Entrepreneurship awards presented to 14 Thai firms
FOURTEEN Thai companies were among the recipients of Asia-Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards (APEA) from regional non-governmental organisation Enterprise Asia.
They received their awards, trophies and certificates from Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong. Present at the awards ceremony in Bangkok yesterday were Dr Fong Chan Onn and William Ng, chairman and president respectively of Enterprise Asia.
APEA is a regional recognition programme organised by Enterprise Asia, a regional think-tank for entrepreneurship. The awards are presented to a handful of entrepreneurs across the Asia-Pacific region each year, with award ceremonies held in 13 countries every year.
The APEA 2017 Thailand ceremony was yesterday.
The organisers say APEA is often compared to the Olympics for the stringent entry criteria and highly competitive judging parameters. Nomination is by invitation only, with each nominee subjected to a rigorous judging process, including financial verification by an appointed audit firm and mandatory physical site audit and interview, culminating in a confidential balloting process by Enterprise Asia’s committee.
“We can say with certainty that the recipients of the APEA are like none others,” Ng said.
“Not only do they have to prove their entrepreneurial skills and experience in one of the toughest contests in the world, they also subject themselves to a pledge to uphold the highest standards of entrepreneurship, which includes allegiance to the two founding pillars of Enterprise Asia, namely investment in people and responsible entrepreneurship.”
Among the APEA Thailand recipients was Chai Chaiyawan, president of Thai Life Insurance, who received the Entrepreneur of the Year award.
Ng said: “The APEA is aimed at promoting entrepreneurship. Beyond recognising the efforts of these entrepreneurs, we hope to encourage them to continue taking their businesses to the next level and, in the process, provide more job opportunities to the people in the region, and help to drive the economy forward.”
Other award recipients included Dr Chalerm Harnphanich, chairman and chief executive of Bangkok Chain Hospital; Mikel Yaw Lung Uei, group managing director of Elebram Systems Co; Michael Plaxton, CEO of FWD Life Insurance, among others.
