a recent study by UNESCO estimates that in Thailand the crafts industry contributes USD$4.55 billion (almost 1 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP)) to the economy – an indication of the significant potential these industries have for income-generation, especially in low-income areas.
Thailand defined two main objectives of its strategy: first, to develop Thailand into a creative industries hub of ASEAN, and second, to increase the contribution of the creative industries from 12 to 20 per cent of GDP by 2012.