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Speech by His Excellency Abhisit Vejjajiva,
Prime Minister of Thailand,
at the CNBC "Squawk on the Road" Power Breakfast "Is it Thailand's Time to Shine?",
Monday 20 September 2010, 07.45 hrs.,
Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok
Excellencies, Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
I am extremely pleased and honoured to be here this morning for the CNBC Power Breakfast, as part of the "Squawk Box on the Road" tour with key decision makers and business leaders in Thailand. This event is very timely, for the country and for me personally, because this Wednesday I will also be "on the road" to the United States for the United Nations General Assembly meeting and the ASEAN-US Leaders Meeting in New York City. I hope that this "power breakfast" will give me the energy needed for the trip!
But before I go, I would like to respond to the question which I was told should be the theme of this talk. The question here is: "Is it Thailand's time to shine?" My first reaction, and many of you would ask, would be "why not?" And I'm sure you will more or less agree with me that, despite the recent unrest, Thailand and the Thai people, including foreign business people who live and work in Thailand, have already shown strength, resilience, and readiness to move away and beyond the demonstrations, violence and disunity that we have seen on the television and read about in news reports. Already, this country is reclaiming its image as a vibrant and fascinating place you all are familiar with. So, my answer is why not? And it is a very clear and firm and strong "yes", and I will tell you four reasons why.
First, we have the character and the will to shine. The Thai people, with their compassion, tolerance and patience, have proven for centuries that they are capable of overcoming challenges and achieving success. The Thai nation has been guided by His Majesty the King, who continues to serve as a source of strength and unity, and instills in us the will to succeed and the conscience to progress. For the business community, you would know that my Government is committed to building an open economy and a dynamic business sector.
Second, we have the resilience necessary to meet the challenges. Our economy has pulled through and remains strong. It picked up at the first quarter of this year showing 12% year-on-year growth, 10.6 % in the first half, with clear signs of a broad-based recovery in terms of export and private-sector investment and consumption. Thailand's capital markets have also demonstrated resilience despite the unrest and short-term volatility, with investors continuing to trade and generating continuous liquidity. To build on this success, and further improve the efficiency and liquidity of the market, we are bringing a new capital market development plan to Parliament for consideration. Tourism is picking up faster than expected. Both as a country and as a people, we have demonstrated time and again our remarkable resilience. Every time we face a crisis, which I see as a part of our growing pain, we learn how to better build a more stable and solid future. Look at Thailand today, and you will see that we are charged, we are confident and we are alive.
Third, we have the immunity and the strong fundamentals to shine. My Government has worked on building social cohesiveness, while addressing issues related to poverty and social inequality, such as health and education systems. The Government will continue to invest heavily in infrastructure to improve the people's quality of life and to foster growth and development as a cornerstone of a stable economy. We are also building an environment even more conducive to investment through several schemes, incentives and a very effective investment facilitation centre. We possess strong economic fundamentals for growth and development, and we believe that the heart of development is good governance - which I define as making rules and regulations clearer and more transparent. And this is why good governance is one of the most important parts of Thailand's 11th National Economic and Social Development Plan for the years 2012 to 2016.
Fourth, we are very focused on the longer term --- dynamism, increased productivity and greater competitiveness. We do this with our Creative Economy, where innovation is key. Value is added to products, and technology is utilized to its fullest extent. We are elevating the quality of Thai products for the global export market, combining Thai cultural heritage and local ingenuity with modern functional utility. We highly prioritize the enhancement of productivity in all sectors of the economy, as we recognize that increased productivity will increase our global competitiveness. According to the World Economic Forum's 2010 Global Competitiveness Report, we rank 38th out of 139 countries. This is fairly good, but certainly there is still room for improvement. We are also in the process of restructuring the economy to become more dynamic, knowledge-based, and conducive to sustainable growth, so that we will continue to be a part of, and a driver of, Asian growth and prosperity.
I have laid out the four reasons why I believe that today is Thailand's time to shine. Here in Thailand, we know our strengths and our weaknesses. Our sight is set on the path forward - this is the assurance that we can shine and we certainly will. The Thai people have a common determination - that we will restore the country's image and political stability. We are determined to achieve reconciliation, and to make sure that democracy continues to mature in Thailand. I believe that we can prove our resilience once again and shine through any crisis. This is our dream, this is our commitment and this is our determination. Thank you very much and Sawasdee Krub.
Government Spokesman Bureau
Foreign Relations Division