The Cabinet met on Tuesday, March 10, 2015 at Command Building, Government House Some of the resolutions are as follows:
Title: Overview of Thai society in the fourth quarter and overall situation of 2014
The Cabinet was reported on the overview of Thai society in the fourth quarter and the overall situation of 2014 by Office of National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB).
Overall situation of the fourth quarter and full-year of 2014
1. Important social movements in the fourth quarter and full-year of 2014
1.1. Employment decreased and unemployment rate remained low, while income slowly increased,
1.2. Level of overall household debts receded, but default in payment still needs to be monitored,
1.3. Patients with priority diseases increased, especially patients with respiratory diseases,
1.4. Number of AIDS patients decreased, but high-risk sexual behaviors among youths which might lead to HIV still need to be monitored,
1.5. Spendings on alcoholic beverages and cigarettes increased, and younger youth smokers must be monitored;
1.6. Overall safety of life and assets increased, but narcotics situation still needs to be monitored to address the problem in a sustainable manner,
1.7. Promoting driving disciplines is still a way of sustainably reducing road accident risks, and
1.8. Annual Trafficking in Persons Report was initiated.
2. Special article on “Enhancement of Labor Capacity: Urgent Challenges”
2.1. Labor structure obstructed country development due to the following reasons:
2.1.1. Most workers received compulsory education and were elderly;
2.1.2. More than half of workers were informal workers;
2.1.3. Labor market was tight and productivity did not meet demands; and
2.1.4. Over the past 10 years (2001-2014), Thai labor productivity improved, while workers still lacked such necessary skills as foreign languages, computer, creativity, and analytical skills.
2.2. Direction and problems regarding enhancement of labor capacity
2.2.1. Skills development focuses on enhancing labor skills but lacks qualitative evaluation;
2.2.2. Information accessibility and development of labor capacity to support high-technology production were limited; and
2.2.3. Development of occupational standard and labor skills standard to enhance labor capacity.
Title: (Draft) Integrated Master Plan for Biodiversity Management 2015-2021
The Cabinet granted the following approvals on the proposals made by Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment:
1. Approval on the (draft) Integrated Master Plan for Biodiversity Management 2015-2021, the (draft) National Diversity Target and the (draft) Action Plan for Biodiversity Management 2015-2016;
2. Appointment of Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to serve as key organization to propel strategy under the (draft) Master Plan, implement and evaluate the (draft) Master Plan 2015-2021 and the (draft) Action Plan 2015-2016; and
3. Appointment of relevant agencies as stated in the (draft) Master Plan to follow the plan/project in FY2015 and to set up budget for FY2016 in order to achieve National Diversity Target stipulated under the (draft) Action Plan 2015-2016.
The (draft) Action Plan for Biodiversity Management 2015-2016 consists of four strategies and 11 action plans as follows:
Strategy 1 – Value integration and biodiversity management through participation at all levels (two action plans);
Strategy 2 – Conservation and restoration of biodiversity (five action plans);
Strategy 3 – Protection of national benefits and management for enhancing and sharing benefits from biodiversity in line with Green Economy direction (two action plans); and
Strategy 4 – Development of biodiversity knowledge and database to meet international standards (two action plans)
Title: Acknowledgement of Post-2015 Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction for the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai, Japan
The Cabinet granted the following approvals to Ministry of Interior:
1. Approval for Ministry of Interior to acknowledge two documents, namely, Post-2015 Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and draft Sendai Declaration. Gist of both documents is in line with legal framework and policy regarding disaster prevention and mitigation. This is also to express political intention without international obligations; and
2. In case the committee on amendment of the documents needs to make amendment that will not affect the benefits of Thailand, Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Foreign Affairs are approved to consider and proceed with the amendments without obtaining another Cabinet approval.
Gist of the matter
The Framework was updated from Hyogo Framework for Action which had been used since 2005. The new Framework will become an international guideline for action in terms of disaster risk reduction for the next 15 years (2015-2030). It is an outcome of conferences and discussions among regions across the globe over the past 10 years, including the Sixth Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction 2014 (AMCDRR). Member states including Thailand are obligated to adopt the principles and guidelines provided in the documents while maintaining relevance with their legal, social and cultural contexts.
Title: Strategic Plan on prevention and suppression of narcotics 2015-2019
The Cabinet approved the following proposals made by Ministry of Justice:
1. Approved Strategic Plan on prevention and suppression of narcotics 2015-2019 to be used as guideline and tool for the implementation and management of resources allocation and performance evaluation.
2. Office of the Narcotics Control Board is to collaborate with concerned agencies in drafting an action plan for prevention and suppression of narcotics to be in line with the Strategic Plan on prevention and suppression of narcotics 2015-2019.
--Cabinet Meeting (Prayut Chan-o-cha) March 10, 2015--