STRENGTH IN SCRUTINY

       Website underscores government's determination to ensure that stimulus funds aren't wasted, writes Wichit Chantanusornsiri
       It's a 1.43-trillion-baht question can the government effectively implement its grandiose investment programme, on deadline, with minimal waste and corruption?The answer will have profound implications for the economy, not only in the speed of recovery from the global recession, but also in how the country can compete over the medium term.
       One promising sign, however, is the commitment made to allow public scrutiny of the "Thailand: Investing from Strength to Strength" programme. The Finance Ministry has set up a website,www.tkk2555.com, that promises to allow anyone access to details on the progress made in implementing each of the thousands of projects under the programme.
       The website name stems from Thai Khem Kaeng , as the programme is more commonly known, combined with the Buddhist year 2555, representing the year 2012 or when the investments are to be completed.
       Supachai Jongsiri, the ministry's deputy permanent secretary overseeing the website, said the objective was to give the entire public, urban and rural residents alike, clear access to details of each project involved in the programme.
       Web programmers have been directed to make the site user-friendly and accessible to laymen.
       "The aim is to allow the public to participate directly, to examine for themselves how public money is being spent,"Mr Supachai said.
       It is a novel concept for the civil service.Historically, government projects have been mostly hidden from view with little opportunity given for ordinary citizens to access details about spending, procurement and investment details.
       A map of Thailand on the website categorises each of the projects by geographic area. Clicking on any individual project will bring up details on the responsible agency and project objective.If a project has already had funds committed, additional details are given about progress made to date.
       Each project is colour-coded, with purple representing projects on track and red for projects that have fallen behind schedule.
       Mr Supachai said the progress reports on the web would serve as a tool to measure the efficiency of each state agency in implementing projects under the Thai Khem Kaeng programme.Agencies behind schedule must stipulate the reasons for delays, as well as the individuals responsible for the project.
       "The public can contact any agency for themselves if they wish. We believe this will help put pressure on the different state departments to meet their mandates, helping raise efficiency for the entire programme," Mr Supachai said.
       Authorities say Thai Khem Kaeng will feature public transparency at a scale never before seen in Thailand. The funding details and budgets approved by the cabinet for the projects will be open to scrutiny, as well as the winning contractor bids and procurement details.
       Projects proposed by each ministry are first vetted by the Budget Department,and then by the cabinet for final approval.Project details are input into the Government Fiscal Management System (GFMIS), a database that was set up in 2004 as part of the civil service's "egovernment" initiative.
       The Budget Bureau will also input details on each project in its own ebudgeting system, including disbursement schedules based on the priority assigned to each project. This data is reconciled with the GFMIS system, with cross-links made between the agencies responsible for making payments for each project, planning centres overseeing the progress made to date to facilitate quick identification of where bottlenecks and delays exist.
       "All of the information is electronic.Even questions submitted through the website by the public will be forwarded and answered online by the responsible agencies. Each project must have its data keyed into the system using a webbased form," Mr Supachai said.
       He said he wanted the site to have a web board allowing the public to post comments about the projects, adding another level of checks and balances.
       The ministry is even investing in additional servers and bandwidth to help cope with public demand for the site.
       The site will split small microprojects from larger projects involving funds of more than 50 or 100 million baht. Larger projects will have additional data available in an e-book, including information about the project design, photographs tracking progress made at each stage and Google Earth maps showing the location of each project.
       So far, the cabinet has approved 2,352 projects, involving 199 billion baht. Most are small community programmes selected for their readiness and ability for rapid completion, to maximise the shortterm benefits for the economy.