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His Majesty the King PDF

86 Pages·2010·3.4 MB·English
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size 6.5 x 9.5 inc. san 7 mm Royal Initiative His Majesty the King Discovery Project and the Royal Initiatives towards Balancing Thailand’s Development By Dr. Chirayu Isarangkun Na Ayuthaya Forewords by Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi Secretary-General of UNCTAD and Dr. Chinnapat Bhumirat Secretary-General, Office of the Basic Education Commission 85 53-11-050_COVER_Y G-Classic Artcard Translated by Sawanee Nivasabutr Edited by Devawongse Varopakarn Institute of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs A Supporting Document for the Conference on “The Balance of Democracy Development and the Institution of the Monarchy” Held at SASIN Graduate Institute of Business Administration of Chulalongkorn University on Thursday, October 8th, 2009 to Commemorate the Royal Development Study Centers’ 30th Anniversary Foreword by Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi Secretary-General of UNCTAD In May 2006, the former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Kofi Annan was in Bangkok for a special occasion – to award His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand the United Nations Development Programme’s First Human Development Lifetime Achievement Award. In presenting the award, Mr. Kofi Annan highlighted His Majesty’s countless rural development projects that benefited millions of people across Thailand by promoting small-scale agriculture, appropriate farming technologies, sustainable use of water resources, conservation, and flood and drought mitigation. He also reiterated the hope and wishes of the United Nations to further promote the invaluable lessons learnt from the Thai rural development experience and apply the sufficiency economy philosophy beyond the borders of the Kingdom of Thailand. This was before the recent food, energy, financial and economic crisis that engulfed the world with devastating consequences for many countries, including the advanced economies. The crisis has forced many to question the validity of the mainstream economic development theory – the so-called “Washington Consensus” – which has been the main driving ideology of the globalization process in the 2 last three decades. No doubt that globalization has many dynamic aspects and has brought benefits to many communities and countries. However, the policies promulgated in support of globalization were based on flawed assumptions – especially the supposition that interactions between individuals in open and unfettered markets will produce stable, sustainable, ethical and efficient outcomes. In contrast, what the recent experience has shown is that in unregulated markets, interactions between individuals tend to be driven by irrational “animal spirits”, as expressed by John Maynard Keynes, often resulting in market instability, excessive indebtedness, imbalances and unsustainable pattern of development. The recent crisis has also demonstrated that excessive reliance on the financial sector, where unlimited greed and risk taking is the norm, can lead to cyclical crisis and extreme imbalances. In correcting the imbalances, therefore, serious rethinking is needed on the correct equilibrium between the role of the State and the market and also how to reset the “moral compass” that has been lost with Washington Consensus. Equally important is how to reorient global economic growth so that it is inclusive and serves the interests of all peoples, while, at the same time, avoiding environmental destruction and the unsustainable use of the world’s resources. The Sufficiency Economy framework can serve as an alternative development path; in particular for developing countries that are still rural based and with limited knowledge and the technologies needed for sustainable use of land, water and other resources. In that respect, therefore, the publication of this book highlighting the key principles 3 behind Sufficiency Economy and providing specific examples of projects sponsored by His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej to demonstrate how the concept works is timely and commendable. Thailand’s experience in rural development helped lift millions of people out of poverty and provided a framework for balanced and sustainable agricultural development. It has been estimated by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN-ESCAP) that raising the average agricultural productivity of the Asia-Pacific region to that of Thailand could take over 200 million people out of poverty and reduce inequality. The lessons of the Thai model for rural development are worth considering in other developing countries. Obviously, Sufficiency Economy is not a ready-made policy prescription to be applied everywhere regardless of starting positions and cultures. Nor should it be. It is a framework for pursuing a balanced growth based on development from within and on accumulation of knowledge. The main thrust of the philosophy is to find ways of engaging in a balanced manner, safely and inclusively, with a globalizing world. It emphasizes development from within, self- protection, conservation, caution and moderation, which calls for the sustainable use of resources and concern for the social and environmental impact of economic decisions. These are all features that have been either missing or underemphasized during the three decades of economic growth. An obsession with shareholder returns led to riskier investments and the 4 promotion of global finance above the interests of the real economy and the hard-working poor. Environmental costs have on the whole been externalized so that we no longer even know the true costs of our actions in terms of their impact on ecosystems and climatic change. The world is in need of a new alternative to the inexorable appetites of consumerism driven by greed and short-term considerations. In contrast, the sufficiency economy emphasizes moderation – consuming only what is sufficient; self-protection – ensuring that the economy is not vulnerable to external shocks; and, sustainability – that all economic activity should ensure environmental and social responsibility towards the planet and all its people. Sufficiency does not therefore mean self-sufficiency or cutting oneself off from the world; it means only that we should be mindful and conscientious of how we use resources, how we reward people for their labor, and how we interact with other communities and nations. Some of the principles which underpin the sufficiency economy may sound simple or based on common sense. But, looking at history, the power of some of the most profound ideas that changed the world comes from their simplicity. In a recent presentation that I made on “Sufficiency Economy in a Globalized World”, I referred to some key thinkers like Gandhi, Schumacher, Sen, Stiglitz, Sachs, among others, to demonstrate how “simple, but useful and people-oriented” ideas changed the way we see the world and organize our economies and lives.* I also cited the example of an ordinary but remarkable woman from Kenya, Wangari Maathai, who 5 contributed to the reforestation of her region by planting trees and encouraging others to do so. Her determination and total commitment to pursue a simple idea of planting trees and thereby reversing the deforestation process damaging the environment has inspired many, both inside and outside her country. As many developing economies are still largely agrarian, the un-sustainability of their agricultural sectors is most likely to imply the un-sustainability of their overall development path as well. The drive for rapid growth and the pattern of production and consumption associated with it, which also meant scant concern for the environment, have left us with some perverse outcomes and an imminent ecological crisis. To take agriculture as one example: fifty years ago, developing countries had a yearly agricultural trade surplus of US$1 billion, yet after decades of expansion of the global food production, the food deficit in the developing world has ballooned to US$11 billion a year. Yet another perverse outcome is the 2008 global food crisis, particularly the root causes of the crisis. It didn’t arise from production failure or food shortages due to bad weather or unexpected disaster, as one would have expected. To the contrary, that year food supply outstripped demand by 1.5 times. Indeed, over the last twenty years, food production has risen steadily at over 2.0 percent a year, while the rate of population growth has dropped to 1.14 percent a year. The crisis arose because of market price distortions due to excessive speculation and unscrupulous investments in food commodities, which escalated food prices thereby encouraging further speculation and imbalances in food distribution. 6 It could be argued that one explanation for this behavior and the resulting imbalances and the fact that some developing countries are unlikely to meet many of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) – such as halving the number of people suffering from hunger – is that the economic model that underpinned the attainment of these goals has been indifferent to the kind of values behind a sufficiency economy. These values can be the basis of a shared future together: one where we can sustainably produce and share the world’s resources; generate “inclusive growth”; encourage “development from within” while, at the same time, protecting the environment for the future generation. This is a time for reflection and rethinking on the new development paths for post-crisis economic development. That reflection should not neglect the values and principles underpinning Sufficiency Economy. In this connection, Dr. Chirayu’s book is to be highly commended. It is a timely and valuable contribution to our understanding of the basic philosophy behind the Sufficiency Economy concept and how it works in practice. Most importantly, he demonstrates the pragmatic and practical aspects of the concept by selecting concrete examples from the numerous projects initiated and championed by His Majesty the King. These examples strengthen the case for Sufficiency Economy and its relevance for other developing countries. ..................................................................................... * Speech to the joint session of National Legislative Assembly, Committee on Finance and Banking and Financial Institutions. Bangkok, 2007. 7 Foreword by Dr. Chinnapat Bhumirat Secretary-General Office of the Basic Education Commission This book entitled ‘His Majesty the King and the Royal Initiatives towards Balancing Thailand’s Development’, helps us to understand the role of the royally initiated projects in maintaining Thailand’s balanced development which are of benefit to the Thai people. Thailand’s socio-economic and environmental changes have seen uneven distribution of wealth, environmental and natural resource imbalances, unequal urban and rural development, decline in moral values, increasing materialism and overconsumption. These problems have led to increases in crime, problems of drug addictions, increased indebtedness, corruption and general hardship of the population. His Majesty the King’s concern about this deterioration in the country’s social, economic and environmental infrastructure prompted many royal addresses and initiatives to redress these imbalances. His Majesty has clearly suggested that 8 development must first start by creating a foundation of sufficiency living for the general population. This book is a compilation of lessons learned and results achieved through implementation of royally initiated projects by six royal development and study centers located throughout the country. Facts and figures obtained through these projects cover critical areas from public health, education, agriculture, natural resources and environmental conservation, to traffic. These centers act as ‘living museums’ of research and development, offering practical knowledge that can be utilized by the people. The Office of the Basic Education Commission is deeply grateful to His Majesty the King’s benevolence and thus recommends this book to be read by the country’s youth and general public, so that they may understand the value of these royally initiated projects. The book may also be used as an important reference and guide on how to undertake a development project in line with His Majesty’s initiatives. By adhering to His Majesty’s guidance, we can all contribute to alleviating our own local problems so that we may achieve balanced development and ensuring prosperity and well being for the country as a whole. 9

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Nations, Mr. Kofi Annan was in Bangkok for a special occasion – to award His .. Thanwa Jitsanguan, Vice-Chancellor, Kasetsart University, and.
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Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.