New government urged to prioritise tourism in first 100 days

The sector is also closely monitoring the so-called Secondary City Voucher programme proposed by the leader of the Move Forward Party Pita Limjaroenrat during a forum organised by Nation Group in February, prior to the election.

Pita listed it as one of the urgent economic measures to be addressed within the first 100 days of government with the aim of attracting more tourists to secondary cities.

"What benefits are there if Thailand's tourism revenue of 2 trillion baht, mainly generated from foreign markets, is concentrated in just 5 provinces, accounting for 74% of the total income, while the remaining provinces do not benefit from it?" Pita asked during the forum, which looked at urgent economic measures for Thailand’s three main industries –agriculture, industry, and "tourism."

In the final Q&A session, he stated, "It has been a long time since the government has invested significant funds to promote secondary cities."

"I proposed the idea of a ‘secondary city voucher’ to attract tourists to cities such as Phrae, Mae Hong Son, Satun, Phatthalung, and others places that tourists do not really consider because the transportation is not all that convenient,” Pita said.

Pita mentioned the plan again on May 25, after winning the election, posting on his Instagram account pita.ig, "Throughout my campaign, I have seen many tourist destinations in Thailand, and there are more interesting places than where tourists actually go."

"I want to see Thai tourism recover from the Covid situation, with more people coming and staying longer than before, dispersed and not concentrated only in the capital city, but without damaging the environment."

According to the president of the Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT), Chamnan Srisawat, Pita also stressed the importance of close collaboration between the public and private sectors to enhance the effectiveness of the Secondary City Voucher.

"It is not easy to implement,” Chamnan noted, adding that one urgent issue for the tourism sector that the new government must address immediately is the labour problem, which he felt should be considered a national agenda.

TCT proposes two main solutions: first, developing the tourism workforce's skills through upskilling and reskilling programmes that align with the government's plan to increase the minimum wage to 450 baht per day. In this regard, TCT aims to collaborate with the Department of Tourism and the Department of Skill Development to elevate the skills of the tourism workforce in line with the industry's needs.

Chamnan emphasised that it is not about reducing labour costs for tourism entrepreneurs but rather about increasing wages and matching the workforce's skills.

Secondly, the Council suggested that the government properly regulate and facilitate the recruitment of foreign labour in the tourism sector without evading or sweeping the issue under the rug. TCT requested the Ministry of Labour to assess the labour demand from tourism entrepreneurs in all provinces to determine the required number of foreign workers.

Adith Chairattananon, Honorary Secretary General of the Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA), urged the new government to prioritise the promotion of tourism in both popular destinations like Phuket and emerging secondary cities.

He emphasised the need for financial support and manpower development for tourism operators, as well as amendments to laws to facilitate business activities.

Adith believes that Thailand's tourism industry can be a key driver in revitalising the overall economy.

“Tourism has played a vital role in generating income and distributing revenue, but currently, more than 84.5% of tourism revenue is concentrated in seven major provinces,” said Adith.

He suggested focusing on improving transportation infrastructure, including airports, and implementing visa facilitation measures to attract more international tourists to secondary cities.

Marisa Sukosol Nunbhakdi, the president of the Thai Hotel Association (THA), supports the proposal by the Move Forward party to increase the minimum wage to 450 baht per day.

She suggested that alongside this policy, there should be assistance for business owners, such as a two-year tax reduction of double the amount for SMEs.

This would particularly benefit SMEs in the hotel industry that are still facing financial challenges in renovating their establishments to continue their operations.

"The hotel industry has been significantly impacted by the pandemic for over three years. Although there has been some recovery, it remains concentrated in major tourist provinces. Small hotels have not recovered as much, " Marisa said.

The THA urged the new government to carefully consider a gradual increase in the minimum wage, aligning it with the economic situation and the realities of different industries or service sectors. Each type of work requires different skills and abilities, making it impractical to apply the same wage rate universally.

"The wage increase should be assessed during a period of economic improvement. Tourism has not fully recovered as expected, with fewer international tourists than anticipated, especially from the Chinese market. The hotel industry has only recovered by about 70% compared to pre-COVID times. It may take until 2024, instead of the previous estimate of 2023, for the industry to fully recover," Marisa added.