The government yesterday approved a draft of master plans to accompany the 20-year national strategy.
Thosaporn Sirisamphand, secretary-general of the National Economic and Social Development Board, said the national strategy committee chaired by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha passed a draft of 23 master plans to be used as action plans for the country's 20-year national strategy (2018-37).
Under the 23 master plans, there are 15 urgent flagship projects that must be implemented during 2019-23.
Mr Thosaporn said some projects within the 15 flagships need to commence in fiscal 2019.
Most will fall into fiscal 2020, he said.
"Although this government will no longer be in power, Thailand's investment budget for fiscal 2019-23 needs to total 500-600 billion baht a year to handle the master plans of the 20-year national strategy," Mr Thosaporn said.
The strategy makes it legally binding for future governments to fine-tune developmental policies and ensure that their budgets are aligned with it.
Mr Thosaporn said the final drafts of the 15 urgent flagship projects and the 23 master plans are likely to be concluded at the next meeting of the national strategy committee by late January 2019.
The urgent 15 flagship projects are split into several groups: social and economic restructuring in an effort to increase Thai competitiveness; upgrading Thais' skills; projects that can create balance between social and economic growth; infrastructure projects that can drive economic growth in the long term; and projects that can generate income to create sustainable growth.
Mr Thosaporn said infrastructure projects will not be included because most of them will be operated through the public-private partnership (PPP) scheme.
Prime Minister's Office Minister Kobsak Pootrakool proposed that the urgent 15 flagship projects should focus on development of the agricultural sector, arguing that the sector involves 30 million people and contains the highest proportion of low-income earners.
The 20-year national strategy aims to raise GDP growth of the agricultural sector to 3.8% in 2022 and 3% a year after that through 2037. The agricultural sector's GDP contracted by 1.1% in 2016.
Supachai Panitchpakdi, former secretary-general of Unctad, said Thailand is in dire need of a long-term national strategy and socioeconomic restructuring.
"Thailand has never implemented socioeconomic restructuring, I have hopes that the next government will continue the social and economic reforms," said Mr Supachai, a veteran figure among the 12 experts appointed by the government in August last year to work with top military figures in the 34-member national strategy committee.
The committee aims to solve problems that have plagued Thailand by replacing "old patterns" of management with more suitable strategies.
