54 Public Administration in Southeast Asia

Decentralization, posted by the 1997 Constitution, has had significant impacts on local government in Thailand. The new local electoral system, a strong executive system, and the new personnel system have changed the local political and administrative atmosphere during the past 10 years. This section of the chapter elaborates on the current surge of decentralization and current forms of local government in Thailand, including several ongoing issues that follow the surge of decentralization.

Thai scholars of public administration grew increasingly concerned to address weaknesses in local administration in the wake of the 1997 enactment of a new constitution that calls for extensive administrative and political decentralization in order to facilitate more efficiency and effectiveness in providing public goods and services. The decentralization policy also aimed at privatizing some local public services, promoting the emergence of civil societies, supporting the growth of democratic institutions, and responding to demands for greater local autonomy.

Chapter IX of the new People’s Constitution of 1997 calls for the rationalization of the assignment of administrative functions across central and local administrative jurisdictions and the creation of a decentralization committee to oversee implementation of new parliamentary enabling acts. The new constitution prompted steps to realize radical administrative and political decentralization in Thailand. At the same time, opponents of radical decentralization among Thai officials and scholars pointed to the limited readiness and capacities of Thai local governments to handle their local affairs.

3.1 Thailand Administrative Structure

There are three levels of government in Thailand: central (suan klang), provincial (suan phumipak), and local (suan tongtin) (Thailand National Public Administration Act of 1991 see Figure 3.1). Provincial governments (76 in total—75 changwats and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, BMA) are headed by a provincial governor appointed by central government (except for an elected governor of the BMA). Generally, governors are officials within the Ministry of Interior (MOI), and usually from the Department of Local Administration (DOLA). The governor serves as head of the provincial administration (sala klang changwat) and is responsible for implementing central government policies. (In effect, however, the governor largely acts as coordinator of agencies under the direct control of other central government ministries.) Down one level are the district offices (amphor) headed by district officers (nai amphor) appointed by central government. Further down the hierarchy are sub-districts (tambon) and villages (mubaan). Village headmen (phuyai baan) are directly elected by the villagers and the sub-district headmen (kamnan) are generally chosen from among the village headmen in each sub-district. These local leaders, however, are directly guided and supervised by provincial governors and district officers under central government control. In short, province (changwat), district (amphor), sub-district (tambon), and village (mubaan) are parts of provincial government, which is viewed as part of central government apparatus. Overall, there are 795 districts, 7,255 sub-districts, and 71,864 villages (Thailand Ministry of Interior, 2003). Major responsibilities of sub-district headmen and village headmen include law and order, security, disaster and disease prevention and control, population registration, transmitting central government policies, and other development-related work (see also Table 3.1 and Table 3.2).

Before 1999, based on the National Administrative Organization Act of 1991, there were five different types of local government, including the Provincial Administrative Organization (PAO or ‘ongKaan borihan suan changwat’), municipalities (tessaban), sanitary districts (sukapiban), the BMA, and the City of Pattaya. The legal bases for these forms of local government are found in the Provincial Administration Organization Act of 1997, the Municipal Act of 1953, the Tambon Council and Tambon Administrative Organization Act of 1994, the Pattaya City Administrative

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Decentralization and Local Governance in Thailand 55

Pattaya City

Tambon Administrative

Organization/Sub-district

Administrative Organization

Figure 3.1 Basic structure of current administrative system in Thailand.

Organization Act of 1999, and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration Act of 1985. These acts were subsequently amended in the Decentralization Plan and Procedure Acts of 1999, implementing legislation stemming from the 1997 Constitution. As a result, all sanitary districts (sukapiban) have been upgraded to sub-district/Tambon Administrative Organizations (TAO).

The extremely tight traditional central-provincial-local relations were patterned on British colonial administrative regimes. This strong central state was designed to secure control over outlying rural areas. The high degree of centralization of the Thai state survived the fall of the absolute monarchy in 1932 (Japan International Cooperation Agency, 2001: 49). Internal communist insurgency and the threat from neighboring communist countries during the 1970s and 1980s reinforced commitment to strong central control. Only since the 1990s, and despite strong opposition from the MOI, have Thai governments consistently supported decentralization.

Most local governments in Thailand feature weak financial management, insufficient resources, inefficient planning and service delivery, and deficient public infrastructure. These major problems, in turn, result from inadequate revenue resources, poor mobilization of existing revenues, lack of technical capabilities and personnel, and unclear responsibilities. The economic and social crisis beginning in 1997 coupled with the growing challenges of globalization have boosted the need for administrative reforms aimed at decentralizing, downsizing, and restructuring government at all levels. In this context, the importance of good governance at local level is apparent. As a result, decentralization policy is identified as a priority in Thailand’s 8th National Economic and Social Development Plan (1997–2001).

© 2011 by Taylor and Francis Group, LLC