Ministry of Finance (Thailand)

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The seal of the Treasury shows a bird of paradise (paksa wayuphak)

The Ministry of Finance of the Kingdom of Thailand ( Thai กระทรวง การคลัง , RTGS : Krasuang Kan Khlang , English Ministry of Finance , MOF) is a ministry with cabinet rank in the government of Thailand .

General

The Thai Ministry of Finance is responsible for, among other things

  • public finances,
  • the taxation of citizens of the country,
  • the treasury,
  • government property,
  • the shares in companies,
  • the business operations of monopoly companies under public administration (e.g. the tobacco industry).

The Ministry of Finance can also issue loan guarantees for government agencies, public financial institutions and state-owned companies.

The Ministry of Finance is headed by the Minister of Finance (Thai รัฐมนตรี กระทรวง การคลัง , Ratthamontri wakan Krasuang Kankhlang ), to whom at least two deputy ministers report . They are also cabinet members and are therefore appointed by the King of Thailand on the proposal of the Prime Minister.

The incumbent since January 2012 is the non-party Kittiratt Na-Ranong .

history

The origins of the Thai Ministry of Finance go back to the establishment of the Krom Khlang ( กรม คลัง ) in the Kingdom of Ayutthaya , later known as Krom Phra Khlang ( กรม พระ คลัง ). The institution and the respective incumbent were mostly called Phraklang by western reporters or corrupted to Berguelang and Barcelon . The Phraklang had far-reaching powers in the areas of taxation and duties, trade, state monopolies and even in foreign relations, which at the time served almost exclusively overseas trade and the profit derived from it.

Most of the powers remained during the Rattanakosin era. In 1855 King Rama IV (Mongkut) sealed the Siamese-British trade treaty with John Bowring , which is why it is often called the Bowring Treaty in the West . This treaty served mainly British trade interests; so the tariffs were limited to a maximum of three percent. The king had to create a customs agency and set up the royal mint to meet the new challenges.

The Ministry of Finance received its present form under King Rama V (Chulalongkorn), who signed a decree in 1873 that gave the Royal Ministry of the Treasury all the powers and the necessary facilities to carry out its tasks. As the first finance minister he appointed his uncle, Prince Mara Pamrabporapat . In 1933 the Ministry was renamed the Ministry of Finance in the course of the reform law for the public service in Siam and today consists of 10 departments and 14 state-owned companies.

Organizational structure of the Thai Ministry of Finance

administration

  • Minister's Office
  • Office of the State Secretary

Departments

  • Tax Legislation Office
  • Department for the State Treasury
  • Head of Accounting
  • Customs department
  • Department of Monopoly Taxes ( Excise )
  • State Income Department
  • Public Debt Administration Bureau
  • State Enterprise Control Office

State enterprises

  • State Lottery Office
  • Thailand Tobacco Monopoly
  • Government Saving Bank
  • Government Housing Bank
  • Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives
  • Liquor Distillery Organization (Excise Department)
  • Playing Cards Factory (Excise Department)
  • Export-Import Bank of Thailand
  • Small Business Credit Guarantee Corporation
  • Secondary Mortgage Corporation
  • Small and Medium Enterprise Development Bank of Thailand
  • Student Loan Fund
  • Dhanarak Asset Development Company Limited

Private company with the Ministry of Finance as the main shareholder

  • Krung Thai Bank (55.1% held by the Financial Institution Development Fund)

Institutions under the supervision of the Ministry of Finance

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://www2.mof.go.th/history.htm website of the Thai Ministry of Finance (last accessed on August 31, 2010)

Web links