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In Thailand, the fiscal year begins on the 1st of October and ends on the 30th of September of the following year. The sources of educational finance can be classified into 5 categories : central government budget, local funding, non-governmental budget, foreign loans and technical assistance, and provision of education by the private sector.
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Government funding has been the main source of financial resources for educational development in Thailand. The education sector has received the largest share of the total public expenditure since 1991. The Government budget for education was highest in 1997 amounting to 214,297 million Baht which was 22 percent of the total public expenditure or equaled 4.1 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In 1998, due to the impact of economic crisis, the total Government budget for education has been reduced to 201,707 million Baht or about 3.5 percent of GDP. However, the share of public expenditure for education after the reduction of the Government budget for all sectors in fiscal year 1998 is about 25.2 percent of the total expenditure (Chart 5.1) which has become larger than ever before. Similarly, the budget appropriation for education approved by the Parliament for the fiscal year 1999 is about 209,926 million Baht or about 25.4 percent of the total budget. This reflects the Government's concern about the importance of education for economic rehabilitation of the country.
Nearly half of educational funding in 1998 has been allocated to pre-primary and primary education, amounting to 44.2 percent. At secondary education level, with 24.9 percent of the total public expenditure for education, the general education receives larger share while vocational education has been provided with smaller portion of budget. The shares of higher education and non-formal education in 1998 remain at nearly the same rates as in 1997 as shown on Chart 5.2.
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