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Government
Policies Pertaining to the Manufacturing Sector
Over
the past 35 years, the government has prepared seven National
Economic and Social Development Plans. The broad policy
directions of the Thai government have been laid out in these
and evaluation of the specific policies towards
industrialization been made according to the economic situation.
The plans have increasingly reflected the importance of
industrial development in the overall development of the country.
For
over three decades, successive governments have consistently
held to two basic policies, which and be traced back to the
earliest industrial development efforts of the government. The
first of these policies was that the private sector would be the
motivating force behind industrial development and that the
government would not make industrial investments which were in
competition with the private support to industry in the form of
physical infrastructure, technological resources and manpower
development.
These
basic policies are found in each of the national development
plans and confirm the commitment of the government to a mixed
economy. The major changes in the government's orientation
towards industrial development involve the direction of the
sector and the role of industry in the overall economy.
One
of the main objectives of the Seventh Economic and Social
Development Plan (1992-1996) was to maintain economic growth
rates at levels that would ensure sustainable growth and
stability. The industrial sector, targeted to grow at 9.5
percent per year, is driven by growth in the petrochemical,
engineering, electronics and basic industries. This should occur
as a result of the continuing trend of Japan and the East Asian
newly industrialized countries (NICs) to relocate their
industrial bases to this region to take advantage of competitive
labour costs, and opportunities to reap the benefits of Thailand's
increasing domestic purchasing power.
The
annual growth rate targets under the Seventh Plan in percent are:
GDP
growth: 8.2 Industrial growth: 9.5 Export growth: 14.7 Private
investment growth: 8.8
Economic
policy-making during the Seventh Plan has been based on the
conviction that liberalization is the key to enhancing the
competitiveness of the Thai economy. Industrial policies are
designed to encourage competition, reduce restrictions on the
private sector, and transform the government's role from one of
control to one of support and supervision.
In
an increasingly competitive international environment, Thailand
can sustain its growth potential only by competing successfully
in the world market. In this respect, it is the government
policy to create an environment conductive for private
businesses, to invest and upgrade production to higher level,
and to use higher production technology to enable the industries
to compete successfully in new products.
To
accomplish this, the government has launched measures to reduce
the supply of skilled labour, and upgrade production standards
to international levels. Other areas which have become
increasingly important to industrial policy-making in the 90's
include environmental protecting, R & D, and the supporting
industries. Measures have been established to speed up
supporting industry development in areas which help upgrade
technology, increase the industrial capability of the country
and encourage industry to grow and develop efficiently.
Growth
in manufacturing will also be supported by government efforts to
develop trade and investment with the countries of Indochina:
Lao PDR, Cambodia, and Vietnam, as well as Myanmar and southern
region of the People's Republic of China. As they develop, these
countries will demand manufactured goods, such as basic
construction materials and consumer goods. |
