The autonomy of Thai housing policy, 1945–1996

Much has been written about housing policy in the developing world. With a few notable exceptions, little is known about policy trends in most developing nations before the 1970s. Even less is known about the influence on national policies of the recommendations of international agencies, including the UN and the World Bank. Published and archival sources show that since 1945, the Thai Government has rarely implemented the programmes advocated by international agencies. It built public housing from the 1950s to the 1970s although it was advised to do otherwise. In the 1960s and most of the 1970s it resisted aided self-help, though this approach promised to be cost effective. When officials conceded the merits of this approach they were held back by politicians. Only when the international emphasis switched to a market-oriented approach in the 1980s did Thai policy apparently fall into step. Future research on policy trends should pay attention not only to issues of housing need, which most writers have emphasized, but also to the varied political contexts in which policy is made.