The cabinet has approved a new research institute, with the government pledging support of 1 billion baht during 2019-22.
Thosaporn Sirisamphand, secretary-general of the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB), said the Institute of Public Policy and Development is tasked with handling R&D on future trends and the centre is to become operational next month.
"The new institute approved yesterday will take care of conducting R&D on future challenges, enabling the government and public to prepare for them," he said. "One of its major tasks is to conduct R&D that helps in tackling income disparity, and it should function as a policy lab in advising the government."
Mr Thosaporn said a new generation of independent experts will be recruited to work for the institute to cope with challenges such as an ageing society, rapid urbanisation and human resource development to embrace the Thailand 4.0 economy, focusing on technology and innovation.
The institute will be allowed to hire public and private sector experts, both from Thailand and abroad, to conduct R&D to support the country's future development and social and economic reforms, as well as map out the 20-year national strategy, he said.
NESDB staff can switch to work for the institute in 2-3 years to refresh their capabilities and upgrade their potential, Mr Thosaporn said.
The NESDB is still tasked with analysing and supervising state enterprise investment, though the State Enterprise Policy Office is not yet ready to conduct an analysis of state enterprises' projects, he said.
The NESDB is responsible for mapping out the country's five-year national social and economic development plan, which must comply with the changing social and economic environment, and upgrade the country's overall competitiveness. It is also required to conduct a development plan for each region to increase their competency.
In a related development, the cabinet approved 638.94 billion baht worth of investment budget in 2019 for 55 state-owned enterprises.
Mr Thosaporn said the 2019 investment was down by 207 billion baht from 846.33 billion in fiscal 2018.
The decrease stems largely from lower investments by PTT Plc and its affiliated companies. PTT plans to raise the registered capital of its affiliated companies, worth a combined 12 billion baht in 2019, from 300 billion in fiscal 2018.
Significant investment projects include the 24.57-billion-baht Purple Line southern extension between Kanchanaphisek Outer Ring Road and Tao Poon; the Orange Line's eastern and western sections spanning Bang Khun Non-Thailand Cultural Centre-Min Buri worth 143 billion baht; the 23.12-billion-baht Thai-Sino high-speed rail network, and a 15.24-billion-baht natural gas pipeline.
The cabinet also approved a budget of 1.29 billion baht to establish a new industrial estate in Songkhla.