CHANGES IN RURAL AREAS OF NORTHEAST THAILAND IN THE LATTER HALF OF THE 1980S AS SEEN
THROUGH THE NORTHEAST THAILAND VILLAGE INFORMATION SYSTEM
NAGATA Yoshikatsu
Research Associate, Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University, Japan
Commission VII, Working Group 9
KEY WORDS: Socio-economic Database, GIS, Rural Development, Northeast Thailand, Monitoring
ABSTRACT
The economic growth of Thailand since the mid-1980s has been remarkable and has transformed the socio-economic
environment of rural areas. The Thai government regularly conducts a village-level survey covering all villages in rural
areas across the country. Since the 1986 survey, the results have been input into a database. The reliability of the
individual data is not necessarily high, but the survey has a big potential for use in view of its wide coverage and
continuity. | have been developing a Northeast Thailand Village Information System (NETVIS) as a GIS application
with a view to using the village-level survey to identify the transformation of rural areas of Northeast Thailand which is
economically less developed than other regions of Thailand. In this paper, | shall explore the applicability of the
NETVIS by observing changes in rural areas of Northeast Thailand from several outputs of the NETVIS. Its main data
source is contact information collected through socio-economic survey, in contrast to noncontact information obtained
by remote sensing, and this is the potential strength of the NETVIS. Contact and noncontact information both have
advantages and disadvantages in terms of homogeneity, prompt acquisition, interpretation, and so on, and one of main
themes of future study will be to explore what relationships obtain between these two kinds of complementary
information.
and its source, the village-level survey, and explains the
1. INTRODUCTION framework of NETVIS. Finally, some outputs are shown
in order to demonstrate and interpret the changes.
Southeast Asia has become a focus of attention owing to
its remarkable economic growth. However, behind the
brilliant economic growth, it has long been stressed that 2. THE VILLAGE DATABASE
many problems remain, including the fact that some
areas still lag far behind, and that is proceeding without 2.1 The Village-level Survey
due regard for environmental sustainability. In Thailand,
which is outstanding in Southeast Asia from the viewpoint In framing the Fifth National Economic and Social
of development, many governmental and Development Plan (1982-1986), the Thai government
nongovernmental projects have been conducted and ^ recognized a lack of information on product activities and
more should be planned to solve the problems that have life in rural areas which was necessary for its policy
arisen as a result of rapid development of the decisions Therefore, the National Rural Development
metropolitan area. Though the aims of the projects vary Committee, which is under the Office of the Prime
from one to another, for example, promotion of schooling, ^ Minister, and its working organization, the National Rural
reforestation, improvement of hygiene facilities, and Development Cooperation Center, decided to conduct
building of self-reliance, in all cases detailed information the village-level survey to collect data on the socio-
on the target area is indispensable for well-directed economic situation of each village in rural areas of the
planning, monitoring and evaluation. kingdom. Villages in suburbs are excluded. Every two
years, each Tambon Development Committee surveys
In Thailand, a village-level survey which aims to support the situation of the villages in its tambon (sub-district)
governmental rural development has been conducted which is the administrative level above the village, and
covering all villages in the rural areas. This survey ^ completes a questionnaire. The data are input into a
includes various topics related to socio-economic ^ database at the Information Processing Institute for
situation and is conducted every two years. This Education and Development, Thammasat University
provides unique and otherwise unacquirable information (Svasti 1988).
on recent changes in rural areas. This information can
be used to elucidate not only changes in individual The first trial survey was conducted in 1982 and this was
villages but also the differences between regions and expanded to the whole kingdom in 1986. In 1990, the
situation of a given area relative to its surroundings. survey was approved by the Cabinet. Since the 1986
survey, the results have been input into a database,
One method to utilize this huge body of regional socio- ^ which is available for distribution. The village-level
economic information is to visualize the data by the GIS — survey covers many topics related to the infrastructure
method. | have been developing the Northeast Thailand ^ the production environment, education, hygiene and so
Village Information System (NETVIS) covering the ^ on besides basic information on population and the
Northeast. This paper describes the village database number of households. Further details about the topics
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International Archives of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. Vol. XXXI, Part B7. Vienna 1996