BANGKOK, August 2015 – Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered three state banks to get ready for the National Savings Fund which will officially kick off on 20 August, two days later than scheduled to drum up the project among targeted population, said on Sunday Deputy spokesman of the Prime Minister’s Office Maj Gen Sansern Kaewkamnerd.
The three banks involved in the project are the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC), the Government Savings Bank (GSB) and the Krung Thai Bank (KTB). Maj-Gen Sansern said the BAAC has carried out system testing and staff training whereas the GSB has also finished its staff training and is now conducting the system testing.
The National Savings Fund is a state-run provident fund for over thirty million self-employed people like farmers, freelancers, vendors, taxi motorcyclists, tuk tuk drivers, and other workers who are not members of the Government Pension Fund (GPF) and private provident funds.
To be eligible for the fund, he or she must be between 15-60 years old and merely shows an ID card to bank officials. Once starting saving with the National Savings Fund, the depositors will have to contribute to the fund until they reach 60 while the government will contribute up to 13,200 baht per year to each account. After 60, the depositors will get a life-long pension.
