Thailand
Thailand – ราชอาณาจักรไทย
Thailand has developed enormously in the last four decades and is now an upper middle-income country with Southeast Asia’s second largest economy. Although often considered a sunset industry that is overshadowed by higher-value manufacturing sectors (automotives and electronics, among them), the Thai garment and textiles sector remains a significant employer, providing jobs for some 850,000 workers -70% of them female, and many of them migrants from neighbouring countries (Myanmar, Cambodia and Lao PDR). With a significant domestic textiles base, it is also one of the few vertically integrated apparel supply chains in the region.
The Thai garment sector faces significant challenges amid intense regional competition and lower production costs (in places like Vietnam and Bangladesh), although it has good infrastructure, logistics and supply chain linkages, as well as having retained a niche in certain higher value product categories (advanced synthetics used in sportswear, for example). Despite all the challenges, about US$7 billion worth of textiles and clothing were exported in 2019, accounting for 3% of total exports.
Population
Total
71,601,103 (2021)
Gross Domestic Product
GDP per Capita (constant USD, thousand)
6,123.9 (2021)
Human Development Index Ranking
HDI Rank (out of 191 countries)
66 (2021)
Garment/Textile Workers
Number of workers in the garment/textile sector
823,500 (2021)
Women Workers in the Garment/Textile Industry
Percentage of women workers employed in the garment/textile industry
67% (2021)
Number of Garment/Textile Factories
Number of factories in the garment/textile industry
2,671 (2022)
Garment/Textile Industry Exports
(USD$ billion)
USD 5.9 billion (2020)
Garment/Textile Industry Size
Percentage of total exports
2.5% (2020)
Key Garment/Textile Export Markets
Top five countries ($USD value exported and subsequent percentage)
| Country | Percentage of Exports |
|---|---|
| United States | 19.55% |
| Japan | 12.09% |
| Vietnam | 7.68% |
| China | 6.52% |
| Myanmar [Burma] | 3.58% |
Government Entities
Government agencies actively involved in the garment/textile industry
National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC)
Ministry of Commerce
Ministry of Industry
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Worker Organizations
Trade unions, Union federations, and other worker organizations
Labour Congress of Thailand (LCT)
State Enterprises Workers’ Relations Confederation (SERC)
Thai Trade Union Congress (TTUC)
National Congress Private Industrial of Employees (NCPE)
National Congress of Thai Labour (NCTL)
Federation of Textile and Garment, Sewing and Lather Goods of Thailand
Textile Industrial Labour Union
Employer/Industry Associations and Chambers of Commerce
Employers and industry related associations, private sectors associations and chambers of commerce
The Employers’ Confederation of Thailand
The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI)
The Thai Chamber of Commerce (Thai Chamber)
Thai Garment Manufacturers Association
Thai Textile Merchants Association
The Bobae Garment Association
The Association of Thai Bleaching, Dyeing, Printing and Finishing Industries
The Thai Silk Association
Thai Weaving Industry Association
Development Agencies/ International Organizations
National and international development organizations working within the garment/textile industry
- International Labour Organization (ILO)
- Decent Work in Garment Supply Chains Asia (ILO)
- Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH
Civil Society Organizations/ Non-governmental Organizations
Organizations working within the garment/textile industry
Pratthanadee Foundation (Women)
Mae Sot Labour Law Clinic MRC (Migrant workers)
Chiang Mai MAP Foundation MRC (Migrant workers)
Arom Foundation
Sources of data provided
- Population: Population, total - Thailand | Data (worldbank.org)
- GDP Per Capita: GDP per capita (constant 2015 US$) | Data (worldbank.org)
- HDI: Country Insights | Human Development Reports (undp.org)
- Garment / Textile Workers: Labour force statistics (LFS) ILOSTAT Employment by sex and economic activity – ISIC level 2 (thousands) – Annual. Employment ISIC codes 13-15. ILOSTAT data tools to find and download labour statistics
- Women Workers in the Garment /Textile Industry:
Women Workers in the Garment /Textile Industry: Labour force statistics (LFS) ILOSTAT Employment by sex and economic activity – ISIC level 2 (thousands) – Annual. Employment ISIC codes 13-15. ILOSTAT data tools to find and download labour statistics
- Number of Garment / Textile Factories: สถิติโรงงานอุตสาหกรรม – กรมโรงงานอุตสาหกรรม | Department of Industrial Works (diw.go.th); โรงงานอุตสาหกรรมสิ่งทอและเครื่องนุ่งห่ม ณ เดือนมกราคม-ธันวาคม 2565
โรงงานอุตสาหกรรมสิ่งทอและเครื่องนุ่งห่มไทย เดือนมกราคม-ธันวาคม ปี 2565 (thaitextile.org) - Garment / Textile Industry Exports: Garment / Textile Industry Size Thailand Products Exports by country & region 2020 | WITS Data Thailand Textiles and Clothing Exports by country & region 2020 | WITS Data (worldbank.org)
-
Garment/Textile Industry Size Percentage of total exports Thailand Products Exports by country & region 2020 | WITS Data (worldbank.org)
- Key Garment / Textile Export Market
Thailand Textiles and Clothing Exports by country & region 2020 | WITS Data (worldbank.org)
*Textiles and Clothing Exports in 2020
News on Thailand
MorePenn State must stand with workers and drop Nike
"More and more of Penn State’s workers are demanding labor justice: institutional support for Black employees, competitive pay for English teaching faculty, fair contracts for service employees and ju ...
Read More"Four students and one faculty member addressed a letter to University President Santa Ono calling on the University of Michigan to condemn alleged wage theft by Nike and the Hong Seng Knitting factor ...
Read MoreThai factory used by Tesco faces criminal charges over treatment of workers
"VKG, where workers made jeans for Tesco’s Thai branch between 2017 and 2020, faces charges including fraud. Thai police have brought criminal charges against a clothing factory that was used by Tesco ...
Read More