What Thailand needs is ‘grassroots start-ups’

Start-up, long a buzzword associated with Silicon Valley, is lately buzzing loudly in Thailand as the government shifts its budget allocations to the creation of a “digital economy”. Here as elsewhere, though, the term has taken on added sheen among everyone from ivory-tower economists to public-event organisers. Rather than denoting just individual ambition, “start-up” now increasingly refers to sweeping, multi-investor plans with the potential to affect world finances. It’s now more about “big money” and massive undertakings. 

In many ways the revised start-up calls to mind the underlying philosophy behind various digital innovations – “Give people the tools they need and see what happens.” But the financiers are no longer distributing to the tools among a select few. There are simply too many too many good ideas and opportunities out there for this technological revolution to be so limited in scope.

The government is hosting a gathering called “Start-up Thailand” this week to encourage those ideas and help foster the partnerships that can turn them into reality. State agencies and the private sector are fully engaged. Expectations are high.

However, while publicity ahead of the event has generated considerable excitement, it has failed to explain – in terms understandable to the average layman, even to some in the tech industries – exactly what the government has in mind. This has often been a shortcoming in state-sponsored public events in Thailand. The best of intentions run aground on a chronic inability to make people aware of what’s on offer, so that important opportunities are missed and those who might make the best use of the government’s assistance remain oblivious to the potential.

Thailand should not be seeking to replicate the Silicon Valley version of start-ups, in which only the young, the enthusiastic and the talented benefit. Such eager types are already prepared to work hard and are likely to succeed in their endeavours even without the taxpayer’s assistance. We should instead be identifying ways to distribute wealth, resources and opportunities more equitably. If the government is to play the role of facilitator, the beneficiaries of the start-ups it embraces should be citizens lower down on the socioeconomic ladder.

Technological advancements tend to be blindly democratic, though, and people’s positions on the rungs of the ladder aren’t always as clear as they once were. It’s now commonplace for professions and whole forms of business to come under threat from that other buzzword of the modern age, the “disruption”. Corporate executives find themselves staring at unprecedented – and certainly unanticipated – losses. The driving need today is to revamp strategies, rethink, regroup, start over and “start up” anew. Government help in overcoming the challenges becomes crucial.

“Start-up Thailand”, if it is to meet and preferably exceed expectations, will have to make the buzzword a priority on the national agenda and have an impact on millions of citizens, even those firmly attached to the agricultural sector. Let’s keep the meaning of the term foremost in mind. If all we can manage is to repeat what’s already being done, there is no start-up on which to build the future.

We need a master plan founded on clear objectives. The first question to be asked must be who it is the government aims to help, and the answer should be those who need it most. This notion of “grassroots start-ups” is a noble goal, and there are many ways the government can help. It can offer tax incentives, ensure easy access to funding, provide training and advice, and assist in marketing and logistics. As a developing country, Thailand will invariably struggle at first to support start-ups, but, if we are going to try, we should approach the task properly.