OECD Economic Surveys: Thailand 2020
Economic Assessment
Thailand has made impressive economic and social progress over several decades. However,
the COVID-19 crisis has interrupted this progress. Thanks to its sound macroeconomic
policy framework, Thailand was well placed to respond rapidly to the sharp economic
downturn. Nevertheless, achieving high-income country status will require, in addition
to a strong recovery programme, a set of policy reforms focused on productivity growth
and human capital accumulation. Thailand has made remarkable progress in expanding
access to education, and the share of highly educated workers has increased significantly.
Nevertheless, because of skills mismatches, substantial labour shortages have prevailed
in a range of occupations and industries, which makes it important to improve vocational
education and adult training programmes. As the demand for services has become important
globally, Thailand has an opportunity to boost its exports of services, diversify
its economic activity, and therefore become more resilient in the face of unexpected
shocks. This would involve a focus on digital services and business-to-business services,
which represent a large share of the value of manufacturing products. Focus on human
capital, skills, digital technology, and high-value services would help Thailand resume
strong economic growth and social progress after the COVID-19 crisis.
SPECIAL FEATURES: HUMAN CAPITAL; TRADE IN SERVICES
Published on October 05, 2020
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