Last week I had the great pleasure of joining Professor Kriengsak Chareonwongsak for lunch in Bangkok. One of Thailand’s foremost economists, public intellectuals and policy thinkers, he is President of the Institute of Future Studies for Development and Chairman of the Nation-Building Institute. A former Member of Parliament and adviser to Thai prime ministers, he brings a formidable blend of academic scholarship and practical policy experience to any discussion surrounding today’s major economic challenges.
Our conversation ranged across economic development, innovation, leadership and the policies required to sustain growth. Dr Kriengsak kindly presented me with a signed copy of his latest book Thailand Reimagined: Ideas for a Better Future. I found it a most insightful contribution to a central policy debate: how Thailand can escape the middle-income trap and achieve lasting prosperity.
The timing was significant. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Ekniti Nitithanpraphat has very recently outlined an ambitious twelve-year roadmap to high-income status centred on innovation, scientific research, education and national competitiveness.
Thailand is not alone. Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines all face related challenges: reducing dependence on low-cost labour, developing higher-value industries and strengthening the institutions and human capital needed to support home-grown innovation and higher productivity.
For those following the Middle East–ASEAN capital and business corridor, these developments deserve close attention. The Gulf’s growing investment in AI, digital infrastructure and logistics aligns with ASEAN’s development priorities creating opportunities for genuine strategic partnerships rather than simply capital flows.
Escaping the middle-income trap will become ASEAN’s defining economic challenge over the next two decades. The real winners will be those that build the next growth model before the current one runs out of steam.
