Thailand risks falling behind as global longevity race gathers pace

Thailand has built a strong medical-tourism industry and begun investing in genomic medicine and connected health data, but it still lacks a clear national strategy for competing in the emerging longevity economy.

Countries worldwide are shifting beyond the wellness economy, which centres on businesses such as fitness, spas, healthy food and wellness tourism. They increasingly view longer, healthier lives as a source of economic growth, investment and national policy.

The change is being driven by rapidly ageing populations and the mounting economic cost of non-communicable diseases, or NCDs.

The World Health Organization projects that the global population aged 60 and above will rise from 1 billion in 2020 to 1.4 billion in 2030, equivalent to one in six people worldwide. The figure is expected to reach 2.1 billion by 2050, while the number of people aged 80 and above is forecast to triple over the same period.

Research by the World Economic Forum and the Harvard School of Public Health estimated that five major groups of NCDs — cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, cancer, diabetes and mental-health conditions — would cause cumulative global economic losses of US$47 trillion between 2010 and 2030.

Mental-health conditions alone were projected to account for US$16 trillion. In Thailand, a study by the WHO and the Public Health Ministry estimated that NCDs cost the economy about 1.6 trillion baht a year, or 9.7% of gross domestic product, based on 2019 data.

These pressures have encouraged governments to move away from systems focused primarily on treating illness and towards prevention, early screening and extending the number of years people remain healthy.

Countries adopt different longevity strategies

Singapore has restructured its health system around preventive care through the Healthier SG programme, launched by its Health Ministry in July 2023.

The programme encourages residents to register with a family doctor and receive an individual health plan. More than 960,000 people, or about 40% of the target population, had registered by August 2024, while the chronic-disease screening rate rose from 60.3% to 62.6%.

Japan, which entered an ageing society earlier than many countries, is developing elderly-care robots, AI-assisted care systems and smart-home technology that can help older people live safely and independently.

The Japanese elderly-care technology market was estimated at US$1.18 billion in 2025 and projected to reach US$3.76 billion by 2033. Public- and private-sector investment in elderly-care robotics research and development reportedly exceeded 200 billion yen.

The United Arab Emirates is pursuing a genomics-led strategy through the Emirati Genome Programme, which has collected more than 600,000 DNA samples to build a genetic reference database for precision medicine.

Dubai also opened its first longevity clinic in September 2024, offering genomic services, AI-based health-data analysis and preventive care. Its plans include expansion into other Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Silicon Valley, London and Toronto.

Saudi Arabia has incorporated wellness, biotechnology, smart cities and preventive healthcare into its Vision 2030 economic-diversification strategy. The approach is also linked to NEOM, which is positioned as a regional model for health-focused urban development and longevity.

The United Kingdom is focusing on biotechnology and precision medicine. Its Life Sciences Sector Plan includes more than £2 billion in public funding, including £600 million for a national health-data platform connecting genomic, diagnostic and clinical information.

The country’s life-sciences industry generates about £147 billion annually and supports more than 360,000 jobs, according to the British government figures cited in the report.

In the United States, large-scale private investment complements government funding for biotechnology, precision medicine and health-related artificial intelligence.

The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health received annual funding of about US$1.5 billion between the 2023 and 2025 fiscal years, while longevity biotechnology companies including Altos Labs and Retro Biosciences raised capital for research into cellular ageing.

South Korea is also investing heavily in AI healthcare, digital health, precision medicine and biotechnology after officially becoming a super-aged society in December 2024.

People aged 65 and above accounted for more than 10.24 million residents, or 20% of the population, while the country’s fertility rate stood at 0.75 births per woman in 2024.

Thailand has assets but no unified strategy

Thailand ranks fifth globally for medical tourism and has long promoted itself as a medical hub. It also earns income from wellness-related products and services, including traditional herbs and spas, and benefits from the strength of its private hospitals.

However, a longevity economy requires more than medical and wellness services. It also depends on national policy, preventive healthcare and systems that help people remain healthy for longer.

Thailand’s health budget remains concentrated on treating people after they become ill, even as the country is reported to be ageing at the third-fastest rate globally and the second-fastest in Southeast Asia after Singapore.

Health literacy has improved among several age groups, with more than 90% of working-age respondents recording high levels in a 2026 Department of Health monitoring system.

Nevertheless, knowledge has not always translated into healthier behaviour. More than half of the population continued to engage in activities associated with higher NCD risks, including consuming excessive amounts of sugar, fat and salt.

Thailand has laid some foundations for a longevity economy by expanding preventive screening, encouraging diagnostic innovation and connecting health records between hospitals.

The government is also extending access through the Thang Rath application, allowing doctors to retrieve information more continuously, reduce repeated tests and avoid duplicated treatment.

The Public Health Ministry and the WHO are developing a Digital Health Wallet and standards for exchanging health information, with the aim of allowing people to access and control their own records while supporting future domestic and international data connections.

The first phase of Genomics Thailand, implemented from 2020 to 2024 with a budget of more than 4.47 billion baht, sequenced the genomes of more than 34,000 people against a target of 50,000.

The project is moving into its second phase, covering 2025 to 2029, and is expected to provide a foundation for the future precision-medicine economy.

Thailand has also established a regulatory framework for advanced therapy medicinal products, providing infrastructure that could attract investment in cell and gene therapies.

Despite that progress, longevity-related initiatives remain divided among ministries, medical schools and private companies.

Unlike Singapore or the UAE, Thailand has yet to establish an official national longevity-economy strategy supported by an integrated policy framework and dedicated public funding.

Source: Posttoday