World Bank partners Thai agency to review innovation policies
The World Bank, in partnership with Thailand's state research agency, will review the country's innovation policies.
The Policy Effectiveness Review (PER) in collaboration with Thailand's Science, Research, and Innovation (TSRI) agency will assess policy implementation in science, technology, and private sector innovation.
The goal is to identify which innovation policies are effective and which are not, so that the public and private sectors know where to invest and improve, said Pattamawadee Pochanukulin, TSRI president, at a press conference on Tuesday.
She explained that the PER would include building a profile of Thailand's science, technology, and innovation policy instruments in order to assess the alignment of current policies with the country's needs in these areas.
She pointed out that the partnership with World Bank would also help to transfer knowledge and exchange ideas on the analysis of science, research, and innovation policy instruments in Thailand.
"The project's expected outcome will assist Thailand in developing relevant mechanisms and measures in science, technology, and innovation that are suitable for building the innovation capabilities of the Thai private sector on a larger scale. This is the most important factor in improving Thailand's economic competitiveness," Pattamawadee noted.
A World Bank report on innovation in developing East Asia emphasised the critical role of innovation in driving long-term economic recovery. Many countries in the region, including Thailand, lag behind leaders in innovation.
Thailand is in the second group with Malaysia, Vietnam and Mongolia, with only Malaysia being closer to the leading group in the region (Japan, China, South Korea).
Meanwhile, based on existing national innovation system research, the World Bank discovered that several factors are impeding Thailand's innovation performance. These factors included:
- a skills gap marked by a shortage of technical workers
- ineffective cooperation among various government agencies
- weak scientific production
- links between firms and research centres.
Furthermore, while access to imported intermediate inputs and technology is available, there is a lack of systematic mechanisms for firm technology absorption, and access to finance is identified as the main constraint to growth by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Cecile Thioro Niang, manager for Finance, Competitiveness, and Innovation for East Asia and Pacific at the World Bank, said that policymakers must prioritise certain policies over others based on the level of technological capabilities of the country's private sector in order to spur innovation.
Besides, she said that the level of technological capability varies greatly between large, internationally linked firms and small domestic enterprises.
She added that the risks and costs of climate change for Thailand and neighbouring countries make it imperative to prioritise innovation and the adoption of new technologies.
"Innovation has the power to propel Thailand towards achieving high-income status, and we believe this partnership will inform effective innovation policy designs for driving sustainable productivity growth," she said.
She also pointed out that cleaner, more energy-efficient production will be essential to cutting carbon emissions.
Her opinion was supported by Kriangkrai Tiennukul, president of the Federation of Thai Industries.
He said that amid the global volitility and the uncertain impact of climate change, businesses were required to find innovative solutions to tackle those issues.
Without innovation, it would be impossible to create added value. Thailand doesn't have to do everything to create innovation; instead, focus on doing what it does best, he noted.
Thailand must figure out "what" and "how" to do in order to be an innovative country.
According to the World Bank, the TSRI will fund this technical assistance programme through the World Bank's Reimbursable Advisory Services (RAS) framework.
The World Bank works with middle and high-income countries on their behalf through RAS programmes, providing advisory services, analytical services, and implementation support to address critical development challenges.
Niang expected that this collaboration would be a long-term partnership aimed at transforming Thailand into a new innovation society that is both sustainable and inclusive.
