“The ASEAN Regional Conference on Sharing of Good Practices in Social Protection for Women

in Enterprise Development”

December 4 – 5, 2014, Manila, Philippines

Thailand Country Report

Outline

SMEs and Women Empowerment Fund

Social Protection & legal mandates

Si Sa Ket province: based social protection

Challenges & Lessons Learned

Population: 65.98 Million

Female: 33.63 Million (50.9 %)

Male: 32.35 Million (49.1 % )

Sex Ratio: 96.2 males : 100 females(As of December 2010)

Total entrepreneurs: 2.84 Million

SMEs: 2.75 Million ( 97.16 % of total entrepreneurs)

Small Entrepreneurs: 2.73 Million (97.70 % of SMEs)

Medium entrepreneurs: 13,247 (0.47 % of SMEs)Source: The Office of Small and Medium Entrepreneur Promotion (OMEP)

Thailand

SMEs in 2013

Social protection’s definition

Social Protection Floor (CEB): ● An integrated set of social policies designed to guarantee income security and access to social services for all, paying particular attention to vulnerable groups, and protecting and empowering people across the life cycle.

● It includes guarantees of basic income security, in the form of various social transfers (in cash or in kind).

Social protection: a priority for equity and growth

• A fundamental means to mitigate social inequalities• The establishment of the National Commission on Social Welfare,

chaired by the Prime Minister• A strategy to develop a universal, coherent social protection system

by 2017 called the “Welfare Society”

• The vision of the 11th National Economic and Social Development Plan (2012-16) is to build “A happy society with equity, fairness and resilience”

• The Policy Statement of the Council of Ministers delivered by Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha to the National Assembly on 12 September 2014 on social protection.

• The UN system in Thailand established a team in March 2010

The legal framework on social protection

Civil servants ▪ Government officials’ pension system▪ Government Pension Fund (GPF)▪ Civil Servants’ Medical Benefit Scheme (CSMBS

Private sector employees

▪ Workmen’s Compensation Fund (WCF)▪ Social Security Fund (SSF) Section 33 and 39▪ Provident funds▪ Private School Teachers’ Welfare Fund (PSTWF)

Informal economy workers

▪ Social Security Fund (SSF) ▪ Section 40 (informal sector)▪ Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS)▪ Universal Non-contributory Allowance for People with HIV/ AIDS▪ National Savings Fund (NSF)▪ Compulsory Migrant Health Insurance (CMHI)

All children (until 15th year of education)

▪ Education for all

Additional social welfare programsTypes of direct and indirect benefits to the people:

● School meals, milk of schools nationwide

● Community welfare funds

● Farmers’ debt and price guarantees for agricultural products

● Allocations to poor, homeless, people who have experienced violence, and other vulnerable groups, urgent social welfare assistance

● Provides funeral grants to survivors

● Other financial assistance from different funds, such as the child protection fund, the old age fund, the fund to promote and develop the quality of life of people with disabilities, and the human trafficking fund

● Free electricity fewer than 50 units per month, and free transportation on non-air conditioned buses and third class trains

● In fact, female and male in Thailand shall be protected equally.

Thailand SMEs.

Policies of the current government on SMEs

● To strengthen capacity and competitiveness of SMEs.● To systematize, unify the structure of supporting and driving mechanisms for SMEs for access to financial resources, financial services, etc.

Strategies in the Women’s Development Plan under the 11th National Social and Economic Development Plan (2012 – 2016)

● To develop women’s capacity and opportunity by providing an equal opportunities among women and men to access resources.● To promote women’s participation in the economy.

Grant Thornton’s research in 2011

Thai women hold 45% of executive position, while there are 30% of women CEOs.

Overcoming Thailand's Regional Economic Challenges. International Affairs review, 2012

SMEs, comprising 78% of employment, 43% of non-agricultural GDP and 30% of exporters

MasterCard Worldwide (2010)

Women-owned SMEs in Thailand contributed approximately 38% of the national GDP and that their businesses had an annual growth-rate of 2.25% compared to 0.31% among SMEs owned by men

Thailand SMEs. (Con)

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2007

Social and cultural mores in Thailand have long encouraged and supported female participation in the workforce.

Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, 2011

Women have played major roles as owner, executives and employees in the enterprises

The 2012 Adult Population Survey and the 2012 GEM survey

● Thailand’s total early-stage entrepreneurs rate was 18.9% and established business ownership rate was 29.7% of the sample. Thailand’s established business ownership of nearly 30% was among the highest of the participating countries in the 2012 GEM survey, but also was No.1 within the Asia-Pacific & South Asia region.

The Department of Industrial Promotion’s statistics

● 49% of new entrepreneurs in the year 2008-2009, and 46% are women. Thus, their access to markets is quite important.

Challenges of Thai women’s entrepreneurs

● Women still face a wide range of barriers to starting, sustaining and growing their businesses. While women technically have the same legal rights as men, married women need their husbands’ consent for critical legal transactions, including bank loans. ● In 2010, just only 33% of total SMEs can access to finance from commercial bank. Thus, Women Empowerment Fund is the new option for Thai women entrepreneur.

Women Empowerment Fund (WEF)

Women Empowerment Fund (WEF)• established in 2012,• applies financial strategies to maximize improvements in women

capacity.• provide financial support in the form of loans to women group that are

launching or growing an income generating activities, and subsidizes for women development projects.

Vision• To empower women to be the crucial force for country’s development Missions• To provide low interest loans for women investment• To provide funds for women’s capacity building and networking to concern

women’s issue• To provide funds for promoting and supporting activities that solve women

problems

Member9.8 million

31%

69% Non member

15-19

20-2930-39

40-4950-59

60 up

Aged25%

6%

15%

19% 19%

15%

Mean = 44 years old

43%

Northeast12%

North

5%

West

18%

central

14%

South

14%

East

2%

BKK

Occupation Farmer 32 %Labor 30 % none 20%

Education primary school 54%

secondary school 15%high school 14%

61% have income less than 5,000 ฿ (166 us$) /month

Member profileIndividual

9.7303 million

127organizations

Financial scheme Gov’t annual

budget

Revenue(Interest from loan ) ~ ฿ 150 million/year

Fund raisingactivities

Capitalof WEF

Revolving fund

฿ 5,800 m.

+ ฿ 75 m./year

Grant

฿ 1,450 million

Admin cost

~ ฿ 300 million/year

# Project

# fund

# members

Grant

17,009

฿ 917.7

m.

1,437,510

Loan

68,882

฿ 5,732.

8 m.

740,297

• Committee at every level have managerial capacity

• Fund is sustainable

• Women have good quality of life

• Women have job and income

• Women at every aged have potential and leadership Women

Leadership

Development

Women’s

Income genera

ting Promot

ionWomen’s

Quality of life Improvement

Fund performance Development

Strategy ,Target and Outcome

1.5 m. women got 5,732 m. loan to invest and

earn 5000 ฿/person/month

3 m. women have better quality of life

140,000 women have higher leadership

4.40 from 5 (point) of Fund evaluation with

13 indicator

Reserve local

wisdom

Solve community

concerns

Increase productivity

Decrease illegal debt

Enhance women’

leadership

Social effect

Increase warm hearted

family

Invest new

technology

tight-knit family

Social impact from WEF

to Thai society

Women become change agents of their community.

Gender disparity problems are reduced

The belief that women can do are disseminated

Women have better improvements in human right, dignity and opportunity.

Women’s unemployment are reduced

Project: “Communication between Parents and Children & stop Teenage Mothers”

Location: Si Sa Ket province, north-eastern region

Granted by: The WEF’s Committees of Si Sa Ket Province

Objectives: To create an open family in which parents and children discuss the social issues, become aware of the problems teenagers and encourage family and school play a big role in providing sexual education and a safe environment and build network concerning teenage mothers among local administrations and community organizations.

● Conducted in 2012 – 2014: spread out every district of Si Sa Ket province, with 190 training courses and 28,500 participants

● Granted to run: 10 million Baht (about 60,000 baht per three day course)

● Expectation: To decrease the high case of teenage pregnancies and enhance the network concerning social problems’ solution

● Targets: Youth, parent, related agencies such as government, private and civil sectors

Social protection project

Gap and challenges

Lessons Learned

Sawasdee krub