Reform of the bureaucracy and government services is one of five “quick win” sectors to be implemented for effective results, he told a seminar on “Transforming Thailand: Thailand-France Partnership”, hosted by the business association Mouvement des Entreprises de France.

“We are now in the second of a three-step reform towards democracy,” he said, adding that this step encompasses political, economic and social reforms.

The final step will be the general election toward democratisation, he said, adding the reform agenda would be handed over to the elected government to carry on.

Thailand Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha addresses a business conference organised by French employers’s association Medef International in Paris on June 25, 2018. // AFP PHOTO

Prayut led a delegation to Europe last week with visits to the United Kingdom and France. He promised leaders and business elites in the two countries that the junta, which took power after a coup four years ago, would hold an election early next year.

Activists and dissidents held protests in London and Paris demanding that leaders of the two countries press the junta chief to return democracy to Thai people and respect human rights.

Prayut largely ignored the political demands and instead focused on economic relations for his high-profile visit. He said the Thai economy is continuing an upward trajectory, with 3.8 per cent GDP growth in 2017 and 4.8 per cent in the first quarter of this year.

The Thailand 4.0 policy focused on science, technology and innovation would drive the country’s development goals for prosperity, he said.

The government’s Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) would become a region of high economic growth as it connected neighbouring countries Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, as well as other Asean members, he said.

Thailand, the Asean chair for next year, has an open policy to welcome foreign investment, he said. An investment in Thailand could link to the combined 230 million population of the entire Asean market, he concluded.