"Thailands Women Development Plan Under the 10th Economic and Social Development Plan for 2007-2011"

 
An Evaluation of Thailand’s Women Development Plan Under the 10th Economic and Social Development Plan for 2007-2011 Focus on Policy Strategy in Fostering Women’s Economic Participation Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1. Statement and Significance of problems The Progress Report on Women’s Development Plan (2006) included in the 9th National Economic and Social Development Plan or NESDP (2002-2006) indicated that Thai women worked side by side with men in the country’s economic development specifically in nurturing the family unit to contribute significantly in economic development (p.2). In particular, they play crucial roles in caring for the young and elderly members of the family. However, enforcing gender equality in the employment sector has been found to be ineffective in the implementation of ESDP. Compared to men, Thai women were found to have lower wages, unskilled, and enjoy a very unstable, lower or no work benefits at all (p. 3). As a result, Thai women, particularly the poor and the disadvantaged, face higher risk of threats on moral and physical aspects. Poor performance to health related issues is one of the direct manifestations of these threats. The increasing trend of single families headed by Thai women led them to take on the roles of household heads in Thai family units (p.3). This issue as well as an anticipated 14Million additional elderly Thai population poses higher responsibility to Thai women who in recent years had increased their numbers in the formal employment sector. Due to these factors, the Thai Royal Government has specifically included in its policy strategy for women development under the 10th NESDP (2007-2011) to foster women’s economic participation as one of the means to strengthen the support of Thai society for women’s rights. Women’s full integration into the formal economy and full involvement in decision making are the measures of their economic participation in Thai society. Specific strategies under the 10th NESDP must address the following economic inequality between genders: (a) elimination of unequal pay, (b) enhancement of opportunities for education and (c) enhancement of opportunities for employment (p. 7). It has been approximately two years now since these strategies were planned and expectedly implemented by the Thai Government with the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security taking the lead in its implementation through its Office on Women’s Affairs and Family Development in coordination with other government offices and stakeholders. Evaluating the progress made by this policy strategy in the first two years of its implementation particularly in eliminating gender inequality in economic opportunities and benefits is important to assess what actions to implement in order to correct or enhance specific strategies to intensify the accomplishments of its overall goal of enforcing economic participation of Thai women at the end of the five y ear implementation of the 10th NESDP. 1.2. Research Questions The central research question of the dissertation is: Is there a significant accomplishment in the implementation of the strategies adapted in women’s development plan under the 10th NESDP to enforce the economic participation of women in Thailand? The following are the specific research questions of the dissertation: a. Has there been a sizeable integration of women into the formal economy compared in the last five years prior to the implementation of the 10th NESDP? b. Have there been a sizeable number of women that were involved in decision making compared in the last five years prior to the implementation of the 10th NESDP? c. Has there been a concrete result in the strategy to eliminate inequality of pay between genders compared in the last five years prior to the implementation of the 10th NESDP? d. What are the concrete improvements in the opportunities for education of women in the first two years of the implementation of women’s development plan in the 10th NESDP?