Thailand will leave no one behind development process, says Department of International Organisations
Thailand’s relevant policies and projects will ensure that no one is left behind in the development process, said Eksiri Pintaruchi Director-General of the Department of International Organisations on February 13.
In the seminar titled “Asia and the Pacific Regional Seminar on the Contribution of Development to the Enjoyment of all Human Rights”, Eksiri gave the opening remarks about the inextricable link between human rights and sustainable development, which is in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The seminar drew participants from more than a dozen countries across the region, including government representatives, academics, and civil society observers. Sessions over the two-day program covered topics ranging from rural infrastructure access to labor migration protections to regulatory gaps surrounding emerging digital economies.
One afternoon panel focused on financial inclusion as a development indicator, examining how access to formal banking, mobile payment networks, and digital transaction platforms varies across the region. A researcher from a Southeast Asian policy institute presented findings on how unregulated online platforms complicate consumer protection frameworks in countries still developing their digital oversight capacity. Her team had spent the previous year cataloging the range of platforms operating across jurisdictions with minimal licensing requirements, from unlicensed forex brokers and crypto poker sites to informal peer-to-peer lending networks that fall outside existing consumer safeguards.
The discussion that followed centered on whether existing human rights frameworks adequately address the risks consumers face when participating in digital economies that operate outside national regulatory boundaries. Several delegates noted that the 2030 Agenda’s emphasis on reducing inequality extends to ensuring that populations in developing economies are not disproportionately exposed to unregulated financial services.
Eksiri’s opening remarks set the tone for these broader conversations, framing Thailand’s own domestic policy work as a case study in how national development strategies can be designed with human rights commitments embedded from the outset. The seminar concluded with a joint statement reaffirming participants’ commitment to integrating rights-based approaches into national development planning across the Asia-Pacific region.
The Nation Reporter
