Thailand working to help small businesses survive pandemic

According to Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI), the country currently has about 3 million SMEs, employing up to 12 million people or around 82 per cent of total employment, Xinhua news agency reported on Thursday. 

About half of those businesses are in tourism and related sectors, one of the hardest-hit sectors by the pandemic. 

Since the pandemic began early last year, the tourism and hospitality sectors have been put to a standstill. SMEs' contribution to the country's GDP continued to drop, creating a larger gap away from the ambitious 45 per cent target set by the government. 

The absence of foreign visitors, restrictions on domestic travel, limited operations of retails and restaurants, together with many other situations to name, have caused countless businesses to shut down temporarily and permanently for some. 

Several cost-cutting measures have been employed to safeguard financial liquidity and the survival of the business. 

However, many still could not adjust their day-to-day operations to cope with the pandemic, especially when income stops rolling in but operating costs and expenses still keep bleeding out. 

The Ministry of Commerce has set up several initiatives to help SMEs adjust their businesses for the new normal during and post Covid-19. 

"SMEs play a vital role in driving the country's economic activities. We have set up a Joint Steering Committee between the government and the private sectors to work together in assisting this group of workforces," Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit said during a business conference earlier this week. 

Jurin said the Ministry has been working to help Thai SMEs get themselves equipped with the new normal of business operations, whereby many activities will be digitalised and happening online. 

He said to survive in the future, SMEs must realise the importance of e-Commerce platforms, innovation, technologies and intellectual properties. Learning how to effectively operate in the new business setting has become very essential. 

Additionally, commerce ministry recently launched a program to help young generation become successful business owners and entrepreneurs. 

The program is run by the government bodies in cooperation with 93 organisations from various fields such as academic institutions, colleges, universities and leading technology companies in the country. 

Courses, which cover all aspects of digital skills for building and expanding business in the future business landscape, will be offered to participating members. 

The Ministry of Commerce has set a target to train 12,000 people in this campaign.