BANGKOK — The government has set a goal of turning Thailand into a high-income country within 12 years as part of a new long-term economic strategy developed jointly with the private sector.
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas announced the target following the first meeting of the Joint Public-Private Consultative Committee on Economic Problems, chaired by the prime minister on 22 June.
Ekniti said the committee had agreed that Thailand needed clear short-, medium- and long-term economic goals. The long-term objective is to achieve high-income country status within 12 years.
As a medium-term target, the government aims to place Thailand among the world’s top 20 most competitive economies by 2030 while raising the country’s economic potential growth rate from around 2.7% to above 3%.
The strategy focuses on seven sectors identified as Thailand’s strengths: agriculture and food, food security, future mobility, digital electronics and AI, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, trade, and the creative economy.
To drive growth, the government and private sector will work together under a programme dubbed “Reinvent Thailand”, built around four pillars: investment, trade and services, human capital, and public-sector efficiency.
Ekniti said Thailand also aims to increase investment from the current 22% of GDP to close to 30%, describing investment as a key driver of future economic growth.