August 2018

Thailand. We’re not nearly ready for the ageing society

As the dwindling workforce compounds looming challenges, there are examples of sound measures to follow Thais are not ageing faster than other nationalities, but the challenges we face with the ballooning population of senior citizens are compounded by a tendency to retire early from the workforce and move into “slow life” mode. A recent report said Thailand could face a serious manpower crisis sooner than other countries with ageing societies. It’s become clear that the present and future governments will...

January 2018

Thailand. Ageing population gives rise to worries over pensions

Amid concerns about the sustainability of the Social Security Fund (SSF) due to an ageing population, the Social Security Office (SSO), which oversees the SSF, continues to lock horns with labour networks over how best to address the issue. The SSO's approach is to raise the cap of base salary for payroll deductions from 15,000 baht to 20,000 baht a month. This means the maximum deduction, which would be funnelled to the SSF, would rise from 750 baht to 1,000...

Securing the Future for Old Age in the Asia and Pacific Region: Short-Term and Historical Challenges

By Christian Aspalter (BNU-HKBU United International College, Zhuhai, China) This paper sets out to summarize major conundrums, and some of their solutions, in pension reform policy of the years ahead, with particular reference to the Asia-Pacific Region, and here again, Japan and Thailand. The repercussions for non-action pertaining to the reform and overhaul of public pension systems go far beyond the realm of social policy and economic development. The twin-issue of old-age poverty and fiscal sustainability of public pension systems...

October 2017

Pensions extended to workers in Thailand

Cambodian migrants in Thailand are to earn pension benefits as they work abroad, Labour Minister Ith Samheng has announced. Meeting workers in Thailand yesterday, Mr Samheng said the government was discussing ways to make sure that migrants get equal access to pensions when they returned home. He said that all private sector employees would be eligible to the same pension benefits as civil servants from 2019. The Ministry of Labour is now in talks with the Thai government over how to...

June 2017

Thailand. State pension fund sees strong upside in local stocks

The Government Pension Fund will give more weight to the Thai shares in the second half, citing ramped up big-ticket infrastructure investment and the high price of foreign equities. Yingyong Nilasena, chief investment officer at the GPF, said Thai stocks have an upside potential as state spending in infrastructure projects will boost the country's GDP. This expanditure will increase local consumption and private sector expansion. Moreover, Thai stocks are laggards in the region, while stock prices in developed markets have skyrocketed. The...

March 2017

Thailand Government Pension Fund to Form Asset Management Unit

The Finance Ministry plans amending legislation to allow the Government Pension Fund (GPF) to form an asset management company to increase returns for members. Somchai Sujjapongse, permanent secretary for finance, aired the idea at the ministry on the 20th anniversary of the fund, which amounted to 758 billion baht in October last year. "The finance minister agrees with the plan... We are of the view the GPF is ready in terms of personnel who are able to manage investment in funds,"...