Dr. Prasarn emphasized that Thai education does not lack good policies but lacks mechanisms to ensure continuous policy implementation. He stressed that the Equity Fund does not act on behalf of any agency but aims to connect data, research, innovation, and collaboration from all sectors to create sustainable educational equity.
The Equity Fund for Educational Equity (EFE) organized the Equity Forum 2026 academic seminar under the theme “8 for Infinity: 8 Game-Changing Innovations for a Sustainable Future of Thai Human Capital.” Representatives from policy and legislative sectors, including education committees of the House of Representatives and Senate, members of parliament, as well as executives from key financial institutions, capital markets, and the Thai private sector participated.
Participating organizations included the Bank of Thailand, the Stock Exchange of Thailand, the Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Thai Chamber of Commerce Council, and the Federation of Thai Industries, exchanging approaches to reduce educational inequality and elevate human capital development as a long-term national investment.
Dr. Prasarn Triratvorakul, Chairperson of the Equity Fund Management Committee, delivered a keynote speech titled “8 for Infinity: 8 Game-Changing Innovations for a Sustainable Future of Thai Human Capital,” stating that the problem in Thai education is not the lack of good policies or good intentions but the discontinuity of reforms and the absence of institutional mechanisms that can effectively implement policies. Between 1999 and 2017, Thailand had 20 education ministers, averaging about 10–11 months per minister, whereas Vietnam and Singapore had only 4 and 5 ministers respectively during the same period. This led to many policies being reviewed or changed with each new government or administration.
"The key challenge is how to make policy continuity independent of personnel continuity, because good policies need foundational principles and must proceed despite political changes," Dr. Prasarn said.
The Equity Fund was thus designed as a mechanism linking all sectors, using data, research, and empirical evidence to design, test, and develop innovations, as well as to formulate policy proposals supporting education mechanisms both nationally and locally, without replacing any agency or working alone.
On the occasion of the Equity Fund entering its ninth year, Dr. Prasarn summarized lessons from eight years of work through “8 Game-Changing Innovations,” which are key mechanisms to reduce educational inequality in Thailand, as follows:
1. Data systems that enable the country to accurately identify children and their problems.
The Equity Fund developed a national individual child database connecting data from over 20 agencies, covering more than 4 million underprivileged and disadvantaged children and youth. This allows tracking educational pathways from early childhood through working age and using the data to mobilize cooperation to assist children based on actual needs.
Additionally, continuous surveys of the same group of children over nearly 10 years have provided Thailand with long-term data for analyzing development and learning quality, including factors causing inequality, to guide appropriate policy and investment decisions for each age group.
2. Guaranteeing educational opportunities to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty.
The Equity Fund developed a Conditional Cash Transfer system integrating poverty screening, physical development monitoring, and continuous school attendance in one system.
In 2025, this system supported 1.39 million extremely poor students from families averaging 1,236 baht per person per month, screened by over 400,000 teachers nationwide, resulting in a 97 percent retention rate in education for this group.
The Equity Fund also links funding pathways from kindergarten and compulsory education through higher education via vocational innovation scholarships, Princess Kanittha Samachip scholarships, Teacher Rakthin scholarships, and Opportunity Development and Scholarship (ODOS) programs to enable children to study to their fullest potential.
3. Thailand Zero Dropout identifies and creates learning pathways for out-of-school children.
Currently, Thailand Zero Dropout connects at least 11 key agencies nationwide, covering all 77 provinces, and has reintegrated over 330,000 out-of-school children and youth from 2024 into learning by the first semester of the 2025 academic year.
4. Self-Developing Schools elevate quality based on each area's needs.
This initiative builds mechanisms and networks enabling schools to analyze problems, use data, and continuously develop themselves, involving teachers, schools, communities, local authorities, and partners to collaboratively think and own the change.
In 2025, 1,364 schools in 48 provinces participated, and more than 3,661 schools used the Q-Info system to monitor and support students individually. The key is not just having tools but enabling schools to use data for learning and autonomous decision-making.
5. Teacher Rakthin develops quality teachers from local communities.
This program identifies and develops young people in communities to receive education and return as teachers in their hometowns. Graduates from the first two cohorts, totaling 622, serve in 555 schools across 52 provinces with a 99.6 percent retention rate in the profession. These teachers not only possess teaching knowledge but also understand the language, culture, and life context of children in their communities.
6. Flexible education brings the system to the child.
Flexible education is based on the principle that each child has unique life circumstances, so the education system should not force all children onto the same path but open opportunities for learning through diverse formats, times, and locations.
The “One School, Three Formats” innovation covers 927 districts, while Mobile School reduces spatial and temporal limitations. Additionally, 670 local learning management units in 71 provinces connect learning with life skills and careers.
The next step is developing a Learning Passport to recognize knowledge and skills acquired in workplaces, communities, or real life, allowing them to be certified and used for further education or employment.
“Flexible education does not lower standards but opens diverse pathways for everyone to reach their fullest potential,” Dr. Prasarn said.
7. All for Education transforms all sectors into investment partners.
Dr. Prasarn noted that over the past eight years, the Equity Fund's budget proposals submitted to the government have been reduced by about 20–25 percent annually on average, reflecting that educational inequality is too large and complex to be addressed by government funding alone.
The All for Education concept aims to change sectors from spectators to supporters and evolve into partners for transformation, shifting from donations to co-investment, and from short-term activities to long-term responsibility for children's outcomes. It reframes education budgets from "expenditures" to "human capital investments."
8. Empirical research turns beliefs into evidence.
Research reveals previously unclear issues such as the number of out-of-school children and youth, long-term development in rural areas, factors causing early-life inequality, and high-potential children from poor families, leading to well-designed policies and scholarships.
Dr. Prasarn said that cutting research budgets may seem to save money short-term but is like removing the compass from a ship; the ship can still move but cannot be sure it is heading in the right direction.
He emphasized that these eight innovations are not the Equity Fund's sole achievements but result from cooperation with over 400,000 teachers, more than 7,850 local administrative organizations, as well as government, private, academic, international, and civil society sectors nationwide.
The challenge ahead is to ensure these proven innovations can be sustainably developed without reliance on annual budgets or political changes, and to elevate education budgets from "expenses" to "investments in human capital," generating long-term returns for children, families, labor markets, and Thai society.
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