Showing 1 - 8 of 8
Seeds of failure sown deep into national reform targets
Oped, Sawai Boonma, Published on 06/05/2015
» This month marks a year since the military took over the reins of government. According to its roadmap, the military has a few more months before it hands power back to an elected government. It will then be up to the new government to complete the reforms initiated over the past year.
Debt-inequality trap risks being sprung any moment
News, Sawai Boonma, Published on 05/11/2014
» Last month, the International Monetary Fund issued its latest assessment of the global economy for 2014, lowering the growth rate from 3.7% projected in its previous assessment to 3.3%. The picture is less rosy despite better outlook for the United States - the largest engine of the world economy – that leads the Federal Reserve System to stop pumping massive amounts of money into the economy via quantitative easing, which totaled some $4.5 trillion over the past six years. Gloomier prospects for other economies have been attributed to continued feeble demand.
A tale of two Isan villages’ attempts to end poverty
News, Sawai Boonma, Published on 07/05/2014
» About three decades ago, a seemingly great idea was put forward with the express purpose of raising the incomes of the people of Isan — the Northeast — so that they would no longer be the poorest compared with Thais in other regions of the country. Having relatively less water, it was believed, was the key factor contributing to Isan’s lower level of development and poverty. With more water, Isan could be planted with more crops, including trees such as eucalyptus to be harvested as feedstock for paper mills, making it green all year round as well as generating more income for its people.
Harnessing consumer power for the better
News, Sawai Boonma, Published on 05/03/2014
» During the past few weeks, Thailand has seen a new phenomenon, beginning with a large number of depositors flocking to branches of the Government Savings Bank (GSB), to either close their accounts or withdraw large sums of money.
Getting rid of the government is the easy part
News, Sawai Boonma, Published on 04/12/2013
» Ask any of the participants in the massive anti-government rallies about their purpose, and the answer is likely to be to get rid of something called "Thaksinocracy". When asked what it means, the answer varies, but may be roughly grouped along these five "cracies".
Economy trapped in mire of corruption
News, Sawai Boonma, Published on 04/09/2013
» With growth stalling everywhere, including in the middle-income countries and especially the once high-flying Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) grouping, discussions about the nature of the middle-income trap and how to get out of it have again come to the fore.
Debt aside, economy looks a lot like Greece's
News, Sawai Boonma, Published on 01/05/2013
» When the current eurozone crisis reached Greece, many Thais asked whether what was happening over there could happen here.
Our road to sustainability grows ever rockier
News, Sawai Boonma, Published on 06/02/2013
» Last week, former US vice president and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Al Gore published perhaps another bestseller entitled, The Future: Six Drivers of Global Change. From the pre-publication announcement, it was not clear what the six drivers might be. While waiting for my pre-publication order to be delivered, I saw his brief interview with the BBC.