Newly appointed Industry Minister Akanat Promphan plans to set up an Industrial Reform Fund worth at least 20 billion baht to help manufacturers, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), better deal with liquidity and improve their competitiveness.
Many SMEs are struggling with liquidity and finding it difficult to access financial resources, while competition intensifies and technology changes rapidly, Mr Akanat said on Wednesday.
Various funds are already established under the ministry, including some intended to help SMEs. “We will integrate these funds into a single fund,” he said after his first meeting with senior industry officials.
Many funds are well-intended, but their functions may be redundant so they need to be managed under the Industrial Reform Fund to have clearer purposes, said Mr Akanat.
Creating the new could require amendments of some ministerial laws. “The process should be done within three months,” he said.
He expects the fund to help relieve SMEs’ worries about money problems and to pave the way for them to embrace technological changes to improve their businesses.
The government wants more Thai entrepreneurs to venture into new S-curve industries, including bioplastics, semiconductors and electric vehicles (EVs).
The Thai EV market is growing rapidly, in line with government policy to promote the production and purchase of zero-emission cars.
Under the government’s 30@30 policy, Thailand expects EVs to represent at least 30% of total motor vehicle production in the country by 2030. That would involve producing 725,000 zero-emission cars, 675,000 electric motorcycles and 34,000 electric buses and trucks.
Mr Akanat said he would also discuss with the Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand (IEAT) an idea to build a new industrial estate for SMEs.
Usually buying land to build factories inside industrial estates requires huge investment, but the new estate would serve SMEs with limited budgets.
“I will talk with the IEAT about a location and industrial zoning issues,” he said.