CHAPTER 9 Social imbalances and spatial organization t the dawn of the 21st century, in the world from 1976; they were then revised in 1994 by the classification of countries by Gross National NSO to take into account changes in the consumer AIncome per capita in Purchasing power par- price index, population structure, nutritional needs ity, Thailand (at over 6,000 US$) is in the middle and consumption patterns. The new lines reveal a income group (see also plate 4 Population and higher incidence of poverty, though without contra- human development in Eastern Asia), a long way dicting the general downward trend: for the Kingdom behind Singapore (almost 23,000 US$) and Brunei, as a whole, the proportion of the population below behind Malaysia (about 8,000 US$), but nevertheless the poverty line fell from 29.9% in 1988 (23.7% a long way ahead of the other ASEAN countries. Still according to the former line) to 14.3% in 1994 (for according to the World Bank, Thailand is on a par 9.6%). Estimating incomes and poverty still comes with Malaysia with 2% of the population living below up against certain obstacles: unsatisfactory defini- the international poverty line, clear evidence of the tion of “urban”, over-registration of the population in beneficial effects of economic growth and of some of rural areas, under-recording of remittances received the policies conducted in the country. The inequality in from emigrants, difficulty in assessing the situation income levels, however, is greater than in a number of in-migrants in the Bangkok metropolitan region. of South-East Asian countries and in a world context Reducing inequalities is a theme that is regularly Thailand ranks high. According to national estimates, brought up at the planning stages but few redistribu- the income share of the poorest 20% of households tion policies have actually been imple-mented. While is barely 4% of national income compared with 60% the public authorities see poverty as an essentially for the richest 20%. rural problem, reducing regional dispa-rities is seen in terms of urban-based industrial deve-lopment and There has been sustained improvement in stimulating provincial growth, in addition to the provi- income levels from the middle of the 1980s: with sion of basic infrastructure (see chapter 3 The state annual growth rate at about 15%, income per capita and the construction of the territory). for the whole Kingdom almost tripled between 1987 and 1996. The general increase has spread but with The magnitude of the social impacts of the major disparities which the map of income levels by 1997 crisis is difficult to evaluate. A study carried province demonstrates in spatial terms, although out by the Thailand Development Research Institute the picture is only partial since intra-provincial areas (TDRI) between mid-1997 and 1999 identified as the (municipalities, sanitary districts, villages) cannot be main reasons the inadequacy and poor quality of differentiated (plate 66 Income and consumption social observations made beforehand (which would indicators). Household incomes are shown (cash in- have made before and after comparisons possible), come and income-in-kind), determined by the Nation- the time lag between the economic upheaval and al Statistics Office (NSO) based on socio-economic its effects, which may only be felt in the longer term. surveys on a sample of the population. This source The aggregated indicators for poverty or income level seems to be a more appropriate indicator for repre- reveal no major change between 1996 and 1998 (14% senting levels of household or individual income than and 14.3% of the population respectively below the the Gross Provincial Product per capita, an indicator poverty line) but the repercussions of underemploy- that shows overall economic achievements by giving ment and unemployment are clearly differentiated the value added of production. Among indica-tors of between socio-professional groups and areas. The consumption levels, residential electricity consump- incidence of poverty that touches the rural popula- tion is interesting since there is a good electricity tion gives a rate of 18%; poverty has increased in all supply in both urban and rural areas. regions (including Bangkok) with the exception of the North: the North-East is always in first position (24% Despite the differential effects of increased of the population below the poverty line) followed by incomes in space and in society, the incidence of the South (18%). Economic modernization has not poverty has declined, wherever the poverty line is set. generally been accompanied by the establishment The first poverty lines were defined in 1974 when the of mechanisms for social solidarity. In the wake of Thai government wanted to use some cut-off income the crisis, some emergency measures were taken level to determine a minimum legal wage and assess (health, education, job creation), with aid notably from the degree of poverty in the country. Poverty lines the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, to defined by the World Bank were used extensively cushion social impacts and the effects of the 1998 and 175 1999 budget cuts on public health, social services, marked by a long history. The permanence of inequal- education. As a result of the social decline exper- ity, whether in economic activities, infra-structure, ienced by some groups, other populist programs social services, or even individual incomes or value have been launched more recently: moratorium added, has shaped a country in which Bangkok, in on debt repayment for farmers, universal coverage the middle of the 19th century, was already the place healthcare, village revolving funds. where activities and wealth were concen-trated. The durability and disproportion of its pre-eminence, the Among the immediate effects of the crisis ob- contrast with the peripheral regions, have given rise to served in the TDRI study are the numbers of young depictions which, though not without foundation, are people leaving the school system, visible phenomena nevertheless exaggerated in what they concealed of of social distress but which cannot disguise the short- the dynamics at work and the transformations under- comings endemic in the public education system. way. New regions have emerged; the structuring of Although the literacy rate of the population is a clear the territory into three major peripheral regions con- success (the highest rate in South-East Asia), the tinues, but their varied dynamics and their internal or- education system has seen a significant drop-out ganization are proof that there is a diffusion of change rate in school attendance after primary school (cor- and growth, although indeed spatially uneven. The res-ponding to the 6 years schooling that were com- primacy of the central region is confirmed, however pulsory until 1999) with many giving up their studies with its outlines expan-ding and poles and corridors at the first level of secondary school. Thus Thailand of development emerging in the peripheral regions; is lagging behind all the other countries of South-East the highly unbalanced urbanization pattern remains Asia for levels of enrolment in secondary education. obvious, despite the expansion of municipalities along In addition to this overall characteristic there are the communication axes. Agricultural diversification specific spatial differentiations (plate 67 Education and intensification have led to inter- and intra-regional at primary and secondary levels). Confronted as it specializations which bring pockets of prosperity into is with spatial imbalances, due in part to the location close contact with areas that lag behind, and where of teaching establishments and employers, the higher the future of the rural population is no longer inexo- education system, universities and vocational insti- rably and exclusively associated with agriculture. De- tutes, has been unable to adapt to the rapid changes velopment in Thailand remains uneven in the spatial that have come about in society and the economy, dimension, as it is in society, but the inequality has and in particular it has not responded to the demand become more complex. The last two plates present an for professional qualifications (plate 68 Higher edu- assessment of this spatial complexity and inequality cation). This problem of qualifications lies at the heart based on analysis of the atlas maps. The first (plate of the education system reform promised in the 8th 69 Spatial organization) relies on a cartographic plan (1997-2001). The Education Act of 1999, and interpretation while the second (plate 70 Spatial the Vocational Education and Training Act, should model) is a synthesis that suggests the dynamics of provide a new basis for vocational education and the way in which the structure of the national territory further education by emphasizing links with industry. has developed. The different graphic representations At the same time, compulsory schooling has been match and complement each other. extended to 9 years and the minimum legal age for work has risen from 13 to 15 years old. By compar- ing two age groups, a clearer picture emerges of the changes that have occurred in secondary and higher education. The definition of the younger age group has reconciled those normally eligible for the different study levels with the age brackets for which information is given in the 1990 census results; the 35-44 group corresponds to individuals who are still working. The spatial dimension of the major and rapid changes that Thailand has experienced during the last three decades is written into a territory that has been ATLAS of THAILAND 176 VILLAGE LIFE and CITY ASPIRATIONS Emptying a pond (bo) before the first rains (Nakhon Ratchasima province) Photo Doryane Kermel-Torrès Enjoying the last days of respite before the ground has to be prepared for the sowing season, a family has got together in the open air to harvest and enjoy the fish from their artificial pond.