SBR- Content.pmd - INBO

State of the Basin Report - 2003The Thai areas of the LMB differ from the country as a whole. These areas comprise the whole ofthe Northeast Region and some of the Northern Region. These areas have been relatively neglectedin development terms, and the government is now promoting development in these regions in order tospread development more evenly across the country. 41 Agriculture’s share of GDP in these regions isstill well over that for the country as a whole but average rice yields are well below those on thecentral plains.Poverty alleviation is an important issue in the Northeast, with estimates showing that average percapita incomes in 1999 were around $630. This is one third of per capita incomes in Bangkok.Traditionally, the Northeast has been Thailand’s poorest region, with 19 percent of the populationliving in poverty. 42 In Thailand, poverty is largely a rural phenomenon which has been exacerbated byurban-rural migration and the decline in rural wages that followed the financial crisis in 1997. 43Despite the Northeast’s relatively poor status in national terms, the Thai parts of the LMB remain byfar the most developed areas of the LMB. The region has very good physical infrastructure, with allweatherroads, bridges and storage facilities. Local and national companies have made largeinvestments in the region, making agricultural and agro-industrial production more productive. Dairyingis widespread and milk production is increasing. Poultry and shrimp farms are found throughout theregion. In addition, a variety of manufacturing industries, including textiles, light assembly and rubberprocessing have been established.Thailand’s ‘Ninth National Economic and Social Development Plan (2002-2006)’ incorporates anumber of objectives aimed at bringing the country more balanced and sustainable development thanwas the case in the past. With emphases on good governance, strong social foundations andimprovements in natural resource and environmental management, the development plan addressestargets at a higher economic level than is the case with the development plans of Cambodia, LaoPDR and Viet Nam. Nevertheless, the Thai government also addresses poverty alleviation in itsstrategy. The target is to reduce poverty to less than 10 percent by 2006, 44 and regional planning forthe Northeast is now strongly oriented around poverty reduction. New initiatives are centred ondeveloping opportunities in agriculture and agro-industry.1.6 Common economic characteristics of the LMBThe overall economic situation in the four countries sharing the LMB are very different. Cambodiaand Lao PDR are both latecomers to development and industrialisation, and the two countries stillheavily rely on official development assistance. In Cambodia, the external contribution to the economywas around 13 percent of GDP in 2001. 45Viet Nam has achieved impressiveprogress during the last decade, with fastindustrial growth. However, the country stillhas high levels of poverty in many areas,which include the LMB. Thailand is by farthe most developed country in the LMBand overall is in a completely differenteconomic category than the other threecountries.Looking at the specific regions of the LMB,the economy is overwhelmingly naturalresource-based and perhaps three-quartersof the basin’s population still depend directlyIn Cambodia, growth in manufacturing and exports haslargely been a result of the garment industry92