Technological Change and Agricultural Development: A Cade of Thailand

Abstract

The impressive growth rate of agricultural development in Thailand has been resulted from the expansion of farm areas which at the meantime is quite limited. The adoption of new technology is needed to maintain such a favorable growth rate. So far the government has promoted new improved seeds but can serve only less than 5% of total country demand. Fertilizer also should be used as a complementary input with new seeds. However, despite having a relatively stable increased in chemical fertilizer consumption, the level of adoption still very small with an average only 1.9 kilogram per rai. A risky input, with higher price of this input incorporated with low output price has slow down the rate of adaptabibly of this input. Sufficient amount of irrigation water is needed to facilitate more than half of farm population to grow rice and diversity their crops. The government invested so far in irrigation water which is not distributed throughout the country. The expansion of irrigation areas and upland areas have caused the rate of adoption of new farm mechanical powers to be increased during the past five years in Thailand. However, the lack of financial supported and the high price of this input have limit farmer, in certain extents, to use this new technique. In order to encourage the use of appropriate technologies. Extension, credit, marketing and government subsidy programs needed to be undertaken.