Aloha and good afternoon to all of you,
Dr. Charles Morrison, thank you for your kind introduction.
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I thank the East-West Center for the kind invitation. It is my personal privilege to speak at the Asia-Pacific Business Symposium here today. The Center has long been recognized for being at the forefront in promoting a better understanding between the United States and the Asian region, particularly as its ties with Thailand go back at least four decades to when His Majesty the King visited and presented the center with a Thai pavilion in 1967.
During this past year, Ladies and Gentlemen, we have all witnessed the unfolding of significant events.
We meet today against the backdrop of a political, economic and social sea-change in many parts of the world. New lexicons such as ‘Arab spring’, ‘Euro zone crisis’, ‘green growth’ or the ‘hamburger crisis’ entered our conversation with ease, not to mention the ‘Tom Yum Koong crisis’ that struck most of East Asia a decade ago which remains fresh in our memories.
The prevailing economic difficulties in Europe and the United States, among other regions, have in a way lifted the significance of APEC as an engine to reinvigorate global trade and investment.
So it is with great encouragement and hope that I travel to Honolulu to attend my first ever APEC meeting.
Many would not disagree that the Asia Pacific region will be this century’s locomotive of global economic growth. The rise of emerging economies may have injected a much needed lifeline to the world economy. However, the world also looks to the strong engagement of the United States.
We must together lay down a strong foundation for a forward looking and inclusive economic growth as it underpins peace and political stability.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
These are indeed challenging times for all of us. Thailand had its share of difficult situations and challenges. We have had to face some turbulence and rough seas, politically and economically.
Nevertheless, we have tackled these challenges head on, which serves to strengthen our resolve to move forward.
On the political front, the overwhelming support from the July elections which installed this government into office is not only a win for political stability but a victory for democracy. The Thai people have spoken and their voice is loud and clear for the government to move the country forward on the basis of inclusive economic growth and people-centered development.
Despite being badly hit by the ongoing floods, crippling much of the central plains of the country, we are resolved to get back on our feet soonest. The Thai people have always demonstrated their resiliency in the face of past adversity; this widespread flood is no exception.
My thanks go out to everyone who had expressed concern and support over what is becoming the worst flood in our nation’s living memory. Special appreciation also goes out to our friends here and elsewhere who have contributed prompt assistance in cash and in kind to the relief efforts. We take encouragement from your kind words and assistance in our endeavour to speedily return the country to normalcy.
Obviously it will take time and concerted efforts, but I am convinced that the Thai economy, given its fundamental strength, will be back on track soon with renewed dynamism.
The Cabinet has recently approved a Relief and Recovery Plan and Package. This includes immediate relief measures to flood victims, social rehabilitation activities, post-crisis loans and incentives, and a long-term plan to develop a comprehensive water resources management system to prevent the recurrence of such devastation.
We are determined to assist investors, both Thai and foreign, in flood-hit areas to resume operation as soon as possible. Measures will also be put in place to accelerate the post-crisis reconstruction of industrial estates and logistics system.
A budget of approximately 10.5 billion US dollars has been earmarked for this post-flood restoration. Of this, about 2 billion US dollars will be for big businesses and 5.5 billion US dollars will be for SMEs, as well as small vendors and individuals.
The Thai Chamber of Commerce has also set up a special Committee to assess the flood situation and propose mitigation measures for entrepreneurs. There is no doubt that the “Whole of Society” approach towards the disaster resilient society is already there. What we need to do is keep this momentum and turning it into tangible, practical and systematic measures that support business and community resilience to disasters.
These are some of the measures we have in place to restore the confidence in the Thai economy. While we mobilize our resources to overcome this calamity, I would like to reassure you that it is this Government’s policy to ensure that Thailand continues to be a responsible regional and global player.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The lessons learnt from the flood crisis have prompted us to look at the big picture of the impacts at home and beyond. We in Thailand, especially in the capital city Bangkok, have rarely experienced bare shelves in the supermarkets. Much of this is due to unnecessary panic buying.
But the real problem is the disruption in the supply chain such as the automobile and computer industries. Therefore, you may have to wait a little longer for your new car to be delivered or your computer hard drive to be upgraded.
Given the globalization and regionalization of our respective economies, natural disasters are bound to have serious effects on economies beyond borders.
For many developing countries, a worrying sign is the impact on food security due to severe floods and drought in food producing countries. Whether the cause is due to climate change or man made attributes, we need to explore long term approaches to prevent future shocks on food supplies and other essential goods.
Thailand, as a major production of both, is committed to promote and strengthen the capabilities to prevent the economic fall out from natural disasters with all our friends in the international community.
Governments need to focus on how to effectively cope with the aftermath of large scale disasters. This is an ideal opportunity for us to strengthen our disaster risk management and consider reform in a systematic manner.
Certainly, we need to be better equipped to confront these and other common challenges by mobilizing our resources and enhancing cooperation and advancing economic integration.
In this spirit, Thailand is working towards the integration of ASEAN Community in 2015. This will open up new business and trade opportunities in the region in which Thailand can play a central role in your investment prospects.
Due to our strategic location, Thailand is pivotal to the connectivity in ASEAN and the surrounding regions. The pan Southeast Asia infrastructure courses through Thailand in the forms of the East-West Economic Corridor linking Myanmar in the west to Vietnam in the east while the North-South Economic Corridor links ASEAN to China.
The potential for the creation of new jobs is immense and would lead to a greater inclusive economic growth in this region.
At the same time, we need to intensify broader community building to unleash the economic dynamism in the Asia Pacific by deepening our engagement within the region, be they within ASEAN, ASEAN + 3, APEC and the East Asia Summit, among others.
As you may know, I’ll be travelling to Bali for the 19th ASEAN Summit next week and meet with our dialogue partners to strengthen community building efforts.
For this cooperation to be a success, we also need to involve all key stake holders, especially you in the business community. The case of the Thai flood crisis, for example, has seen people from all sectors including government, non-government, private sector, academics, and mass media came out and lent their hands to those in need.
Our civil society has played a very strong and active role in helping those affected by flooding around the clock.
Such approach may also be useful in enhancing inclusive economic growth in the Asia Pacific region by promoting public private partnership initiatives. This would encourage broad awareness and active participation leading to better transparency, rule of law and good governance.
It is only through such collective efforts and partnership that we can hope to overcome the common challenges that I have spoken of, nationally, regionally and at the global level.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In concluding, let me assure you that while Thailand pursues its disaster relief efforts, we will ensure our strong fundamentals and an enabling environment for the international business community. The World Bank has just recently ranked Thailand as the second easiest place to do business in Southeast Asia due to its business-friendly regulatory environment.
I wish to also assure you that we will remain a key and active player in engaging our partners in the process of economic integration and community building in Asia Pacific in order to strengthen the fabric of peace, stability and prosperity.
Let me express once again our heartfelt gratitude for the strong support and confidence rendered to us from abroad, both at governmental and private sector level. I would like to close by thanking all the Friends of Thailand in the US for their prompt assistance, cooperation and understanding.
Thank you.
For further information, please contact the Press Division, Department of Information, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tel.02-6435170, Fax.02-6435169, E-mail: div0704@mfa.go.th