On The Grassroot Policy And The Proactive Foreign Policy Of Thaksin's Government

Taking his office of premiership, Thaksin began to fulfill his promises made during his election and started his four major grassroot measures in the rural areas, that is, the village/ community foundation plan, the plan of debt suspension for farmers nationwide, the plan of "one tombon one product" and the "30 Baht universal heathcare program". The successful implementation of the above policies has improved Thailand's economic growth greatly, and has proved to be well beneficial to Thailand's rural lower classes, who make up the majority of the country's population. The nationalwide support for his administration laid a stable base for his progressive foreign policy.To implement his proactive foreign policy, Thaksin first of all carried out his CEO ambassador policy which includes regular training on ambassadors' administrative skills and sufficient financial support. Apart from that first step, Thaksin had initiated a series of cooperation agreements, like Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) and Greater Mekong Subregion Economic Cooperation ( GMS ) .The above foreign policy has improved the status of Thailand and helped Thailand to gain lots of economic benefits.Although there are various problems with his domestic and foreign policies and he has been deposed by the military coup, Thaksin's policies have produced positive results that cannot be overlooked.