Pathom Sangwongwanich Low-income earners turning to loan sharks Academics suggest the government implement relevant measures to curb the growing distress of workers suffering a drop in income as the cost of living rises, often forcing them to resort to loan sharks. Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) adviser Veerathai Santiprabhob said the drop in earnings reflects […]
THE WORLD BANK yesterday suggested Thailand set up a national risk management board to help it better deal with the growing risks of economic, health, natural-disaster, and other external vulnerabilities. Norman Loayza, lead economist in the research department of the World Bank, said its “World Development Report 2014” showed Thailand stood around the middle of […]
Pathom Sangwongwanich Country hindered by informal sector Thailand’s large informal sector is obstructing employees’ social safety and public services, says the World Bank, which suggests a formalisation process as a solution. Norman Loayza, a World Bank economist and lead author of the bank’s “World Development Report 2014”, said Thailand was hampered by a large informal […]
THE NEW government should set up a parliamentary budget office (PBO) to enhance transparency in its spending and forestall more political tensions in the future, according to the Thailand Development Research Institute The lack of clarity in how the government spends its budget, the difference in ideas on how projects should be funded and the […]
New body would fight graft, say academics A Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) should be established as an independent organisation amid any political reform measures, as the country must plug loopholes that allow corruption, say academics. The organisation could be formed through parliamentary legislation, said Somchai Jitsuchon, research director at the Thailand Research and Development Institute. […]
Nanchanok Wongsamuth Despite the huge economic benefit to be gained, a think tank is warning that Thailand’s hesitance to liberalise its service sector fully will cause economic growth to stall. The Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) said the share of industrial products in Thailand’s GDP is the highest in Asia, while the proportion of the […]
Erich Parpart Amid the political turmoil and demands for the country’s reform, the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI), economists and academics have proposed efficiency, transparency, and good governance in every sector of the country. The aim is to stamp out the country’s chronic economic and political problems in all aspects. In each of the past […]
Erich Parpart ADDED TRANSPARENCY and contingent liability are needed to serve as extra checks and balances on the government’s off-budget loans to improve the government’s financial and budgetary discipline, according to the Thailand Development Research Institute. “Laws that limit government loans and prohibit the government from spending more than its revenue usually do not work […]
Pathom Sangwongwanich The government should address loopholes in auditing its annual fiscal budget, as they are a source of problems hindering transparency, appropriate budget allocation and financial prudence, say academics. Nipon Poapongsakorn, a distinguished fellow at the Thailand Research Development Institute (TDRI), said the government should submit a budget to carry out its policies for […]
Somchai Jitsuchon Perhaps there is no better time than now to address one of the fundamental flaws in the Thai democratic system. We adopted the British parliamentary system although we lacked the strength of civil society to ensure proper separation of power between the executive and legislative branches. This fundamental flaw was indeed what ignited the […]
From left: Worawan Chandoevwit, social security adviser, Somchai Jitsuchon, research director of inclusive development, and Ammar Siamwalla, distinguished scholar, join a press conference yesterday on the TDRI The Thailand Development Research Institute said government involvement was imperative for reducing social inequality, and it proposed structural reform of the public spending process for a fairer redistribution […]
Improving education, tax reforms cited Reform measures aimed at developing social welfare should be enacted to improve the living conditions of the poor and enhance their political participation, say academics. Somchai Jitsuchon, research director at the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI), said reforms should consist of developing education, improving human resources, and providing management skills, […]
