Srettha Thavisin, a former property tycoon turned prime minister, has spent the two months he’s been in office focused on turning around Thailand’s below-par economic performance.
To get the nation — crawling at an average growth rate of 1.87% for the last 10 years — running as fast as its peers, he’s chosen to break conventional norms.
Srettha became the first leader in some four decades to take on the dual role of finance minister. Not so formally, he’s also acting as the nation’s chief salesman, enticing tourists, investors and anything or anyone that can support Thailand’s growth.
