Pheu Thai kicks off campaign for votes with event in Udon Thani
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15, 2023
Pheu Thai Party is kickstarting its election campaign by holding its first event in the Isaan province of Udon Thani on Sunday.
The event, starting at 4.30pm at the Tung Sri Muang field, will see Paetongtarn Shinawatra presenting the party’s policies and hearing residents’ complaints.
Similar events will be held in other provinces, and once Parliament is dissolved to make way for the May general election, Pheu Thai will start campaigning in Bangkok.
The party is hoping to cash in on its popularity and win by a landslide.
Paetongtarn is tipped to become the next prime minister if her party wins the election, which is tentatively scheduled for May 7.
The youngest daughter of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra chairs Pheu Thai’s advisory committee on public inclusion and innovation and is head of the Pheu Thai Family project.
Thai beauty queen wins leadership award at Miss Universe pageant
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15, 2023
Thai beauty queen Anna Sueangam-iam won the Transformational Leadership Award at the Miss Universe pageant in New Orleans on Saturday night, even though she failed to make the final round of 16 contestants.
It was the first time the award was presented as a collaboration between the Miss Universe pageant and ImpactWayv, a global social impact platform that says it unites people, businesses and nonprofits to accelerate their collective impact.
JKN CEO Jakkaphong “Anne” Jakrajutatip presented the award to Anna.
JKN acquired the Miss Universe pageant on October 25 for 800 million baht. It announced plans to grow the brand by 40% as part of its effort to become a major player in the global content industry.
American beauty queen R’Bonney Gabriel was crowned Miss Universe on Saturday night (Sunday morning Bangkok time) in New Orleans. Representatives from Venezuela and the Dominican Republic, Amanda Dudamel and Andreína Martínez, were named first and second runners-up, respectively.
Gabriel was born in Houston, Texas to a Filipino father, Remigio Gabriel, and an American mother, Dana Walker. She has three older brothers.
She graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor’s degree in fashion design. She now works as a designer creating eco-friendly clothing, and as a model.
Catamaran lost in Phuket found adrift near Indonesia
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15, 2023
A catamaran that had gone missing late last month was spotted floating near Indonesian waters.
The Phuket Marine Office said on Saturday that the catamaran had been spotted by the captain of a fishing boat on the edge of Thai territorial waters.
The catamaran named Marcopolo had been reported missing by owner Marco Ceferin on December 30. Ceferin told Phuket’s Chalong police that the catamaran had disappeared from its dock in Nai Harn Bay.
Chalong police then called on the network of fishing boats in Phuket and nearby provinces to keep an eye out for the missing boat.
At 8am on Friday, the Phuket Marine Office received a call from the manager of a fishing boat, who said the boat’s captain had spotted the catamaran adrift near Indonesian waters.
The manager was then advised to have the catamaran tied to her boat to prevent it from floating away. Nobody was found aboard the catamaran and the fishing boat crew confirmed it was Marcopolo.
The marine office has asked for the catamaran to be towed back to shore and has informed its owner to retrieve it on Sunday.
It took rescuers more than half an hour to pull a heavy set man out of a muddy watercourse in Soi Samsen 28 in Bangkok’s Dusit district.
The victim, identified as 48-year-old Punarat Maneewong, reportedly lost his balance while crossing the small bridge on Saturday afternoon. The motorbike, which he tried to grab, then landed on top of him.
Rescuers, led by the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, first removed the motorcycle and then pulled Punarat up using a rope pulley.
The man was later taken to Vajira Hospital for treatment.
8 injured as treat-filled helicopter gets dangerously close at Chanthaburi Children’s Day event
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15, 2023
Eight people, five of them children, were injured when a tent in Chanthaburi’s Muang Tha Chang subdistrict collapsed under the rotor downwash of a helicopter that got too close.
The accident happened when a navy helicopter arrived to scatter flowers and treats during the National Children’s Day event on Saturday.
“Eight people were sent to hospital for treatment and six of them have been discharged,” Muang Tha Chang Subdistrict Municipality Office told the press on Saturday afternoon.
The office apologised for the accident, as did the Royal Thai Navy.
Navy officials also visited the victims and handed them compensation. The local authorities have been advised to monitor the victims’ condition closely.
Cool temperatures in most of Thailand forecast for next week
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15, 2023
A high-pressure system from China and the South China Sea will bring cold, strong winds to upper Thailand, pulling the temperature down by several degrees for most of next week.
“The temperature will drop by 4 to 6 degrees Celsius in the Northeast,” the Thai Meteorological Department said on Sunday. Temperatures in the North, East and Central regions, including Greater Bangkok will drop by 2-4 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, isolated heavy rain has been forecast for the South as the northeast monsoon across the Gulf of Thailand and the South will strengthen. Flash floods and runoffs have also been predicted, while waves in the upper Gulf are expected to be about 2 metres high and higher in thundershowers.
“In the lower part of the Gulf, the waves will be 2-3 metres high and higher during thundershowers,” the department said.
People along the east coast of the South of Thailand have also been warned of inshore surges.
“Ships in both the Gulf and Andaman Sea should proceed with caution and small boats should stay ashore,” the department added.
Bangkok beware! Heavy PM2.5 pollution expected next week
SATURDAY, JANUARY 14, 2023
Large areas of Bangkok will be hit by heavy PM2.5 fine dust on Monday and Tuesday due to the lack of breeze and airflow.
The city administration’s Environmental Office said on Saturday that the lack of wind and breeze in Bangkok essentially traps the pollution within the city.
The areas expected to be hit by high accumulation of PM2.5 are downtown Bangkok and the northern and southern zones of Thon Buri to the west of the city, the office warned. The unit comes under the jurisdiction of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA).
PM2.5 is fine particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter and can be hazardous to people with lung and respiratory problems. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the annual average level of PM2.5 should not exceed 5 micrograms per cubic metre of air (μg/m3).
Bangkok’s reading on Saturday was 24.8μg/m3, the BMA’s Air Quality Information Centre reported.
The BMA expects weather conditions in the city to improve between January 18 and 20, with stronger airflow brought by northeasterly winds.
The Thai Meteorological Department, meanwhile, said on Saturday that light breezes in Bangkok over the next few days are not good for the city’s air pollution problem, as fine dust will create a cloud of smog in the morning.
Satellite auction raises 806 million baht from sale of three slots
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15, 2023
Only three of five packages of satellite orbital slots were sold to three bidders for a total of 806 million baht in an auction held by the National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission on Sunday.
None of the three qualified companies bid for packages one or five, while the commission auctioned off the other three for a combined 806.076 million baht, it said.
Last week, three companies were given approval by the commission to participate in the auction: Space Tech Innovation, a subsidiary of satellite service provider Thaicom, Prompt Technical Services, a company registered in 2000 as an electrical installation service firm, and state-run National Telecom.
The five packages, which Thailand had received from the International Telecommunication Union, are:
● Package 1: 50.5 degrees East slot with C1, N1 and P1R networks and 51 degrees East with 51 network. Bidding started at 374 million baht.
● Package 2: 78.5 degrees East with A2B and LSX2R networks. Bidding started at 360 million baht.
● Package 3: 119.5 degrees East with IP1, P3 and LSX3R networks and 120 degrees East with 120E network. Bidding started at 397 million baht.
● Package 4: 126 degrees East with 126E network. Bidding started at 8.06 million baht.
● Package 5: 142 degrees East with G3K and N5 networks. Bidding started at 189 million baht.
Representatives of the three companies arrived at the commission’s head office at 7am to start preparing for the auction. Bidding started at 10 am after commission chairman Sarana Boonbaichaiyapruck made a speech to launch the auction.
The auction was held in the so-called sequential ascending clock method with each round of bidding lasting 20 minutes. Interested bidders had to tap to raise the price of a package, with each limited to 5% of the starting price.
Lots were drawn to arrange the order of the bidding to prevent collusion. Packages were auctioned in the following order: 4, 3, 5, 2 and 1.
The commission has yet to announce the names of the winning bids for the three packages.
Reporters said Package 4 was auctioned in two minutes, with one tap from one bidder. A satellite on the slot of Package 4 can be used for both broadcasting and telecommunications in the Asia-Pacific region. It was sold for 9.076 million baht.
The auction for Package 3, which can be used for broadband telecommunication over Southeast Asia, North Asia, Australia and Indochina, started at 10:15am and ended at 10.21 am with one tap from one bidder. It was sold for 417 million baht.
The IT department suspended the bidding for 10 minutes due to a system error. The auction resumed at 10:40 am with the auction of Package 5, which covers the Asia-Pacific region. The bidding ended at 10:46 am with the “unsold” sign announced on the system’s board.
Bidding for Package 2 began at 11am. The slot can be used for a broadcast satellite and there are already two satellites in the area, which are Thaicom 6 and Thaicom 8.
The first round of Package 2’s auction ended at 11.05am with two bidders competing. The second round started at 11.10am and ended at 11:16am with one bidder getting the package for 380 million baht.
Bidding for Package 1 started at 11:30am and ended at 11:36 am with no bids.
Minister moves to attract more Japanese investment to Thailand
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15, 2023
The Industry Ministry’s Department of Industrial Promotion has signed a memorandum of understanding with Ishikawa Prefectural Government Office to promote industrial development between Thailand and Japan, Industry Minister Suriya Juangroongruangkit said on Sunday
The agreement was signed during a recent visit by ministry officials to Japan to attract investment in Thailand.
“This move aims to boost Japanese investors’ confidence in the potential of Thailand’s industrial sector, enhance Thailand’s competitiveness and promote collaboration between Thai and Japanese small and medium enterprises,” Suriya said.
The department and Ishikawa Prefectural Government Office will organise activities to promote industrial development between two countries, such as knowledge exchange seminars, exhibitions and meetings, he said.
“The 22nd Otagai Forum will be held in Nanao city at the beginning of February to promote collaboration in the carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers and food processing industries,” the minister said. “Meanwhile, Kanazawa University will send its students to study in Thai companies in a bid to create a business network between Thailand and Ishikawa Prefecture,” he added.
The ministry is promoting Thai industrial estates to Japanese investors. More than 6,000 Japanese companies have investments in Thailand.
Developing Asia’s productivity growth is slowing, IMF warns
SATURDAY, JANUARY 14, 2023
Nongluck Ajanapanya
Asia’s developing nations should urgently solve technological constraints to sustain productivity growth, a recent report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said.
Asia has become a digital and innovation powerhouse, IMF deputy managing director Antoinette Sayeh said on Friday.
Half of the world’s patents are issued in Asia, so there is no doubt that Asia is at the forefront of innovation and technological development, she told a seminar in Bangkok at which the IMF report “Accelerating Innovation and Digitalization in Asia to Boost Productivity” was released.
The seminar was co-hosted by Thailand’s National Economic and Social Development Council.
Still, even though Asia is a growth engine, its productivity growth is slowing, according to the IMF report, which says this is a result of a failure to digitise quickly enough.
Sayeh said two factors are missing from the region’s development.
“There is no question that Asia leads in innovation, but there is a difference in the quality level of patents … Not all patents are the same. Not all patents are equal and … contribute to productivity growth,” she said.
The lack of technological diffusion is the second factor constraining growth, she said.
Antoinette Sayeh
“The second [factor], which is probably more relevant to a country like Thailand, is that technological diffusion has been very limited. So, the technology has vanished and is only available to a small proportion of the economy’s firms,” she explained.
Eteri Kvintradze, director of the IMF Capacity Development Office in Thailand, said the concentration of research and development (R&D) in a smaller number of companies deters the progress of innovation and productivity in Asia.
According to the IMF report, nearly half of small- and mid-sized enterprises and one-third of large firms in emerging and developing Asia identified obtaining financing as the most significant barrier to adopting technology.
Restrictive trade and regulations on foreign direct investment impede technology diffusion, the report says, adding that innovation has not translated into broad-based productivity growth in Asia.
“The concentration in R&D, digital, managerial, funds, and skilled talent widened Asia’s productivity gaps,” Kvintradze said. “However, digitisation and global exposure can assist in closing productivity gaps.”
Asia should foster innovation by providing R&D tax credits, increasing public spending on basic research, supporting intellectual property rights, and rewarding disruptive innovation, the IMF report advises.
Asian governments should also ensure a level playing field and a simplified and efficient insolvency framework to facilitate resource reallocation, the report says.
“Asian nations should really lower trade barriers and streamline FDI regulations, facilitate knowledge sharing between foreign and domestic firms, improve business-university R&D collaboration while upgrading labour skills, close digital divides, and improve digital infrastructure and the legal environment,” Kvintradze said.
Suriyon Thunkijanukij, the National Economic and Social Development Council’s senior advisor on policy and planning, said the innovation-aggregated productivity link isn’t working well in Thailand because the country lacks serious consistency in implementation.
“We’ve already set the right target, direction, and structural system. However, no actions are properly taken. We also need a monitoring mechanism to ensure that our policies are implemented,” Suriyon said.
Thailand should focus on increasing the capacity of youths to accelerate change in the next decade, he said.
Suriyon suggested that the government should provide access to reproductive health and childcare services, offer inclusive maternity support, promote universal child benefit policies, improve education quality and accessibility, and propose legislation that legally allows different types of families to have children.
However, he pointed out that these policies cannot be implemented unless people also formalise their participation in the system.
Meanwhile, Atip Asavanundd, executive director of the Digital Council of Thailand, and Kiatipong Ariyapruchaya, senior country economist at the World Bank, agreed that Thailand urgently requires education reform.
Thailand, according to Atip, has everything except well-educated people.
All Thai students should have access to digital devices and proper English language education, Atip said. Furthermore, students should be encouraged to study mathematics and science until they complete high school.
“Our educators must focus on pattern quality rather than pattern quantity,” he said.
Kiatipong added that basic education for all was essential, and that the country must adopt a more resilient and agile growth mindset.
Meanwhile, he advised Thailand to improve its government data system in order to boost the country’s competitiveness and overall service quality.
Pan-Arj Chairatana, director of the National Innovation Agency, said Thailand requires both innovative entrepreneurs and innovative politics.
“We need to put innovation on the national agenda. We already have science, technology, and innovation policies in place. We have a variety of mechanisms. We have a lot of incentives. However, it is not comprehensive enough to be called a national agenda,” he said.
Thailand needs to change its perception of innovation to move forward, Pan-Arj said.
Chalong police then called on the network of fishing boats in Phuket and nearby provinces to keep an eye out for the missing boat.
The manager was then advised to have the catamaran tied to her boat to prevent it from floating away. Nobody was found aboard the catamaran and the fishing boat crew confirmed it was Marcopolo.
The auction was held in the so-called sequential ascending clock method with each round of bidding lasting 20 minutes. Interested bidders had to tap to raise the price of a package, with each limited to 5% of the starting price.
Antoinette Sayeh
SootinClaimon.Com 