In September 2000, 189 nations came together at the United Nations Millennium Summit in New York and endorsed the Millennium Declaration, setting a global agenda for the start of the 21st Century to promote human development and reduce global inequalities.

Thailand’s first Millennium Development Goals Report 2004 is a story of success, ambition and tough challenges. Thailand has made remarkable progress in meeting most, if not all, MDGs. The internationally set targets for poverty, hunger, gender, HIV/AIDS and malaria have been achieve more than 15 years ahead of schedule. The education goal is likely to be achieved soon, and progressis being made in reaching the targets of child and maternal health, as well as environmental sustainability. Unsatisfied with these achievements, Thailand commits itself to a set of more ambitious targets – called MDG Plus – that go well beyond the internationally agreed MDGs.

In spite of these impressive achievements, major challenges remain. Persistent disparities among regions and groups within the country, including marginalized and vulnerable peoples, need to be addressed. Policies and resources are needed to tackle poverty and below-average health conditions in the North-east, the remote highland areas of the North, and the three predominantly Muslim southernmost provinces – all of which are areas that are lagging behind the rest of the country. As the national report cannot reflect development results and differences at the micro-level, this Provincial MDG Report was initiated to begin the localization process.

Additionally, the national report is about Thailand reaching out to other countries and contributing to the global partnership for human development called for in MDG 8. Thailand is becoming an important development partner, engaging in technical cooperation and sharing its experience with neighbours at the national and local level, as well as opening up its expanding markets for other developing countries. Thailand is firmly committed to meeting its obligations to the international community, as well as to its own citizens. Under this goal, the role of border provinces, such as Nakorn Phanom, becomes increasingly important as decentralization proceeds, giving more opportunities for local-to-local exchanges and support, not only nationally, but also internationally.