Educational Finance in Thailand - UNESCO Bangkok

1. Description of content of current financial information systems and data bases.
2. Description and assessment of computer systems and network infrastructure available
for financial information at various levels.
3. Description of flows of financial information through various levels and units of
educational system.
4. Description of content of current or related data bases on educational resources
(teachers, facilities, etc) if data bases exist in current form.
5. Assessment of information system capacity and effectiveness.
6. Analysis of gaps and information needs for finance analysis and decision making.
Description of content of current financial information systems and databases.
In general, the Finance Division of each organization consists of 4 sections:
budget administration, accounting, finance, and procurement. The Finance Division
works closely with the budget section under Planning Division. The budget section
controls the budget approved by the BOB and the finance division administrates budget
according to the allocation plans and finance regulations controlled by the Comptroller
Office, Ministry of Finance.
The execution of budget follows 5 steps:
1. The organization requests for four monthly budget.
2. The BOB considers the request and approves the budget.
3. The organization requests for a permit to pay certain amount of budget.
4. The comptroller office considers and approves for a permit.
5. The organization processes to disburse actual expenditure.
The financial database shown at the Comptroller Office year 1996-1998 consists
of budget amounts organized in three categories: cumulative amount of approved budget,
the retained amount (or carry forward), and the actual expenditure. The amounts are
classified by organization, finance location, accounting code, and types of expenditure.
Most organizations are required to report budget execution classified by plans and types
of expenditure.
The interviews revealed that most organizations have had difficulties on collecting
financial data from local areas. They seldom have sufficient data to assess expenditures
and administration of local areas. One division on OPEC, working on subsidy for private
schools, is seriously sort of personnel to take care of all operation details. In their manual
operating system, they can not produce sufficient information for their planning and
management. There appears to be no alternative solution except bringing computers with
efficient software to manage and help them handle all paper work more automatically. It
was reported that OPEC is developing the system software and computer networking for
all organizations at the central Ministry so the management of financial system for private
education can be improved.
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