World leaders want to hear from Prayut what is happening
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The global community has closely monitored how Thailand's military-backed government will tackle corruption, invest in infrastructure projects, build up the digital economy and hold the next election, said Philipp Roesler, managing director of the World E
The WEF has invited Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha to attend its annual conference in Switzerland, and he has confirmed his participation, Roesler said during an exclusive interview with The Nation.
“High-level political leaders and business leaders want to know what is happening now in Thailand, in particular economic development, and we’re very interested in learning what [has] happened in terms of fighting against corruption in Thailand,” Roesler said. They want to know about political reform, as the government has announced it will hold elections next year, he said.
About 35 heads of state and government will attend the WEF conference in Davos between January 21 and 24, he said. The annual meeting will highlight global economic development and the Asean single market.
Roesler visited Thailand last week, and he said he met with a deputy prime minister who is responsible for economic affairs and discussed how the government is fighting corruption, and how to foster infrastructure investment and build a digital economy.
The prime ministers of Cambodia, Malaysia and Vietnam as well as the president of the Philippines have also confirmed their participation at Davos, Roesler said.
Global political and business leaders are also interested in Asean economic integration, as the region will become a single market by the end of next year. Roesler said investors looked at Asean as first and foremost a great opportunity for foreign direct investment, as its 600-million population forms a huge market.
However, in Roesler’s point of view, the Asean Economic Community is much more than an economic project, but is a historic project that is very interesting. Asean and the European Union are quite similar in the concept of regional cooperation, as one country cannot succeed in the world but must have partners and friends.
Among European leaders, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande will also attend the WEF meeting, he said.
He was not sure yet whether Russian President Vladimir Putin would attend, but he said the participants would discuss the political tension between Russia and Europe arising from the Ukraine crisis.
Politicians have to find solutions for political conflicts while business leaders could propose to politicians that they want a peaceful environment in which to do business and create jobs, he added.
