Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Thailand’s Prime Minister, made known her transformative vision for the country at the 22nd Forbes Global CEO Conference. A key component of her strategic blueprint is to make Thailand a globally attractive investment destination, particularly in the technology industry.
Soon to mark her first 100 days in office, Shinawatra emphasized the importance of shared goals. Her aim is to galvanize investors and entrepreneurs and assure them of the government’s unwavering support for foreign investment.”
“Thailand is now ready to welcome foreign investors,” she said.
Identifying education as a critical area in need of upgrading, the government is pushing Thais to learn a second language that is not subject to only English.
Shinawatra promised that her government’s focus on stability would ensure a favorable environment for businesses. As she touted Thailand’s rich culture, food, and traditions as selling points, she also stressed the need to optimize the nation’s geographical location and robust agricultural sector.
Shinawatra projected an influx of 36 million tourists this year, with numbers set to surpass pre-pandemic levels by 2025. She is confident that political stability would further incentivize tourism.
In terms of tech-space momentum, Shinawatra cited engaging with giants like AWS, Microsoft, Google, and NVIDIA and improving infrastructural capacity as key steps. Additionally, she emphasized the importance of assisting small and medium-sized enterprises through measures like soft loans and regulatory adjustments.
The strategy also touches on a 3-year debt suspension initiative and a 10,000 baht cash giveaway scheme, designed to stimulate expenditure and cash flow. The key point of cash handout, based on the research, is to generate cash flows in the kingdom as people in the first phase will surely spend the cash rather than saving.
Navigating the geopolitical spectrum, Shinawatra acknowledged potential challenges and changes, such as the return of the president-elect Donald Trump. She assured that Thailand could adjust to any potential tariff hikes and continues to encourage peace, commerce, and supportive policy environments for trade.
The Thai PM reiterated that Thailand is ready for investment, and we (Thailand) are eager to announce this to the entire world.
As for her vision in the next five years, it includes improving education, with a focus on multilingual proficiency, boosting business investment, ensuring political stability, and transitioning from a middle-income populace by making policies that encourage locals.
