Light Rail Transit: Triumph without govt funding?

Local authorities and civil groups in Khon Kaen have reached a consensus to build a light rail transit system as a starting point of a more ambitious goal of developing a “smart city”. They have set up companies as part of an effort to push the project ahead whether or not they get support from […]

Thai exports in dire straits unless govt joins TPP, trade experts warn

 Thai exports in dire straits unless govt joins TPP, trade experts warn  MITIGATING MEASURES ARE NEEDED AS ECONOMIC SLUMP WORSENS PETCHANET PRATRUANGKRAI THE NATION EVEN THOUGH the recently agreed Trans-Pacific Partnership will not come into force until it is ratified by its member states, Thailand will immediately lose export orders and see its competitiveness decline […]

Flood-hit firms wary of more diaster

 ERICH PARPART TWENTY-TWO percent of the 84 manufacturers operating in seven industrial estates in the lower Chao Phraya River basin that were affected by the flood disaster of 2011 believe there will be another major inundation within the next 15 years, a survey by the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) has found. Most if not […]

TDRI suggests following the service path to grow Thai economy

Thailand should focus on developing its service industry and strengthening the public sector to hasten its escape from the middle-income trap and upgrade to a high-income country in 14 years, says the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI). Thailand’s service industry should shift from a labour-intensive system to a skill- and knowledge-based structure to enhance productivity, […]

State cash casts a shadow on media reform

Deunden Nikomborirak, Tippatrai Saelawong Political interference in the media has long been a worrying issue for society. In Thailand, the government still holds a tight grip over free television channels as well as radio stations. Most public television channels are either state-owned (Channels 5, 9 and 11) or under government concessions (Channels 3 and 7). Only […]

Water plan needs focus, experts say

Patsara Jikkham NCPO urged to let public provide input Experts have warned the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) to carefully handle water management plans, fearing they could be disorganised, redundant and lacking a clear direction. They raised their concerns after the NCPO told state agencies to propose ideas for dealing with water-related problems […]

TDRI Channel: How to improve the governance of State-Owned Enterprise in Thailand

Currently there are 56 SOEs covering various sectors such as infrastructure, financial as well as health care. These SOE has contributed significantly to the Thai economy by providing the employment, source of income as well as basis infrastructure which are crucial to the Thai economy. However, there are 10 SOEs which were reported to have […]

Energy reform raises public suspicions

Deunden Nikomborirak In my previous article on July 23, I explained that opposing views about Thailand’s energy reform may reflect the debate between “efficiency” and “equity.” The advocates of the efficiency goal believe that the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and natural gas-fuelled (NGV) price subsidy has led to a shortage of domestic supply of and […]

Who do we believe about energy reform?

Deunden Nikomborirak The Thai public is caught in the middle of an information war between two groups of energy reform advocates. Each side presents contradictory views and, sometimes, information. Be it the size of the country’s estimated gas reserves; the integrity of the current gas exploration and production concession; the fairness of the gas and […]

TDRI urges gas price overhaul

Price should be based on market, says body The Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) has called on the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) and concerned agencies to raise the price of natural gas supplied to the petrochemical sector to the same level as other sectors to increase energy efficiency. The price of natural […]

‘Superboard’ to coordinate state units

Private, public sectors represented on new junta-led body to boost efficiency The junta’s new “superboard” overseeing all state enterprises has the stated aim of getting them all moving in the same direction towards strength and efficiency. The superboard was set up on Thursday by the military’s ruling National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) and […]

FDI needs state support

Darana Chudasri Foreign direct investments into Thailand still require government support measures for long-term competitiveness, especially in the service and agricultural sectors, says Deunden Nikomborirak, research director for Thailand Development Research Institute. Ms Deunden said Thailand is Asean’s second-largest economy, contributing 20% of Asean’s gross domestic product (GDP). However, the FDI into Thailand was only […]

1 2