Thailand's booming tourism industry and skyrocketing prices impacts poverty-stricken children
by Iskhandar Razak in Phuket

PHUKET: -- Phuket's booming tourism industry has caused an increase in the amount of young boys and girls that need to be rescued from poverty, say child protection workers on the frontlines of effort on the popular Thai island.

"The demand I believe is higher and higher," said Vilaiwan Dienel, a director at the Phuket Sunshine Village Foundation.

"The parents are getting poorer and they cannot support their children — especially at the moment with the economic crisis."

The foundation in Koh Sireh, on the opposite side of Phuket's more famous beach and tourist hot spots, takes care of up to 100 children from the ages of 2 to 18.

Tourism has become the region's biggest industry, driven by more than 3 million visitors every year. But it isn't just foreigners that come to Phuket.

Full story: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-12/booming-thailand-tourism-impacts-poverty-stricken-children/6837856

-- ABC NEWS 2015-10-12

Hopefully this will get some money in for the Sunshine Village.

But a strange article.

Its all going to crash down one day! Cheaper and safer places for tourists!

The article makes no sense. How can a "booming" tourism industry cause more poverty? Perhaps more people are being drawn away from their rural family farmlands, and end up in Phuket, without a real source of income. Not sure that increases poverty. It's just that it's easier for these families to live off the land in the rural areas, whereas Phuket is the most expensive place to live in Thailand.

Hum, booming tourist industry, maybe a few years back. Now mostly just bused in Chinese tourists on package tours.

much credit was given out too easy.. Now it's pay back time...a new truck over 1 million bhat..on no salary...so if they pay monthly...none left for food etc

It is an appeal for Funds from the Phuket Sunshine Village Foundation.

The Foundation is totally reliant on voluntary contributions to fund the care provided by the foundation to some 100 children.

In my opinion voluntary contributions should be matched Bht for Bht by Government.

The Phuket Governor should be lobbied for assistance.

And most of the expats I know support about 5/6 children each directly or indirectly

All comes down to Thainess and Thai love Thai. (I must stop whatever it is that gives me these hallucinations)

Phuket and Phang Nga still has a shortage of labor, though tourism isn't booking at all.

How can they be poor if I can't find ( suitable ) staff, paying a good salary ?

Booming tourist industri ...

The article makes no sense. How can a "booming" tourism industry cause more poverty? Perhaps more people are being drawn away from their rural family farmlands, and end up in Phuket, without a real source of income. Not sure that increases poverty. It's just that it's easier for these families to live off the land in the rural areas, whereas Phuket is the most expensive place to live in Thailand.

 
How can a "booming" tourism industry cause more poverty?

Maybe because the have`s own all the booming industry. Btw, booming, I have never seen it so quiet except from on the roads.

Phuket and Phang Nga still has a shortage of labor, though tourism isn't booking at all.

How can they be poor if I can't find ( suitable ) staff, paying a good salary ?

Work is out, selfies in.

This is not really news .

......."Thai parents cannot support their children".........absolute rubbish !

Its the same old story with Asians. 'We are poor you are rich ....give us your money so we can buy another new Hilux 4wd!'

Only the Thais would say in the same sentence that the tourism economy is booming but children are getting poorer.

Most western men living with Thai girls/wives in Phuket are already supporting hundreds of Thai children back in the NE provinces.

Thai fathers and the government dont care. Kind generous Farang pays.

I would never give money to a Thai charity. Let the government pay for it by cancelling one of the submarines on order.

Wishful thinking....

The lack of Boom in Booming plus the inequitable distribution of wealth leads to "poverty" and of course more anti-social behaviour such as criminal activities, drugs and doped up villagers running amok. That is what happens when self interest comes first.

The lack of Boom in Booming plus the inequitable distribution of wealth leads to "poverty" and of course more anti-social behaviour such as criminal activities, drugs and doped up villagers running amok. That is what happens when self interest comes first.

Nothing to do with self interested government officials/police, then?

As mentioned before, we are moving closer towards "The Phuket Financial Crisis."

The article makes no sense. How can a "booming" tourism industry cause more poverty? Perhaps more people are being drawn away from their rural family farmlands, and end up in Phuket, without a real source of income. Not sure that increases poverty. It's just that it's easier for these families to live off the land in the rural areas, whereas Phuket is the most expensive place to live in Thailand.

It is really only booming for a select few who gain the proceeds form the captive Chinese hordes shopping at latex, jewellery stores, quick boat trips, & selected restaurants. The street level businesses get virtually nothing from the Chinese plus many companies are suffering from the lack of Russians in the market now.

During the 19th century millions of europeans left the land when they realised that remaining in agriculture would not allow them join in the industrial/consumer boom that was taking place. Many of them ended up in city slums but at least they were part of an imaginative, entrepreneurial, growth orientated society, that was daily creating new technologies, industries, labour and skill requirements.

Many of the skills that were required could be easily learned, even by people with a relatively low standard of education. That base of industrial and craft skill allowed them to learn new skills as the need arose. Automation had yet to make human beings superfluous. Slowly, but surely, wages and standards of living improved.

There were many committed, idealistic, individuals in positions of authority and influence who sought to improve the education, health and living standards of the urban workers (for pragmatic as much as for altruistic reasons).

It was these, separate, streams of effort that allow me to be sitting in a comfortable chair, typing on my computer, and not squatting on a concrete floor, watching an ancient cathode TV, in a room lit by a daylight flourescent tube.

In Thailand today more and more rural people are realising the hopelessness of continuing what is essentially subsistence farming (that guarantees them exclusion from the bleached, consumer heaven that relentlessly pukes out of Thai TV) so they too are being driven off the land into the cities (and tourist centres).

What (except for the slum existence) of the 19th century European experience awaits them?

The article makes no sense. How can a "booming" tourism industry cause more poverty? Perhaps more people are being drawn away from their rural family farmlands, and end up in Phuket, without a real source of income. Not sure that increases poverty. It's just that it's easier for these families to live off the land in the rural areas, whereas Phuket is the most expensive place to live in Thailand.

"How can a 'booming tourism industry cause more poverty?'. According to the law of supply and demand, that's easy to answer; the higher the demand the higher the prices. But I agree with another reply that Phuket is hardly going through a tourist boom. I've never seen it so quiet in the hot spots and especially in the number of Tourist and visa exempt extensions.

Regarding the status of Thai kids suffering from poverty and lack of opportunity a question posed by friends wonder why the very expensive international schools do not provide scholarships and education programs for under privileged Thai children? One well known international school that teaches from the Cambridge curriculum just recently opened a new campus that was constructed with a loan of 600 million Baht. School fees were raised, teachers wages increased, as did the advertising for the school. But not one iota of an idea was offered regarding helping the under privileged Thai kids on Phuket. I too think it should me mandatory for all international schools to provide those services for Thai kids.