Nikkei Asia Prizes 2000

Supachai Panitchpakdi

Helping open the doors of trade Thai economist, politician to co-head WTO, push for developing-nation role

BY YOICHI IWAMOTO
staff writer

"I still want to become a medical doctor," says Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce Supachai Panitchpakdi. "I have always wanted to do something to save people's lives ever since I was in my teens."

That desire also served as a motivating factor when he was studying to earn a doctorate in economics.

Supachai was allowed to skip grades to finish his secondary education and was admitted into medical college. He was spotted by a Bank of Thailand official who was recruiting promising young people and persuaded the medical student to work for the central bank, saying an economist can save more people than a doctor.

He left medical college after just one year and in 1963 won a scholarship to study in Europe for 10 years. He majored in economics under Nobel laureate Jan Tinbergen at Erasmus University in the Netherlands and continued his research as a visiting fellow at the University of Cambridge in the U.K. During his long stay in Europe, he became convinced that multilateral trade should be promoted only after due consideration has been given to the needs of developing nations.

After supervising financial institutions for the Thai central bank, Supachai entered politics. There, he pushed for deregulation and was appointed deputy premier and minister of commerce by Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai in 1997, amid Thailand's economic turmoil. Despite his limited political experience, he was called on to help lift the nation's economy out of its severe slump.

Supachai has also been active on the diplomatic scene. He played a key role in launching the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), which is made up of 25 Asian and European nations and the European Commission.

He also called on neighboring nations to step up economic cooperation, which resulted in the creation of the BIST-EC in June 1997. The group, which originally consisted of Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand, was later joined by Myanmar. Supachai formed the group in the belief that the multilateral cooperation called for by the World Trade Organization should be premised on close regional cooperation.

Supachai enjoys a clean image in a country where many politicians are tainted by scandal. The mild-mannered minister has a reputation for never raising his voice even in heated debates. His low-key style, however, appears to be affecting his position within the government's inner circle.

Some political observers say that Supachai, who seems to have little political ambition of his own, appears to have been eclipsed by the more vocal Finance Minister Tarrin Nimmanahaeminda.

Amid the shifting political climate in Thailand, a new opportunity presented itself for Supachai to demonstrate his economic skills in the international arena when he entered the contest for leadership of the World Trade Organization.

After acrimonious wrangling, member nations finally agreed to let Supachai and former New Zealand Prime Minister Mike Moore share the next term.

The U.S. in particular tried hard to block Supachai's election because it didn't like his stance favoring developing nations.

The Thai minister will serve as WTO head for three years from September 2002 through August 2005.

When he won the top WTO job, Supachai pledged to construct a trade framework in which developing nations can play a more active role. Observers say he thus expressed his intention to counter the dominance of the U.S. and other rich nations.