The Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC) organized a bilateral discussion on the direction of cooperation between Thailand and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and Country Programme Phase 2 on October 19, 2022, at the Ministry of Energy. The discussion was attended by Mr. Supattanapong Punmeechaow, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy, together with Mr. Wanchat Suwankitti, Deputy Secretary-General of NESDC, and Mr. Mathias Cormann, Secretary-General of OECD.
On this occasion, the Deputy Prime Minister commended the successful implementation of Country Programme Phase 1 (CP1) between Thailand and OECD and emphasized the importance of continuing the Country Programme Phase 2 (CP2), which comprises four areas of cooperation: (1) Good Governance, (2) Business Climate and Competitiveness, (3) Social Inclusion and Human Capital Development, and (4) Green Recovery. It is hoped that the cooperation under CP2 will help drive the draft 13th National Economic and Social Development Plan, which has set 13 development milestones to transform the country toward “Progressive Society, Sustainable Value-Creating Economy,” focusing on four main development areas: (1) Target Production and Service Sectors, (2) Economic and Social Opportunities and Equality, (3) Natural Resource Sustainability, and (4) Country Transformation Driving Factors, particularly making Thailand a major global electric vehicle production base to align with the government’s policy toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions and implementing sustainable energy development goals.
The Deputy Prime Minister also presented the BCG Model policy, which focuses on developing the economy and society while maintaining environmental balance, and emphasized the Thai government’s commitment to achieving Carbon Neutrality by 2050 and Net Zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2065, consistent with OECD’s Climate Change policy in addressing climate change. Furthermore, the Deputy Prime Minister requested OECD support for Thailand’s operations through the exchange of best practices in various areas, including Tax Structure Reform, human resource development, elimination of trade barriers for green products, and development of carbon credit trading systems.
Both parties expressed their commitment to driving close cooperation, with NESDC, as the main agency for implementing CP2, currently in discussions with relevant agencies and will submit the matter for Cabinet consideration so that both parties can sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at the earliest opportunity. The implementation of CP2 will enable Thailand to access OECD’s knowledge and best practices, which will help develop and elevate Thailand’s development approaches, regulatory reforms, and internal standards to international levels, as well as strengthen cooperation between Thailand and OECD to cover broader policy issues and bring Thailand closer to OECD membership.
