Social Enterprises and Sustainable National Development

Abstract

Thailand has long adopted the capitalist economic system for the development of the country's economy, causing a wide range of social and environmental problems.  That is to say, economically prosperous countries tend to face more complicated problems in which some could be difficult to solve.  With a heightened awareness of such issues, a variety of social enterprises have recently emerged in many different business areas.  Like general businesses, the operation of social enterprises is aimed at production and sales to earn some profits.  What is different is that the profits earned from operating social enterprises will be divided into 2 portions: one for their businesses to continue to grow and the other for social returns both financially and non-financially.  Having better quality of life and strong social structures are some of the indices for measuring the success of this kind of businesses.  The key success for corporate social responsibilities is that a community becomes self-reliant without any external or government supports. Such a strong and developed community is considered to help promote sustainable well-being for all.