Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra stated that the development of “soft power” is one of Thailand’s major strategies, saying that the Government was confident that soft power would drive the Thai economy to grow by leaps and bounds in the next decade.

Speaking at the “Dailynews Talk 2024” seminar on the topic “Soft Power: Opportunities for Thailand” on 21 October 2024, the Prime Minister cited Thailand as a rich country in cultural capital, and stated that the charms of the country and the people attracted people from all over the world. She believed that the soft power policy would help improve Thai people’s quality of life.

In this policy, the Government will support and promote the application of local wisdom, which represents the potential of the Thai people and Thailand’s cultural capital. The policy seeks to develop Thai labor skills and add value to products and services from highly skilled labor and innovation.

The Prime Minister said that the Government had established the “One Family, One Soft Power” policy to provide upskill and reskill training for the people free of charge. The participation of the private sector is required for the designs of training programs to enable the people to be well engaged in occupations related to soft power and to upgrade Thai cultural products and services.

She said that the Government also had a policy to promote secondary tourism destinations through various soft power items and projects of each region of the country. This will stimulate the local economy and better distribute income to local communities.

In addition, the Government will promote human-made tourism and distinctive Thai festivals, such as the Songkran traditional Thai New Year, Loy Krathong, Phi Ta Khon (Ghost Festival), Candle Festival, and Rocket Festival. Thailand will become better known as a festival country able to attract visitors all year round. This will provide the country with greater opportunities for economic growth.