Bitkub chief rings warning bells for Thailand to embrace green revolution
Thailand needs to urgently take action to join the green and digital revolutions so that it does not fall behind, as the world's rules and regulations aim to eradicate unfriendly old-school business, Jirayut Srupsrisopa, founder and group CEO of Bitkub Capital Group, said on Friday.
Speaking at the “44th anniversary of Thansettakij” forum titled "The Iconic Path to Success" hosted by Thansettakij under Nation Group Media, he emphasised the critical need for the Thai public and private sectors to collaborate in accelerating the country's readiness for the digital and green economy.
He predicted that the next several decades would be a golden era for Southeast Asia as countries around the world would seek new neutral partners and green supply chains to secure their growth in a more sustainable way.
He noted that while the ASEAN region has demonstrated the potential to thrive in a green and digital economy, Thailand, unfortunately, is not as prepared as its neighbours.
He cited the lack of skilled workers as an example.
While Vietnam can produce at least 500,000 skilled workers in STEM (Sciences, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields each year, Thailand can only produce 10,000.
"STEM skills are the future in terms of labour requirements of the digital economy. So, there is no doubt that Vietnam would be more preferable than Thailand in the long run," he said.
He suggested that Thailand work towards seriously supporting labour across all generations by equipping them with new skills, while also reforming laws and regulations and providing appropriate incentives to attract international talent to the country.
"If we are not smart, we must collaborate with smart people and learn from them. For that, we need to remove our barriers so that those talents can easily work in Thailand," he said.
He urged the government to collaborate closely with the private sector to assist entrepreneurs, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, in transforming rapidly to meet global green and digital standards.
"The slower we change, the more we risk being left behind in the next 10 years," he said, noting that the world right now has already witnessed a gradual reform of laws and regulations to facilitate and benefit green businesses while hindering those that are not environmentally friendly, causing these businesses to disappear.
"As green businesses grow stronger and earn profits, that prosperity will eventually flow into technology and innovation development required to combat climate change," he said, citing US Secretary of State Antony Blinken who estimated at the recent World Economic Forum that the world would need to invest US$5 trillion per year until 2050 to manage and mitigate the risk of climate change.
