Thai workforce must be readied for digital economy: TDRI

[snoop1130]

Thai workforce must be readied for digital economy: TDRI

By SOMLUCK SRIMALEE,
PHUWIT LIMVIPHUWAT
THE NATION

 

 

The new government will have no choice but to invest heavily in developing Thailand’s manpower, so it can survive in the fast-moving digital economy, Dr Somkiat Tangkitvanich, president of Thailand Development and Research Institute (TDRI), told the press on Wednesday.

 

He said the Thai workforce was facing digital disruption, and if skills are not developed in time to serve the new system, the workers will end up having to move out of the labour market. He also said that the new government needs to develop the skills of the national workforce so it is ready to serve the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC).

 

From 2015 to 2018, investments in the EEC worth Bt1.014 trillion have been approved and most of them are in the sectors of petrochemical, auto, agriculture, bio technology, robotics and aviation. 

 

Most of these industries require workers who have high expertise and the ability to learn quickly. Hence, it should be the government’s top priority to prepare manpower so it can serve the new economy and help push the country towards digital economy in line with the Thailand 4.0 strategy, he said.

 

Somkiat added that though the new government will continue to drive the EEC in order to boost aggressive investments from the private sector, it should also seek a way of collaborating with neighbouring communities and addressing concerns, especially those related to the environment. 

 

Though Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha achieved some success in pushing for a digital economy over the past five years, his government also failed in several categories, such has addressing the inherent problem of corruption. He also had to rely on the special powers granted to him by Article 44. 

 

However, as leader of the new government, Prayut will no longer have Article 44 to rely on, which means he will have to manage the country in line with law and by collaborating and communicating with the people. 

 

“It will not be easy for the new government to run the country like it has in the past five years, but if it listens to the people and does what they want, then I believe the administration will be stable,” he said. 

 

Meanwhile, Preedee Daochai, chairman of the Thailand Bankers’ Association, said at a press conference held by the Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking (JSCCIB) on Wednesday that the new government will also have to boost the ease of doing business for Thai exporters and that the Bank of Thailand will have to bring down interest rates as soon as possible to make Thai exports more competitive. 

 

“The Bt10-billion economic stimulus that the new government is expected to implement will not be enough to cushion the decline in Thai exports,” Preedee said. 

 

“The government will have to be more proactive in supporting Thai exporters by implementing short-term measures to boost shipments,” added Kalin Sarasin, chairman of the Board of Trade of Thailand. The short-term measures can include things such as improving logistics infrastructure at Thailand’s borders to cut down on the transportation costs for business, he said. 

 

Kalin also suggested that Thai authorities talk to neighbouring countries about making their customs formalities available 24 hours so the flow of goods within the region can be improved. He cited the 24-hour customs facilities already available at Songkhla’s Sadao district. 

 

He also said Thailand should be allowed to trade in the Thai currency with other countries in order to minimise the risks associated with foreign-exchange volatility. 

 

Another factor having a negative impact on Thai exports is the strong baht, said Supant Mongkolsuthree, chairman of the Thai Federation of Industries.

 

Since January, the baht has appreciated 5.7 per cent, valuing at Bt30.8 against the US dollar on July 8, which marked the highest level of currency appreciation against the greenback in the Asia-Pacific region, according to Kasikorn Research. 

 

“The baht’s strength against the dollar compared to the currencies of its competitors such as Vietnam makes Thai exports a lot less competitive in international markets,” Supant added. 

 

Hence, he said, it is necessary that the Bank of Thailand immediately implement measures like lowering policy interest rates by at least 0.25 per cent to slow the pace of the baht’s appreciation. 

 

He added that the JSCCIB is looking to set up a meeting by the end of next week with the central bank to address this issue. 

 

The committee has predicted that exports this year will contract 1 per cent from 2018. It had earlier this year projected an export growth of 3 to 5 per cent. 

 

The committee has also brought its earlier forecast for GDP growth this year from 3 per cent to 2.9 per cent. 

 

The US-China trade war continues being a key factor damaging exports, especially in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors, the JSCCIB said.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/business/30372752

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand  2019-07-10

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[Lupatria]

9 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

 

The new government will have no choice but to invest heavily in developing Thailand’s manpower, so it can survive in the fast-moving digital economy,

After all kids already became "tabletiers" and look forward for a job in an airconditioned office, who will feed the chicken and plant rice in the future?

[yellowboat]

In the end, he will call his buddy Jack Ma to sort it all out.  Many of the programming talent is available in Malaysia and Vietnam.   Not sure if the Malaysians will want to use Baht.   Not sure they trust the Thai government or the elitist masters. 

[cornishcarlos]

10 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

He also said that the new government needs to develop the skills of the national workforce

 

Have a go at developing the skills of the government, to effectively govern !! 

Then move on to achievable things like the digital economy...

[Emdog]

Digital economy? Teach them to count on their digits (fingers). Problem solved

[DLock]

This message might have been useful 10 years ago, Slapnuts.

[trainman34014]

Should read ''Workforce must be readied for work '' as too many lazy arse Thai's sitting doing nothing day in and day out  and many of those that do 'work' spend half of their day eating, drinking and /or playing with their phone's !

[Oziex1]

19 minutes ago, trainman34014 said:

Should read ''Workforce must be readied for work '' as too many lazy arse Thai's sitting doing nothing day in and day out  and many of those that do 'work' spend half of their day eating, drinking and /or playing with their phone's !

I accept this behaviour as a result of poor education of the ruthless arrogance of the hiso's. The employment of cheap foreign labour and it is getting worse and it's in your home country as well.  Forget climate change, inequality is the plague that will do us all in. 

[Small Joke]

I see the finger-pointing has not gone out of Vogue. 

 

Of course when one points-the- finger, there's three pointing back at you!

 

And why can't he wear a suit instead of this retro hyper-nationalist outfit, he looks like a doorman.

 

Come to think of it...

 

And another thing "if they listen to the people?" 555 if they did that...

 

Then Thanathorn would be in the picture in this article. It's a sick joke.

[Burma Bill]

quote;-

"develop the skills of the national workforce so it is ready to serve the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC)."

Like learning to speak CHINESE???

[Isaan sailor]

China loves the ignorance in Thailand.  It helps them dominate.

[ramr]

If they're smart enough to truly adapt to and in the modern digital economy, they're too smart to be controlled.  Which is why you'll continue to see lip service and hand-wringing but no concrete or effective action in the educational sector... Until those that truly run Thailand judge the long-term financial benefits of the increased profits to them to outweigh the benefits of being able to control the dispersal of said profits.

 

In other words, they can act to increase the size of the pie but that will lose them the ability to cut and serve the pie as they please.

[Jimbo in Thailand]

 

Why now?  Where have these fine recommendations been hiding since May 2014? ????

 

[Redline]

We hear this every week, and it’s not going to happen because there is no will to change anything due to money exchanging hands

[DLock]

I used to work with a guy named Roy.

 

Roy was a senior manager.

 

Roy's catch phrase was "paradigm shift" and he always delivered the same presentation every management meeting. Roy was very charismatic and people lapped it up and applauded. Roy had them fooled...for a while.

 

But Roy never actually did anything. He just rolled out the same words time after time.

 

Eventually they fired Roy. Roy was an idiot. 

 

Roy drives an Uber in Canberra, probably boring his clients with what could have been a paradigm shift.

 

Prayut is Roy.

[wisperone]

Of course this means that they will have to educate Thais. See the dichotomy?

[Isaan sailor]

Step 1. Learn critical thinking.

Step 2. Learn to speak and read English.

Step 3. Repeat steps 1 and 2...

[ramr]

1 hour ago, DLock said:

I used to work with a guy named Roy.

 

Roy was a senior manager.

 

Roy's catch phrase was "paradigm shift" and he always delivered the same presentation every management meeting. Roy was very charismatic and people lapped it up and applauded. Roy had them fooled...for a while.

 

But Roy never actually did anything. He just rolled out the same words time after time.

 

Eventually they fired Roy. Roy was an idiot. 

 

Roy drives an Uber in Canberra, probably boring his clients with what could have been a paradigm shift.

 

Prayut is Roy.

Nonetheless, Roy still sounds like he could beat Prayut in a battle of wits.

[Isaanbiker]

Reduce the Monopoly Players of big companies would be a good start. But first, check the army and their generals. 

[expatfromwyoming]

Another Piccy for Steven to salivate over!!!!

[ocddave]

36 minutes ago, Isaanbiker said:

Reduce the Monopoly Players of big companies would be a good start. But first, check the army and their generals. 

Those would be the "Monopoly Players".

[Number 6]

One thing that is overlooked is that Thailand just doesn't have an innovative culture. What spark might be there is killed in/directly by the generational toxic politics of the nation.

 

The US and the west do not need policies - they just get on with it.

 

Chinese government strong-arms policies and with Chinese ambition, it has worked well. But they have thieved their way through the decades to the top. Without this wholesale theft, industrialized, institutionalized and government sponsored it would never have happened.

 

Endemic corruption, historic lack of rule of law, absolutely no respect for intellectual property, a lazy and unproductive work force and an education system that is almost utterly devoid of free thinking, creative people.

 

Thailand will become a nation of protectionism and trade barriers if it's not already happening.

 

As for Thailand and technology and the future the only hope for this nation are less than 1000 students annually doing STEM at the top 3-5 universities and the English instructors that support them because without English it's all for naught. That's what the nation is pinning it's hopes and dreams on.

 

The above students, for all intents and purposes none will innovate and all will be happy with corporate jobs managing issues and products for international companies that Thailand desperately needs.

 

While the wealthy kids go abroad for fun, they return to the kleptocracy because the family money tree grows here. Ambitious middle class grads who study abroad don't want to return. I know this as fact from many Thai.

 

The nation is on track to become the Philippines not Singapore. In fact, not even Malaysia.

 

The nation is in serious trouble looking 10-30 years out.

 

Let's face it. Bangkok has choked, broken infrastructure. The streets smell of sewage and everything is in a state of disrepair. Like India as soon as something is built it's on an immediate decline into destruction. Nothing is maintained. The people too poor, indifferent and robbed of a future to care. This does not generally breed innovation on large scale.