PHUKET: In the countdown to the visit to Phuket by Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and Thailand's Cabinet, Phuketwan announces its PHUKET 10/10 campaign.
Over the days leading up to the important summit on March 19-20 at Prince of Songkhla University on Phuket, we will be examining 10 key issues that trouble Phuket - issues that simply have to be resolved.
These will not be the key pieces of infrastructure that Phuket also needs. These will be the 10 issues that cut to the heart of Phuket's problems - issues that must be resolved, and soon.
So far, Thailand's latest Government has shown its willingness to listen to people on Phuket - both inside and outside the tourism industry - who see the need for a range of reforms.
Will the words ''corruption'' and ''greed'' be mentioned over the next two weeks? We hope they are, often.
Phuketwan put its plan for a corruption-free Phuket in its 'Planet Phuket' series. Today we renew that call for a corruption-free Phuket.
Obliterate corruption on Phuket, and Thailand will have a role model for battling corruption throughout the whole nation.
In PHUKET 10/10 we will be concentrating on the practical and philosophical problems that stand between Phuket and enduring success as a tourist destination - and as a great place to live.
It's widely accepted that Phuket has never been given the cash it needs to support an important revenue-generating holiday island with a population that exceeds one million most months of the year.
Phuket is, in many ways, Thailand's most international province. The proportion of overseas workers and visitors is probably higher on Phuket than in any other part of the country.
Phuketwan's PHUKET 10/10 campaign aims to celebrate that difference, and offer bright ideas on how Phuket's future vision can be enhanced.
While the rest of the world has plenty of good suggestions, what has to be remembered is Phuket's essential Thainess. Traditional warm hospitality is what helps to draw tourists by the millions.
Phuket's rapid advance as an appealing tourist destination is what has accellerated some of its problems. Customs that worked well when Phuket was a collection of villages no longer work as Phuket grows rapidly towards becoming one big island-city.
Neighboring Krabi and Phang Nga are part of the future, too. A strategy must emerge quickly to preserve the reasons why the Greater Phuket region has prospered, despite increasing regional and global competition.
Taking the good ideas on offer from the rest of the world while rejecting the bad is one of the important missions that Phuket needs to pursue to ensure its future prosperity.
Preserving Phuket's Thai traditions as well as its natural attributes is an equally important priority.
In PHUKET 10/10, Phuketwan will list 10 segments where Phuket can set new standards, perhaps even becoming a role model for the rest of the country.
With the Asean economic community looming in 2015, all of Thailand will need to adapt quickly to new demands. Phuket can be the pioneer for the kinds of measures, a ''living laboratory'' to develop the economic and social planning that all of Thailand will need to quickly absorb.
At the same time, the chronic cynicism in Phuket's expat community has to end. Only constructive ideas that work for everyone can generate rapid change.
Now's the time.
Look for Phuketwan's PHUKET 10/10 series, beginning shortly. We welcome suggestions from all Phuketwan readers, from today on.
Over the days leading up to the important summit on March 19-20 at Prince of Songkhla University on Phuket, we will be examining 10 key issues that trouble Phuket - issues that simply have to be resolved.
These will not be the key pieces of infrastructure that Phuket also needs. These will be the 10 issues that cut to the heart of Phuket's problems - issues that must be resolved, and soon.
So far, Thailand's latest Government has shown its willingness to listen to people on Phuket - both inside and outside the tourism industry - who see the need for a range of reforms.
Will the words ''corruption'' and ''greed'' be mentioned over the next two weeks? We hope they are, often.
Phuketwan put its plan for a corruption-free Phuket in its 'Planet Phuket' series. Today we renew that call for a corruption-free Phuket.
Obliterate corruption on Phuket, and Thailand will have a role model for battling corruption throughout the whole nation.
In PHUKET 10/10 we will be concentrating on the practical and philosophical problems that stand between Phuket and enduring success as a tourist destination - and as a great place to live.
It's widely accepted that Phuket has never been given the cash it needs to support an important revenue-generating holiday island with a population that exceeds one million most months of the year.
Phuket is, in many ways, Thailand's most international province. The proportion of overseas workers and visitors is probably higher on Phuket than in any other part of the country.
Phuketwan's PHUKET 10/10 campaign aims to celebrate that difference, and offer bright ideas on how Phuket's future vision can be enhanced.
While the rest of the world has plenty of good suggestions, what has to be remembered is Phuket's essential Thainess. Traditional warm hospitality is what helps to draw tourists by the millions.
Phuket's rapid advance as an appealing tourist destination is what has accellerated some of its problems. Customs that worked well when Phuket was a collection of villages no longer work as Phuket grows rapidly towards becoming one big island-city.
Neighboring Krabi and Phang Nga are part of the future, too. A strategy must emerge quickly to preserve the reasons why the Greater Phuket region has prospered, despite increasing regional and global competition.
Taking the good ideas on offer from the rest of the world while rejecting the bad is one of the important missions that Phuket needs to pursue to ensure its future prosperity.
Preserving Phuket's Thai traditions as well as its natural attributes is an equally important priority.
In PHUKET 10/10, Phuketwan will list 10 segments where Phuket can set new standards, perhaps even becoming a role model for the rest of the country.
With the Asean economic community looming in 2015, all of Thailand will need to adapt quickly to new demands. Phuket can be the pioneer for the kinds of measures, a ''living laboratory'' to develop the economic and social planning that all of Thailand will need to quickly absorb.
At the same time, the chronic cynicism in Phuket's expat community has to end. Only constructive ideas that work for everyone can generate rapid change.
Now's the time.
Look for Phuketwan's PHUKET 10/10 series, beginning shortly. We welcome suggestions from all Phuketwan readers, from today on.
Provide security to those of us who wish to buy/lease property in Phuket. Increase the condominium threshhold and the 30 year lease term. Avoid "ripoffs" from unscrupulous developers.
Posted by petr on March 7, 2012 11:26