The event “Reinvent Thailand, Rejuvenate SMEs: Driving Thai Industry Together” was jointly organized by SCG and its business partner network to serve as a collaborative platform for driving efforts that shape Thailand's economic future.
Chana Phumee, Advisor to the President of SCG and Vice Chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), revealed that Thailand faces a crisis with the lowest continuous GDP growth in ASEAN. Currently, SMEs contribute about 30-35% of GDP, which remains low compared to the global average of around 50%. This indicates that Thai SMEs still have significant room and opportunity for growth.
The major challenge in upgrading Thai SMEs is to double their productivity, in line with the World Economic Forum’s guidelines.
Somkid Jiranantrat, Advisor to the CEO of Krungthai Bank, and a key figure in developing the Paotang application, compared Thai SMEs to a tennis game where the serve is made but the player moves slowly toward the net, leaving the ball at their feet—an area known as No Man’s Land, where it is hardest to return the ball.
This reflects the status of Thailand’s medium and small businesses that cannot compete in the e-commerce market dominated by large, low-priced players like China, yet lack the capacity to reach premium markets.
Another trap holding SMEs back is their role as low-tier contract manufacturers, facing high investment but low profits. Entrepreneurs must invest heavily in machinery and factories but only earn about a 10% profit margin.
Additionally, they lack bargaining power; when technology changes or major brand owners relocate production, SMEs face immediate crises because they do not own their own products.
“Reduce expenses, increase income” is a phrase familiar to everyone, not just entrepreneurs or business owners. However, for SMEs, this approach must be precise and thorough.
Natee Sitthiprasat, Chairman of the Renewable Energy Industry Group, said SMEs in the supply chains of large companies will face increasing pressure from stricter Green Supply Chain requirements.
He expects that by 2030, the global market may require entire supply chains to use 100% clean energy. SMEs unable to meet this demand will face significant business challenges.
Natee suggested that unlocking government regulations and policies would help SMEs access green electricity sources more easily.
This could be achieved by liberalizing transmission lines, allowing small private entities to lease electricity transmission infrastructure from the Electricity Authority to directly supply green power to each other, similar to the model allowing third parties to use PTT’s natural gas pipelines.
Maintaining affordable energy costs is also critical. He noted that solar cell prices, once as high as 12 baht per unit, have now dropped to about 2 baht per unit, a level that encourages competitiveness among SMEs.
Somkid Jiranantrat spoke about creating a Thai Digital Platform to reduce reliance on foreign platforms that charge fees as high as 20-30%, and to cut costs from expensive utility software by promoting the use of SaaS (Software as a Service), paying only for actual usage.
SCG’s Go Together project is a strategic initiative focused on supporting SMEs to adapt to low-carbon businesses and enhance their competitiveness globally.
This collaboration between SCG, the Federation of Thai Industries, and partner networks emphasizes practical action, building networks, and facilitating access to funding.
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