Questions/Answers

The core objective of the Thailand Government Spending Initiative is to revolutionize how the government reveals the information to the public. Instead of waiting passively for the people to request the government revenue and procurement data through unaffordable and complicated processes, the initiative proactively discloses government revenue and procurement information through digital means, website and mobile application, which can be accessed with minimal limitations. The Thailand Government Spending initiative integrates reliable data on government revenue and procurement from numerous government agencies. Data analytics is then performed, visualized and presented in easy-to-understand digital formats. The initiative enables ordinary people including the impoverished and the disadvantaged with only basic computer skills to access the data with minimal limitations. In this regard, not only does the Thailand Government Spending Initiative as the digital innovation in Thailand help enhance government’s transparency, openness and accountability, it also empowers ordinary Thai people of all socio-economic statuses to perform their duties as citizens with dignity. Thai people can scrutinize and monitor the Royal Thai Government’s revenue and expenditure more effectively and conveniently with their own fingertips. It is a strong foundation for creating a more accountable government and more robust democratic governance in Thailand.

The Thailand Government Spending initiative is the output of resolution of the National Counter Corruption Commission chaired by the Prime Minister on 13 July 2015 to enhance government’s transparency and accountability. With strong determination of the government and co-operation from key government agencies, the initiative has been successfully implemented. Apart from easy and convenient access to government expenditure and revenue data for ordinary people, they can also submit complaints about corruption or delays in any government procurement projects to the Office of the Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission or the Office of the Prime Minister to investigate with their fingertips.

The Thailand Government Spending initiative contributes to the SDG’s Target 16.6 of Goal 16 - develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels. With reliable government revenue and expenditure data updated regularly and presented in easy-to-understand digital formats, the initiative empowers citizens of all socio-economic statuses to scrutinize the government’s revenue and expenditure without limitations. Moreover, every citizen is also entitled to lodge formal complaints if they suspect corruption in any government procurement projects through the initiative’s website or mobile application. In this regard, the initiative substantially helps enhance government accountability to taxpayers which makes the SDG successful.

The Thailand Government Spending initiative is therefore a tool for empowering the impoverished and the disadvantaged to perform their citizen duties with dignity. The initiative is a remarkable example of “digital for all” which is successfully implemented in Thailand. Before the Thailand Government Spending Initiative was launched, it had been almost impossible for ordinary people, especially the impoverished and the disadvantaged, to acquire the comprehensive details of more than a million government procurement projects from numerous government agencies around the country through unaffordable and complicated processes. The impoverished and the disadvantaged in Thailand therefore was excluded from political participation and anti-corruption missions. Their citizenship was only meaningful for only 4 seconds when they cast their ballot papers to vote for Members of Parliament. The Thailand Government Spending initiative becomes a digital solution to provide opportunities for Thai citizens to access comprehensive digital and reliable data on government revenue and procurement from only one source anywhere anytime. Therefore, the impoverished and the disadvantaged in Thailand are empowered to perform their duties as citizens with dignity as they can scrutinize the revenue and expenditure with minimal costs with only their fingertips. The “Digital for All” slogan becomes reality through this initiative.

The initiative is innovative in four ways. First, comprehensive and reliable data on government revenue and procurement projects around Thailand is open through digital means, (website and mobile application). Second, it integrates a large amount of data from all government agencies responsible government revenue and expenditure. Third, data analytics is performed and the data is presented in easy-to-understand formats such Lastly, the initiative becomes a tool to empower the impoverished and the disadvantaged to monitor government spending and report any suspicion about corruption in or delays to any projects with their fingertips, which helps enhance the government transparency and accountability.

The initiative is the original innovation of Thailand in opening government data to the general public. Even though government agencies in Thailand have revealed the details of their procurement projects through digital means, it is too difficult for ordinary citizens to access and understand. The Thailand Government Spending is able to integrate comprehensive and reliable government revenue and expenditure data, perform data analytics and presented the data in easy-to-understand digital formats for the first time in Thailand’s history. It becomes the single reliable source for ordinary people to access government revenue and procurement data with minimal limitations.

The principles of the Thailand Government Spending initiative which include the integration and analytics of comprehensive and reliable government data and the presentation of the government data in easy-to-understand digital formats to enable ordinary people to access and understand are adopted by the Public Debt Management Office (PDMO) under the Ministry of Finance. The PMDO initiated the similar project integrating and presenting updated information on public debt of Thailand in easy-to-understand digital formats. It can be accessed through digital channels at http://www.pdmo.go.th/th/public-debt/debt-remaining-maturity and the PDMO mobile application. Ordinary Thai citizens can access and understand the information quite conveniently.

The Royal Thai Government is determined to reveal government data in easy-to-understand digital formats through and assigns the Digital Government Development Agency (Public Organization) (DGA) to implement the Thailand Government Spending initiative. The DGA works in partnership with other key government agencies responsible for government revenue, budget allocation and procurement and derives their comprehensive, reliable and up-to-date data in order to perform data analytics and design the presentation. Essential digital infrastructure for the initiative such as Government Cloud is already one of the DGA’s products. The budget for the project is also supported annually by the government.

The sustainability of the initiative is considered in two aspects: the sustainability of the initiative itself and the sustainability of the culture which the initiative helps instill. With regard to the first aspect, the initiative is supported by the government’s policy. All government agencies have been working with the DGA as partners to make the initiative comprehensive, reliable and accessible for ordinary citizens through digital channels. Advanced digital technology also make data integration and analytics effortless. Moreover, there are rules and regulations already in place which guarantee people’s fundamental rights to access government information. These rules and regulations will serve as the supporting factors for the initiative. More importantly, the government implemented the universal broadband policy which rolls out high-speed internet in around 25,000 villages around the country. This policy enables the impoverished and the disadvantaged to access to reliable high-speed internet. The other aspect of sustainability which is as significant is the ideology and culture of transparency and openness. The Thailand Government Spending Initiative substantially helps government officials and the entire Thai society to internalize the culture of transparency, openness and encourages Thai people to realize their fundamental rights to access government data and information with minimal limitations.

Yes

In 2017, the DGA submitted the details of the Thailand Government Spending initiative for the Thailand Public Service Awards (Innovative Government Service Award). The initiative was then formally evaluated by the Office of the Public Sector Development Commission (OPDC). The DGA was initially required to answer a bunch of questions in writing to elaborate how the initiative was innovative and beneficial for Thai citizens. The judges then visited the DGA to interview the executives and staff responsible for the initiative. The judges also tested the operability and usability of the initiative before reaching the verdict.

The indicators of the Office of the Public Sector Development Commission (OPDC) for the evaluation for the Thailand Public Service Awards (Innovative Government Service Award) put emphasis on two major aspects: service quality elevation management and outcomes of service quality elevation. With regard to the first aspect, the focuses were on efficiency, quality, change to management and the most significant component was creativity. The initiative was also evaluated on the basis of outcomes which focused on the impacts on specific target groups such as the impoverished, cost reduction for ordinary citizens to access government services or data and sustainability.

The Thailand Government Spending initiative won Initiative won the Thailand Public Service Awards (Innovative Government Service Award: Excellent Level) based on the procedures and indicators set by the Office of the Public Sector Development Commission (OPDC) in 2017. The principles of and the lessons from the initiative was publicized by the OPDC so that other public organizations can apply the lessons for their own initiatives in the future. The article on the initiative was also published on the OpenGov website based in Singapore, https://www.opengovasia.com/article/exclusive-thailand-government-spending-govspending-initiative-a-digital-innovation-for-a-transparent-government-and-citizen-empowerment. Organizations worldwide can now access the information on this initiative.

At the policy level, the National Counter Corruption Commission resolved in 2015 to put forward the revelation of government procurement data in easy-to-understand formats through a single digital channel. The resolution set the strong and clear direction for the initiative. At the operational level, the Digital Government Development Agency (Public Organization) (DGA) has been assigned to implement the initiative. Many government agencies provide reliable data in digital formats which can be used for analytics and presentation. All government agencies have been providing by updating their primary data either on government revenue or procurement projects regularly in the central or their own databases. The agencies then agree to share their data with the DGA to integrate, perform data analytics, visualize and present in easy-to-understand formats such as dashboards, charts, maps and infographics. The Office of Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission and the Office of the Permanent-Secretary of the Prime Minister’s Office participate in the initiative to receive and process people’s formal complaints on corruption or delays. In addition, Thai people not only utilize the data to scrutinize the government more effectively to ensure accountable and transparent government institutions, they can also make suggestions or recommendations for improving the initiative in the future.

First and foremost, digital technologies can help enhance government transparency and accountability. Second, the initiative clearly illustrates that digital technologies are not only for the rich who can afford expensive devices. Digital technologies can be used to empower the impoverished in the society to be active citizens with dignity. Third, three principles should be followed when presenting information to people through digital channels: simplicity, clarity and accessibility. Fourth, co-operation from all government agencies and other stakeholders are critical. The initiative cannot be created all of a sudden, but it is a result of continuous efforts by many governments and organizations.