| Author | Lada Phadungkiati |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.RD-07-07 |
| Subject(s) | Small business--Thailand--Chainat--Management
|
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Regional and Rural Development Planning |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | The research analyzed the social, economic and institutional effects of the two communitybased rural enterprises (CBREs) on rural people in Chai Nat province in the central plain of Thailand. Main objectives of the research were to examine organizational structure and management aspects of the CBREs; to assess economic, social and institutional effects of the CBRE to rural people; to study the satisfaction of the group members and their committee members on the CBREs; to identify problems, potentials and needs of the CBREs; and to give recommendations to strengthen the CBREs for rural development and provide planning implications on rural enterprise for future. The study was conducted in the two CBREs producing similar types of the products namely Ban Tha Sai Agricultural Housewife Group (BTS) and Ban Suan Lam Yai Housewife Group (BSLY) in Chai Nat province. The research was an evaluating research applying both quantitative and qualitative approaches. A standardized questionnaire was used to gather the information from a total of 71 sampled group members and committee members from the two study CBREs. Key informants, semi-structure interview and focus group discussion were also conducted. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses were applied for data analysis. The research revealed that the economic, social and institutional effects of the CBREs were prominently found only among the committee members and some of the group members who were involved in the operational activities of the two study groups including production and marketing. The group members who did not participate in any of the operational activities of the groups had only the minimal increase in their household income obtained from the dividends as a viable economic effect. With its better management performance, the findings showed that the BTS generated greater economic, social and institutional benefits to its committee members and the group members who had participated in the group operational activities. However, based on the definition of the CBRE in Thailand mentioning of people participation as one of its most essential components, the BSLY was considered to be the more effective CBRE in this study when it is compared with the BTS. This is due to the reason that the group did not only create benefits to its committee members but it also generated greater impacts to higher number of its group members within the same community and nearby areas Due to the success in the managerial operation of the BTS, only a few problems but many potentialities were found from the BTS. In contrast, several problems were identified from the BSLY. A set of the recommendations were given to both CBREs. For the BTS, the suggestions were given to improve packaging design, expand a marketing network and enhance more participation of group members. As for the BSLY, the suggestions are made for government agencies to provide management training, encourage the participation from other committee members, build a standard production factory, promote the Thai snack as an alternative product, strengthen the coordination among various CBREs and their networking with the strong support from government agencies and NGOs. Specific elements were outlined for planning and policy implications of the country to promote rural enterprise in future to increase more benefits and generate greater effects to the rural people. |
| Year | 2007 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Development and Sustainability (DDS) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Rural Development, Gender and Resources (RD) |
| Chairperson(s) | Soparth Pongquan; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Routray, Jayant Kumar;Kusakabe, Kyoko; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | RTG Fellowship; |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2007 |