Government Support for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs): Four New Economic Working Groups

Government Support for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs): Four New Economic Working Groups

Introduction

On 10 August 2026, Ms. Suphajee Suthumpun, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce (“MOC”), chaired the first 2026 meeting of the Sub-Committee on the Development of Trade, Tourism and the Community Economy (the “Sub-Committee”). The Sub-Committee resolved to establish four specialized working groups tasked with restructuring the Thai economy across four dimensions:

• the creative and visitor economy;
• high-value agriculture and food security;
• the community economy and SMEs; and
• international trade.

The initiative is built on a two-tier delivery model:

• Quick Big Win (short-term): targets measurable results within 6 to 12 months, principally by reviewing and removing regulatory requirements that obstruct business. This tier is deliberately confined to measures achievable without amending primary legislation and without requiring substantial budget allocation.
• Big Win (long-term): targets structural reform over a two-to-four-year horizon to strengthen Thailand’s international competitiveness.

For businesses — particularly SMEs — the initiative carries particular significance. The MOC has identified small operators as accounting for approximately 35 percent of total national income, and the working group dedicated to the community economy and SMEs has been given an express mandate covering the entire entrepreneurial lifecycle, from business formation through to scale-up.

The initiative also places strong emphasis on regulatory and administrative reform. In particular, the Quick Big Win framework is intended to deliver practical improvements through measures that can generally be implemented without amendments to primary legislation.

The Four Working Groups

1. Creative Economy and Visitor Economy
   This group aims to extend the policy frame beyond conventional tourism to a broader visitor economy that includes those travelling to Thailand for education, business, and wellness purposes. Its work draws on Thailand’s cultural capital, identity, and visitor experience, and seeks to connect secondary cities and local communities to visitor spending.
2. Agricultural Products, Food Security, and High-Value Agriculture
   This group addresses the agricultural sector across the full value chain — upstream production, midstream processing, and downstream marketing — with the goal of moving Thai agriculture toward higher-value output, linking the sector more closely to industry and investment, and reinforcing food security.
3. Community Economy and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
   This group covers the entrepreneurial ecosystem as a whole: reducing licensing burdens, streamlining permit processes, building operator knowledge, upgrading goods and services, and promoting both scale-up and fair competition. Wholesale and retail trade is treated as a connected dimension of the same mandate. The group’s focus reflects the Government’s broader objective of improving the business environment for SMEs through practical regulatory and administrative reform.
4. International Trade
   This group focuses on promoting a more balanced import-export position, opening new markets, increasing utilization of existing free trade agreements, and responding to geopolitical pressure and non-tariff measures. It also carries the specific objectives of increasing SMEs’ share of the export structure and reducing dependency on any single market, thereby strengthening the resilience and international competitiveness of Thai businesses.

Legal and Regulatory Context

The Quick Big Win initiative is expected to be implemented through existing legal and administrative mechanisms, including:

• Facilitation of Licensing and Public Services Consideration Act B.E. 2569 (2026): streamlines licensing procedures and public service delivery through new administrative mechanisms, replacing and expanding the earlier framework under the Facilitation of Official Licensing Consideration Act B.E. 2558 (2015).
• Act on Legislative Drafting and Evaluation of Law B.E. 2562 (2019): facilitates stakeholder participation in the law-making and regulatory reform process.
• SME Promotion Act B.E. 2543 (2000): provides the institutional framework for SME development and policy coordination.

These instruments provide the legal and administrative foundation for implementing the Quick Big Win agenda, particularly in relation to licensing simplification, regulatory reform, public service efficiency, and SME development.

Key Takeaways

• The initiative underscores the strategic importance of SMEs in driving inclusive and sustainable economic growth.
• The Quick Big Win framework aims to deliver measurable regulatory and administrative improvements within 6 to 12 months, primarily through reforms that do not require legislative amendment.
• The Community Economy and SMEs Working Group has been tasked with supporting businesses throughout the entrepreneurial lifecycle — from establishment and compliance to expansion and competitiveness.
• Businesses should closely monitor developments over the next 6 to 12 months and take advantage of opportunities to raise regulatory concerns as reforms are implemented.
• Although the initiative does not create binding legal obligations, it offers an early indication of the Government’s priorities for future economic and regulatory reform.

Author: Panisa Suwanmatajarn, Managing Partner.

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