31 May 2012

Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra underscored connectivity as key to regional cooperation and integration and a basis of the future of the East Asian region at the 21st World Economic Forum on East Asia, held in Bangkok on 30 May - 1 June.  Nearly 700 people from 50 countries from government and private sectors attended the forum to discuss regional connectivity, opportunities and regional challenges ahead.  These included the prime ministers of Bahrain, Lao PDR, Viet Nam and the President of Indonesia, and Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who traveled outside her native country for the first time in 24 years.  The forum also addressed the economic crises in Europe and the economic ability of East Asian countries to withstand unexpected shocks. 

In her opening remarks on 31 May, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, pointing to  challenges and opportunities of the present time, stressed the importance of continued efforts to promote regional cooperation and integration.  “The key to this,” she added, “is connectivity,” both in physical and non-physical aspects, within ASEAN, East Asia and beyond.  In this regard, she noted, the realization of ASEAN’s goal of becoming ASEAN Economic Community in 2015 will enable Thailand to serve more effectively as one of the production hubs for the global economy.  She also affirmed that Thailand would continue to pursue policies to support this, as well as strengthen the economic links with East Asia and Asia-Pacific, through ASEAN-led FTAs and APEC.  On the same evening, the prime minister hosted a gala dinner in honor of the participants to the forum, during which she stressed the importance of the softer side of connectivity – people-to-people connectivity. 

Noting that strong domestic foundations are necessary to support regional connectivity and community-building, Prime Minister Yingluck underscored Thailand’s readiness to move to a new phase of development with investment in infrastructure, production and service industries, as well as human resources.  In her statement at CNBC Power Breakfast on 31 May, the prime minister outlined her government’s plans which have set aside US$71.4 billion for water and infrastructure management projects over the next five years with the focus on growing the domestic economy and investing in infrastructure upgrades.  She also noted that the Thai economy grew by 11 percent in the first quarter of 2012, with the whole year’s growth expected to be between 5.5 to 6.5 percent.

Naoyuki Shinohara, Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington, D.C., noted that existing regional efforts such as the Chiangmai Initiative, a multilateral currency swap arrangement to address short-term liquidity problems, “will further strengthen the resilience of economies in this region”.  He, however, said “If there is huge stress in Europe, there will also be a major impact on trade financing and project financing in East Asia,” warning East Asian countries not to become complacent, even if their economies and supply chains are strong.

-Excerpt from article in Thailand Focus-