BANGKOK – “The old generation must not steal the future from the next generation,” Prime Minister and Finance Minister Srettha Thavisin said on December 27, 2023, during the National Strategy Committee meeting he chaired, saying Thailand’s 20-year strategy plan was too long and needed to be adapted to the changing world.
“Even five years is already too outdated,” he said, adding that the plan to attract more investors but the tripartite labour committee not raising wages was embarrassing.
It was reported that before the meeting, Srettha said the National Strategy should enable people to know the direction in which the country is heading and how to get there. He emphasized that it was good to have a plan. However, he did not believe that the plan should be set 20 years into the future, adding that 5 years was already difficult due to the changing world brought about by technology.
“I want the strategy to become more agile. It needs to be revised and adapted to the realities of the world. I need to put this issue in the hands of the committee to develop a proper working process that will bring the most benefits and adapt to the world and not block the future of the country. This is to pave the way for the next generations in the next 20 years,” Srettha said.
Srettha added that the Thai government talked to the investors 3 years ago but overlooked the wage increases, which is embarrassing. He added that there are a lot of new things that didn’t exist 3 years ago.
“When I go abroad, this is the topic I will talk about first. This is an example of the changing world. This is the beginning of the war for talent, where all companies and countries are trying to attract people with talent, and it’s also about geopolitics.”
After the meeting, when asked how the National Strategy could be changed as it was written in a way that is difficult to adapt, Srettha replied that there is room for correction.
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