The 84th Meeting of ASEAN Committee on Science, Technology, and Innovation (COSTI-84) and related meetings took place on 16-20 October in Bohol, Philippines. The event was hosted by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) of the Philippines.
NXPO President Dr. Kitipong Promwong represented Thailand in the 15th Meeting of the Board of Advisers to the Committee on Science, Technology, and Innovation (BAC), and International Policy Partnership Director Dr. Pranpreya Sriwannawit Lundberg and Senior Policy Specialist Ms. Vipaporn Asavapisit attended COSTI-84 and other relevant meetings, including the Philippines – Thailand Bilateral Meeting on S&T Cooperation. These gatherings aimed to review the progress of various ASEAN projects and facilitate the exchange of STI policies among ASEAN member countries and dialogue partners.
During the BAC Meeting, Dr. Kitipong introduced the Net-Zero City Model, which Thailand has been implementing and proposed to extend this initiative into an ASEAN-wide project, starting with a focus on low-carbon tourism. This ASEAN project aligns with the “capability building for sustainable infrastructure & smart cities” initiative under the ASEAN Strategy for Carbon Neutrality and can potentially be proposed to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
In addition, Dr. Kitipong also provided his input on the roles and authority of BAC, emphasizing the importance of increasing private sector involvement, including both large corporates and SMEs. He also gave feedback on the ASEAN Plan of Action on Science, Technology, and Innovation 2016–2025 and the evaluation of the ASEAN Science Technology and Innovation Fund (ASTIF). He informed the meeting that Thailand will be hosting a workshop for ASEAN representatives to deliberate on these matters on 16 November 2023 in Bangkok.
During the ASEAN event, an award presentation ceremony was held for the 2023 Underwriters Laboratories-ASEAN-U.S. Science Prize for Women. This prize is jointly presented by COSTI, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and UL Research Institutes (ULRI). Dr. Pimpa Limthongkul of Thailand was selected as the winner of the senior scientist category of this year’s award which focused on electrification. Dr. Pimpa serves as the Director of the Energy Innovation Research Group at the National Energy Technology Center (ENTEC), in collaboration with the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA).
At the Philippines – Thailand Bilateral Meeting on S&T Cooperation, Dr. Pranpreya delivered a presentation introducing Thailand’s higher education, science, research and innovation system. She also highlighted key initiatives aimed at harnessing science and technology to address major issues in Thailand such as the middle-income trap, the grassroots economy development, social disparities, carbon neutrality, net zero emissions, and workforce development for target industries.
