A Pluralistic Social Welfare Model for Local Government Organizations: LessonsLearned from Elderly Welfare in Nakhon Pathom Province.

Abstract

                Thailand is becoming an increasingly aged society because of changes in its demographic structure. The elderly population will comprise twenty percent of society in 2024. Local Government Organizations are charged with taking care of the elderly’s quality of life. Local Government Organizations (LGOs) were established by the Act of Thailand Decentralization in 1999. Many missions were transferred to Local Government Organizations from central government and ministries to develop the rural and urban areas, covering infrastructure work, public health, education etc. In the case of social welfare and social work missions, a “Pluralistic social welfare” was viewed as the most appropriate social welfare model for Thai Local Government Organizations because there are many constraints to developing the quality of life and well-being in the elderly Thai communities, such as budgeting constraints, government officer numbers and constraints regarding knowledge about social welfare. As a result, Local Government Organizations best serve their missions by acting as facilitators and coordinators. In addition, Local Government Organizations should combine local resources, local wisdom, social capital and people from other organizations in each community, not only business organizations but also formal and non-formal community organizations to fulfill the need of each social welfare target. Furthermore, Local Government Organizations can sustainably drive the social welfare mission by instigating social mechanisms, such as social networks, community welfare centers, community learning centers etc. In Nakhon Pathom Province, there are many LGOs that provide local welfare for the elderly but they cannot work alone so there are several social partners that collaborate together with LGOs for the efficient service of welfare provisions for the elderly.