banned from many celebratory events, but is still allowed at funerals.

In addition to income-boosting projects, the austerity campaign has become successful mainly because of the reduction of unnecessary expenses, Charn said. He has stopped using a refrigerator and now wears only traditional morhom dress.

He said around 25 per cent of villagers followed his guidelines on modest living but 50 per cent still felt reluctant to commit fully.

"The remaining 25 per cent of people just don't care and live their lives in the same way. But that's a minority," he added.

Bunlong Pingfue, a farmer who also collects jungle products, said he started eating more vegetables after his children asked him why he did not practise what he taught them.

"Fish and pork are more expensive and we have more savings after I cut them out," he said.His household accounts showed savings after unnecessary expenses were reduced, including cosmetics for his wife.

Bunlong said he limited the use of cooking gas and had dug a pond to rear his own fish instead of having to buy them.

Bunlong said keeping household accounts was helpful in planning the family's expenses. Last year he saved around Bt29,000 and managed to repay around Bt61,000 of a total debt of Bt136,000. "I have never had any savings in my life before," he said proudly.

Phisit Yaso, a former farmer, said he turned to carving animal figures out of wood because it fetched more income and the work was less tiring than farming. He said his debts had fallen and he had some savings last year.

Anan In-in, a farmer, said her life was easier after she turned to raising cows and bulls because the lack of rain and water sources made growing crops difficult. Anan said she had never had savings until she joined the austerity campaign.

She also makes artificial flowers for sale in her spare time and hopes to pay off all her debts once her young children complete their studies and get jobs.

Anan Paengnoy

The Nation