Sustainable development
Trip Start
May 01, 2002
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20
64
Trip End
May 01, 2009
Cha-am,
Thailand
Thursday, October 5, 2006
I am not sure that Thailand needs to be an apologist for adopting a development philosophy that embraces sustainability. It is a universally accepted axiom that economic output in itself is not a good measure of social well being or even of economic achievement. Other variables are normally considered in such measures. They include income distribution, education, and public health along with infrastructure development that would include good governance, the rule of law, and a functional criminal justice system. Various indexes have been proposed that take these factors into consideration
Mangrove grove
. For example, the United Nations has proposed an index called the Human Development Index or HDI. Thailand, with a per capita purchasing power GDP of $8,100 is ranked 58th in GDP terms among 118 countries in a certain study but its rank in HDI terms is lower at 67. As a way of comparison, Costa Rica, with a per capita GDP of $9,600 ranks 53rd in GDP terms but its HDI rank is higher at 46. On the other end of the scale we find Botswana with a per capita GDP of $9,200. Its GDP rank is 55 while its HDI rank is 110 out of 118 countries.
Botswana, once a dirt poor country whose economic activity consisted mostly of cattle herding, now generates most of its GDP from diamond mines. The wealth from the mines has not trickled down. Most citizens are still dirt poor cattle herders ravaged by HIV and roaming marginal agricultural lands searching for pasture. Infrastructure development in
key areas such as education, public health, and water management has lagged economic development. The criminal justice system is a failure and crime is rampant. The government's attempt to diversify the economy in a slam-dunk fashion by going into the automobile business in a big way has backfired. In GDP terms Botswana is in the same league as Malaysia but in HDI terms it is still down in the cellar with Bangladesh.
Cost Rica also started out in agriculture, exporting coffee, bananas, and pineapples to the United States and Europe. Unlike Botswana, it grew gradually investing heavily in education, public health, and governance. Over the years, the economy has been diversified into the additional areas of tourism, electronics, software, and pharmaceuticals. At about the same level of per capita GDP, the average citizen in Costa Rica is much better off than his counterpart in Botswana.
Thailand would like to be more like Costa Rica and less like Botswana in its economic development strategy. Why is that bad? Sustainability is just a philosophy and not a specific development plan with hard constraints. It would be wrong for Thailand to bend over backwards and compromise on this issue just to keep overseas investors happy. What's good for international investors is not always good for Thailand and what's good for Thailand will eventually be good for everyone including those grumpy old international investors.
Soidog
