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Agencies told to boost R&D activity [Bangkok Post, Thailand](Bangkok Post (Thailand) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Sept. 24--With the government committed to support more research, state enterprises will be required to set aside more from their fiscal-2015 budget for R&D activities. Arkhom Termpittayapaisith, secretary-general of the National Economic and Social Development Board, said the cabinet yesterday agreed to instruct state agencies to pay more attention to research and development and allot half their annual R&D budget for projects deemed important to the country's development. Details of any of the projects were not available. The cabinet last September asked state enterprises to allocate at least 3% of their net profit for R&D, but they have largely ignored that plan. The unelected government led by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha is committed to investing more in R&D schemes in hopes of boosting their value to 1% of GDP next year, one year ahead of the previous target of 2016. Science and Technology Minister Pichet Durongkaveroj recently said his ministry planned to offer more tax incentives to firms investing in R&D. The country's R&D investment value now stands at 0.37% of GDP. In a related development, the cabinet yesterday outlined state agencies' revenue and investment plans for fiscal 2015, which starts next Wednesday. State enterprise revenue is estimated at 2 trillion baht next fiscal year, with expenditure of 190 billion and net profits totalling 83 billion. Investment by state enterprises is estimated at 1.39 trillion baht, mainly for the dual-track rail system and other transport development. The cabinet yesterday ordered state agencies to accelerate the disbursement of 95% of their total fiscal budget. They will also be required to report their budget disbursement on the fifth of each month. Meanwhile, the Finance Ministry has been assigned to work out a business plan for mobile operators TOT Plc and CAT Telecom. AIS's concession from TOT is scheduled to expire next September, while DTAC's concession from CAT will end in 2018. Related search: Telecommunications, TOT, CAT ___ (c)2014 the Bangkok Post (Bangkok, Thailand) Visit the Bangkok Post (Bangkok, Thailand) at www.bangkokpost.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |