His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej advocated a form of sufficiency economy in 1974. It is a concept derived from extensive royal experience gained from visiting villages and seeing what worked and what did not work. After 1997, when Thailand faced a severe economic crisis, the term "Sufficiency Economy” was officially introduced.
In practice, Sufficiency Economy must be in harmony with a national "social landscape” that respects diversity within geo-ecology, the economy, and culture and traditions. This aspect of development aims at "self-reliance.” It proceeds with caution, self-evaluation, and prudence, by taking a step-by-step approach, and is tested before being distributed to the public.
The Philosophy of Sufficiency Economy is applicable at every level, from the individual through the family and community, to the management and development of the nation. It can be applied to the whole world, as the logic is built around simple concepts of mankind and the world, most notably the principle of harmonious coexistence between humans and nature.
As such, His Majesty’s concept is not merely an "economy” or an "economic theory,” but a guide to conducting all aspects of life. It focuses on moderation, reasonableness, and self-immunity.
Moderation is closely linked to the idea of sufficiency. It has two meanings: enough in the sense of not too little, and enough in the sense of not too much.
Reasonableness means both evaluating the reasons for any action, and understanding its full consequences – not only on oneself, but also on others, society, and the environment, and not only in the short term, but also in the long term.
Self-immunity means having built-in resilience and the ability to withstand shocks, to adjust to external changes, and to cope with events that are unpredictable and uncontrollable.
These elements clearly overlap and interlock. Reasonableness indicates moderation. Moderation builds self-immunity. Self-immunity is a requisite for reasonableness. They are not separate items but a triad.
In addition, two other conditions – knowledge and morality – are needed to make the principle of Sufficiency Economy work. Knowledge informs wisdom; a thorough study of all available information and experience is necessary if one is to make prudent decisions. Morality means value, ethical behavior, honesty, and straight-forwardness, as well as tolerance, perseverance, readiness to work hard, and a refusal to exploit others.