BANGKOK, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's government on Wednesday launched a sweeping, cross-ministerial economic strategy designed to shield the Southeast Asian nation from global volatility through a new public-private partnership model spanning four critical sectors.
Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Suphajee Suthumpun said the administration is adopting a "5D" analytical framework to address geopolitical decoupling, market diversification, digital and artificial intelligence transitions, decarbonization, and demographic shifts.
To navigate these headwinds, the government is utilizing a cluster-based management approach, integrating state and private sector efforts to shift the national focus from sheer production volume to meeting targeted market demands, Suphajee told a briefing.
The Ministry of Commerce established four working groups uniting the public and private sectors to focus on four pillars.
The first pillar focuses on agriculture and food security, seeking to overhaul the entire supply chain to better support the country's 7.7 million farming households, she said. Although these households represent nearly 30 percent of the population, they contribute a mere 8.8-percent to the gross domestic product (GDP).
The second pillar targets the community economy and small- and medium-sized enterprises. She said these businesses, which generate 35 percent of Thailand's GDP, would receive support through a comprehensive framework that guides them from inception to regional prominence.
Steering the third pillar on the creative and visitor economy, Weerasak Kowsurat, chief advisor to the deputy prime minister, highlighted a strategic pivot away from tracking raw tourist arrival numbers.
Instead, Weerasak said the focus would be on extracting higher economic value and catering to the specific needs of diverse visitors.
The final pillar directs international trade, seeking to reduce market concentration by aggressively pursuing free trade agreements and embedding local content into global supply chains, Suphajee said.
While overall Thai exports surged 17 percent in the first half of 2026, the deputy prime minister cautioned that the structural balance of this growth requires active management by increasing the proportion of agricultural and processed agricultural goods while boosting the participation of small businesses.
The government noted that the four working groups will operate concurrently to ensure farmers, local enterprises, and communities grow alongside the broader national economy. ■