Bt28m from China, Japan

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has received assistance money from two Chinese cities and two Japanese cities worth over Bt28 million for flood-hit communities, BMA spokesman Wasan Meewong said yesterday.

Wasan said the BMA had a created a project to aid flood-hit communities by using funds from the city's "Together We Can" fund, which received donations from Chongqing, China (Bt25 million), Beijing, (Bt1.5 million), Tokyo, Japan (Bt1.5 million) and Chiba prefecture's Yashio city in Japan (Bt680,000).

The money would be distributed to 616 communities in 21 districts that were declared disaster-hit areas with flooding of over-80cm-deep, he said.

Wasan explained the criteria under which the 61 communities that suffered 7-14 days of flood would each get Bt30,000, or Bt1.83 million in total. The 212 communities that endured 15-30 days of flood would each get Bt40,000, or Bt8.48 million in total. The 343 communities flooded for over 30 days would each receive Bt50,000, or Bt17.15 million in total. Another 21 Bangkok districts that weren't included could request relief funding if they had experienced flooding of over 80cm-depth, he added.

As for the "Yimsoo Kupai Namtuam" project in which BMA and four financial institutes (Government's Saving Bank, Islamic Bank of Thailand, Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives and Government Housing Bank) granted low-interest loans to flood victims, Wasan said 746 people have applied for the loans worth Bt29 million totally.