Thailand Urged to Strengthen Green Finance and Trade Resilience Amid Global Economic Shifts

 

 

Experts highlight climate adaptation revenue models and local currency markets as key priorities for regional leadership.

 

 

Thailand must accelerate its development of green financing frameworks and local currency markets to maintain economic resilience amid mounting global trade pressures, senior officials and international development experts said at a high-level seminar on Monday.

 

The International Institute for Trade and Development (ITD), in partnership with the Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Harvard Club of Thailand, convened more than 150 participants at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Videsh Club to examine strategic responses to evolving global trade dynamics outlined in UNCTAD's Trade and Development Report 2025.

 

The panel discussion brought together Rujikorn Saengchantr, director general of the International Economic Affairs Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Auramon Supthaweethum, director general of the Department of Intellectual Property; Aaron Batten, country director of the Asian Development Bank's Thailand Resident Mission; and Dr Csilla Lakatos, senior economist at the World Bank Group.

 

 

 

Three-pillar strategy for navigating turbulence

Rujikorn likened the current global economic climate to severe turbulence, warning that industrial subsidies reached their highest level since the 2008 financial crisis in 2023, totalling more than $100 billion and representing 1.3% of firm revenue. 

 

She described this as a fundamental shift away from WTO principles, with the United States having withdrawn from 66 international organisations.

 

 

 

 

 

"We are seeing the massive surge in industrial subsidies that distort the global playing field," she said, adding that unilateralism disguised as national security is becoming the new norm.

 

To navigate these challenges, Rujikorn outlined a three-point repositioning strategy for Thailand.

 

First, diversifying free trade agreements and economic partnerships, with Thailand currently negotiating FTAs with the EU and South Korea whilst monitoring the potential Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific under China's APEC chairmanship. 

 

She noted Thailand's consideration of joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, quoting former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating: "If you are not at the table, you be on the menu."

 

Second, avoiding over-dependence and safeguarding autonomy by strengthening engagement with China and India whilst expanding into new frontiers including Africa, South Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America through the renewed Thailand-Africa initiative. 

 

Rujikorn also highlighted Thailand's pursuit of OECD accession and partner country status with BRICS as risk management measures.
 

Third, managing domestic risks, including addressing labour shortages through a new programme enabling 42,000 long-stay displaced persons along the Thailand-Myanmar border to access lawful employment in electronics and agriculture sectors, with some 6,000 employers requesting these workers.

 

 

 

 

IP framework reforms to capture value

Auramon addressed the challenge that whilst developing economies account for a growing share of global trade, they capture disproportionately less value in IP-intensive activities. 

 

 

 

 

She outlined a comprehensive strategy to help Thai firms move beyond participation towards value capture in global value chains.

 

"We need to reformulate or adjust Thailand's intellectual property framework to move from domestic innovation capability towards market trends," she said, noting that the top five sectors applying for trademark and patent registration align with targeted industries.

 

The Department of Intellectual Property is working on four key pillars. On IP creation, the department is collaborating with the Ministry of Higher Education and innovation agencies to help start-ups, SMEs, and universities create commercialisable intellectual property through self-check tools, patent searches, and trend analysis.

 

 

"We may not need to have a big amount of filings, but we need quality patents that can be protected and commercialised," Auramon said.

 

On IP protection, Thailand is revising patent, copyright, and industrial design laws to reduce backlogs, streamline registration processes, and enable accession to international agreements including the Hague Agreement on industrial design. Fast-track registration channels have been established for AI, green technology, and digital technology sectors.

 

 

For commercialisation, the department has established advisory centres and IP management clinics in partnership with the World Intellectual Property Organisation to help SMEs use IP strategically. 

 

Auramon highlighted geographical indications as particularly important for rural communities, with 252 GI products registered across agricultural and non-agricultural sectors.

 

On IP financing, she acknowledged a critical gap despite Thailand's Business Collateral Act being in place for ten years. 

 

"Intellectual property can use the benefit of this act for only 0.07% of the total value," she said, attributing this to banks' concerns about IP valuation and the lack of secondary markets for reselling intellectual property used as collateral.

 

Thailand is now working with WIPO and the Asian Development Bank to create an ecosystem enabling efficient IP financing.

 

"Strengthening all four pillars of IP value chains is essential in this structural transformation to become an innovation-led growth economy," Auramon concluded, emphasising that public-private collaboration is key to moving Thailand from technology absorption to domestic innovation capability.

 

 

 

 

Rising debt burdens constrain development

Dr Lakatos warned that increasing debt servicing costs are squeezing fiscal space for essential development priorities across emerging economies. 

 

"The implication of this rising debt and interest payment is the shrinking fiscal space that governments can allocate to development priorities whether it's health, education, infrastructure, climate," she said.

 

The World Bank economist emphasised that limited access to long-term finance is constraining private sector innovation and investment. 

 

In response, the World Bank is deploying concessional lending, guarantees, and blended finance instruments to lower capital costs and crowd in private investment, particularly in climate and digital infrastructure.

 

 

 

 

 

Green finance opportunities for Thailand

Batten highlighted Thailand's potential to cement its position as a regional leader in green finance, noting that the country already serves as a model for neighbouring nations. 

 

However, he identified significant challenges in channelling existing capital into green infrastructure, particularly for climate adaptation projects.

 

"Why isn't all of that funding that exists in the region being channelled into more infrastructure and long-term financing?" Batten asked, pointing to uncertain revenue streams, evolving regulatory frameworks, and currency risk as key barriers.

 

He outlined three priorities for scaling up green investment: aligning national frameworks with international standards to prevent greenwashing; developing innovative revenue models for climate adaptation projects that involve private sector partners such as tourism operators; and deepening local currency markets to support long-term energy investments.

 

Batten cited Thailand's coastal adaptation needs as a prime opportunity for public-private partnerships. 

 

"How can we build partnerships locally with hotel providers, with tourism operators, with other beneficiaries of these ecosystem services to generate revenue streams that can incentivise investment in what is otherwise being traditionally a public sector activity," he said.

 

 

 

Trade finance and global financial cycles

UNCTAD's research, presented earlier in the seminar, revealed strong correlations between global financial conditions and world trade volumes. 

 

Dollar appreciation has particularly pronounced effects, with a 1% rise in the US dollar against foreign currencies associated with a 0.6% decline in global trade volumes after six months.

 

The research highlighted that manufactured goods trade is more closely linked to global financial cycles than primary commodities, making Asian manufacturing economies more exposed to financial volatility.

 

Trade finance emerged as a critical concern, with the International Finance Corporation playing an increasingly important role in supporting small and medium enterprises.

 

 

 

 

Path forward

The seminar concluded with cautious optimism about Thailand's prospects over the next five to ten years. Panellists emphasised the importance of institutional capacity building, transparent debt management, and public investment frameworks alongside immediate financing solutions.

 

"We started off with challenges that seem very hard to overcome, but we ended our talk with positive vibes in terms of what are the potential things that we can leverage," the moderator said in closing remarks.
 

 

The event formed part of broader efforts to align Thailand's trade strategy with rapidly evolving global economic conditions, combining insights from international development institutions with domestic policy expertise.