Suradech of Thai Sang Thai lays out a plan to promote the "Self-Reliant Province" strategy to overcome the war crisis amid disruptions in energy and the global economy.
On 26 March 2026, Mr. Suradech Thaweesangskulthai, Head of Economic Strategy for the Thai Sang Thai Party, revealed policy proposals to address the global crisis, especially the energy situation and oil prices which have severe impacts. He noted that centralized management alone has not been able to respond promptly to volatile conditions. The country's resilience in crisis depends largely on provinces’ ability to be self-reliant. Currently, the world faces a war crisis in the Middle East that directly affects energy and raw material transport routes, leading to a halt in the global economic flow impacting the entire supply chain. This includes effects on oil prices, fertilizer shortages, medicine scarcity, and industrial parts, which are expected to intensify and potentially disrupt people's livelihoods.
The Thai Sang Thai Party therefore proposes a provincial security project using a sandbox model piloted in Khon Kaen Province, which is well-prepared in medical services, serves as an energy hub, and has a strong agricultural production base. A provincial crisis management committee will be established, comprising government, private sector, local authorities, and social groups to drive security in five key areas: food, energy, medical care, finance, and resource management. Regarding finance, they propose setting up provincial funds of no less than 4 billion baht for large provinces and 2 billion baht for smaller ones to invest in necessary infrastructure. In public health, the focus will be on integrating modern medicine with Thai herbal remedies to address imported medicine shortages. Energy efforts will prioritize shifting transport systems toward electric power to reduce dependence on oil,” Mr. Suradech said.
“The project has outlined three scenarios to address situations ranging from a quick end to the war to a high-level conflict. After piloting the project in Khon Kaen for three months, an integrated provincial crisis management manual will be developed, along with an AI advisory system to support decision-making for administrators across all provinces nationwide within no more than three months. This strategic national decision must begin immediately to transition Thailand from an externally dependent system to a country capable of sustainably determining its own stability and security. Delays could cause widespread losses and limit responses to short-term fixes only.” Mr. Suradech emphasized this point.