NationThailand-July 15
A recent report from the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) has shed light on the systemic weaknesses in the financial management of temples in Thailand, where billions of baht in donations each year remain largely unregulated. The lack of oversight and transparency, the report warns, opens the door to corruption and money laundering, eroding public trust in Buddhism. On April 19, 2023, the TDRI published an article titled “Temples and the Risk of Being Used for Money Laundering”, using high-profile cases as examples—including the well-known “Wat maintenance fund kickback” scandal (2014–2018), which exposed corruption involving officials from the National Office of Buddhism (NOB) embezzling over 270 million baht by demanding kickbacks from state grants allocated to temples. Such cases have sparked broader concerns about how temple names may be used as fronts for financial misconduct. According to TDRI’s research, the average annual revenue per temple is approximately 3.24 million baht, mostly from public donations. The National Office of Buddhism reported in 2019 that there were 41,310 temples nationwide. Such a large number makes financial oversight difficult, particularly as many temples rely heavily on donations and lack clear accounting standards. In addition to public donations, temples also receive substantial government funding for three main purposes: renovation of religious sites, education in Buddhist scripture (Pariyatti Dhamma) and promotion of Buddhism Data from the Budget Bureau shows that from 2013 to 2019, the state spent an average of 3 billion baht annually on temple subsidies, with spending reaching as high as 4.7 billion baht in 2016–2017. The concern is that the budget allocation process often lacks transparency and is vulnerable to abuse, as there are no mechanisms for external audits or public disclosure. Read more at: https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/news/general/40052564
