Forests are an important ecosystem and key economic sector in Thailand, as well as being home to a large portion of the population.In 2018, forest products accounted for roughly 118 billion Thai Baht (3.9 billion USD) in exports1—or about 1.2% of all exported goods and ...

Thailand is a country rich in natural resources, which have played a significant role in supporting local livelihoods and driving economic growth. Forests, watersheds, marine environments, and mineral resources have all been instrumental in supporting the Thai manufacturing, export, and tourism industries. However, rapid economic development ...

Sustainable Development Goal 14 aims to “conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development,” a goal which is important to a country such as Thailand, which is bordered by two oceans – the Pacific and the Indian.122 Progress towards SDG 14 ...

Sustainable Development Goal 6 aims to “ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all,” a goal which presents a significant challenge for any country to reach (with 40% of people globally impacted by water scarcity), including Thailand.176,177 Progress towards SDG 6 is ...

In 2016, Thailand was ranked 20th globally in terms of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, producing 0.9% of global emissions or 327 tons of CO2 annually. This corresponds to a per capita CO2 emission rate of 4.7 tons, which is slightly lower than the global rate ...

The coronavirus pandemic has been a challenging time for decision makers globally to respond accurately and in a timely manner to mitigate impacts while keeping the public informed. In fact, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to the intensification of inequality and so far disrupted income ...

In September 2015, United Nations member states adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Agenda, to be achieved within 15 years, comprises 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with 169 specific targets and 230 indicators for measurement.288 The SDGs stress the importance of balancing the ...

Forestry Laws, Plans and Policies2017 Constitution of the Kingdom of Thailand1941 Forest Law1961 National Parks Law (amended 2019)1964 National Reserved Forest Law1985 National Forest Policy (currently under the revision in 2020)1989 Logging Ban3421992 Wildlife Conservation Law (amended 2019)1992 Forest Plantation Law and its revisions2002 Chainsaw ...

Thailand’s Special Economic Zones (SEZs) are regions recently designated by the Special Economic Zone Development Board of the Thai Government. In these zones, the state has planned to provide support for infrastructure development, investment incentives, and administrative services to enable access to foreign workers based to ...

National Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMA) are voluntary, country-specific commitments to action that reduce emissions compared to ‘business as usual’ volumes.418 Recognizing that “economic and social development and poverty eradication are the first and overriding priorities of the developing country Parties,” the focus on NAMAs is ...

The most prosperous country in the Mekong region, Thailand also has the longest-standing land policy and practices, including an uninterrupted tradition of private land ownership. The Land Code Promulgating Act was issued in 1954 and was most recently amended in 2008.425 This legal framework has ...

Synthesis Report: Ten Groups of Indigenous PeoplesIndigenous peoples in Thailand have struggled for decades against restrictions to accessing ancestral lands and public services. This is because many indigenous peoples have not yet been granted Thai citizenship. Studied in 2018, the synthesis report525 indicated that the ...

Thailand’s Special Economic Zone policy is intended to contribute to the economic of the less developed border regions to improve the livelihoods of their citizens. However, the process of the acquisition and development of the public land acquired for SEZs in Thailand has been shown ...

The economies of the five Lower Mekong countries range from those still developing beyond a reliance on agriculture and natural resources, to more robust export economies supporting themselves and becoming more independent. For the 2015 fiscal year, the World Bank categorized the region’s economies as ...

The Mekong River system maintains the world’s largest inland fishery. 2.2 million tonnes of fish were harvested from it in 2009, with an estimated retail market value between US$4.3 billion and US$7.8 billion. The value of the Mekong’s fish harvest is not simply economic, however, ...

Though agriculture is still the largest employer in all Lower Mekong countries, the share of the agricultural sector has fallen by 20 percent in the past two decades in Vietnam and Thailand, which have seen steady advances by the service sector. Similarly in Cambodia, growth ...

There are many similarities in the structure and establishment of courts, laws and judiciaries across the Lower Mekong, despite their differences in types of government (republics, socialist, constitutional monarchy, etc). They also face some of the same challenges in adherence to rule of law, and ...

One of three mechanisms under the Kyoto Protocol, the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) allows developing countries who have signed onto the UNFCCC Kyoto Protocol to pursue projects to reduce GHG emissions and earn certified emission reduction credits, which can then be sold to developed countries ...

Because of the transborder nature of water ecosystems, a regional approach to water governance and the management of water resources is fundamental to both sustainable development and the assurance of water rights. Hydrobasins in the Lower Mekong. View the full map in Map Explorer.This need ...

The combined, estimated population for the Lower Mekong was 237.7 million in 2015. Vietnam had the largest population at 93.5 million, while Laos had the smallest at 6.8 million. In line with their various stages of development, higher income countries like Thailand have lower population ...