Page 217 - Social Enterprise A New Business Paradigm for Thailand

to issue and offer shares to the public without seeking prior approval from the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC), thereby unlocking new channels for public fundraising (further
details are provided in Chapter 6). Despite these mechanisms, the government has yet to

allocate a formal budget to the fund administered by OSEP. The office faces structural
challenges as well. With a staff of only about 20 people and a limited annual budget,
approximately half of which is used for personnel expenses, OSEP must operate with minimal
resources for programs and administrative functions. In response to these constraints, the
agency has sought innovative approaches to advancing social enterprise support. One such
strategy involves engaging the SEC in identifying ways that publicly listed companies, already
bound by SEC disclosure and compliance rules, might play a more active role in supporting social
enterprises. Another involves negotiating with existing funds and financing sources that have
available budgets but remain underutilized, with the goal of channeling those resources toward
scaling existing social enterprises or launching new ones.

Thai Health Promotion Foundation (ThaiHealth)

ThaiHealth has played a pivotal role since the early stages of Thailand’s social enterprise
movement. During the formation of the Office of Social Enterprise Promotion (OSEP), the
government relied heavily on ThaiHealth’s funding and operational capacity, positioning it as
one of the key institutions that have supported and driven the growth of social enterprises from
the beginning to the present. In addition to being financially well-resourced, ThaiHealth

maintains a broad network spanning the public sector, private corporations, civil society,
academia (especially universities), and local communities, enabling cross-sector collaboration
in the development of social enterprises. Each year, ThaiHealth supports thousands of health-
related initiatives and views social enterprises as a strategic mechanism for promoting public
health, scaling successful health interventions, and addressing social inequality. At the same
time, the business-oriented nature of social enterprises allows for long-term financial
sustainability. ThaiHealth prioritizes support for nonprofit organizations seeking to transition
into social enterprises, with the aim of reducing reliance on external funding and fostering self-
sufficiency. One of the key challenges facing ThaiHealth is the need to shift the mindset of social

sector actors toward more business-oriented thinking. Some of its supported partners have
successfully made this transition into social enterprises, for example, Buddy HomeCare, which
extended its business model to address the problem of elderly individuals living alone without
caregivers, and YoungHappy, a social enterprise focused on building senior communities in
Thailand and internationally. Today, social enterprises can apply for ThaiHealth grants through
any of its departments, provided the work relates to public health. As for procurement, social
enterprises receiving ThaiHealth grants may provide goods and services, but only with a

comparable pricing structure and reasonable cost justification. Currently, ThaiHealth operates
two in-house social enterprises: Thai Health Academy, which offers training services, and Sook
Enterprise, which sells goods and services such as critical survival skills training to private

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