第110期 Why do people immigrate to Bangkok? 14/09/20

As the economy of Bangkok grows and develops better and better, more and more people no matter from the mainland or worldwide decide to migrate to Bangkok. There are several reasons why people migrated to Bangkok:

First of all, there are a total of 536 listed companies in Bangkok, which made Bangkok a very important economic pillar of Southeast Asia. On the 30th of April, 2012, the total capital of the listed company was about 10 trillion baht (about 300 billion USD). Since the economy and companies underwent rapid growth in both scale and value, job opportunities and salary disparity became a giant pull factor for people to migrate to Bangkok. In other areas of Thailand, the average salary of a worker is about 235 USD per month, which is very little. In comparison to Bangkok, the average salary of a worker is about 800 USD per month, approximately 3.5 times as much as other rural areas.

Secondly, Bangkok is significantly much more international than any other region or city in Thailand. People who lived in Bangkok could access different goods and services as well as information on anything much easier than the other region in Thailand. For example, Bangkok is the trading center for precious metals and gems, which, if you need materials about metals and gems and planning to start a business about it, Bangkok makes it much, much easier. On the other hand, the infrastructure in Bangkok cities like roads and fire/police stations is also on a higher level in comparison to most of the cities in Thailand.

Thirdly, the rich local culture and heritage including Buddhism and ethical groups attract lots of immigrants as well, especially for those who believe in Budda. According to the speech of some immigrants, Bangkok makes them feel cordial and home-like. People in Bangkok are nice and enthusiastic and they no don’t judge people based on their skin color or ethics, which is a very important consideration for some people when they are considering immigrating to Bangkok.

Fourthly, the local weather is considered to be warm throughout the whole year, and a little bit wet. Bangkok is an ideal place to live for people who love sunlight. It is a great choice for people who want to get away from the cold winters in the west. Residents are always comfortable wearing plain shirts and shorts since the country has a tropical climate, meaning that you don’t have to purchase a heater or air conditioning or any other temperature controlling system, just chill. 

Fifthly, education in Bangkok is fabulous among the entire Asia. The Thailand government provides twelve years of free education. Nine of them are mandatory. During nine years of compulsory schooling, children receive education in several core subjects (maths, Thai, science, social studies, religion and culture, health and PE, arts, career, technology, and foreign languages). On the other hand, the two top universities in Thailand - Chulalongkorn University and Kasetsart University are all located in Bangkok, which attracts international students and their families with a very high possibility of immigration.

All in all, the good economy, internationality, rich local culture and heritage, local citizen’s attitude towards immigrants, local weather, and local educational system are the big pull factors for people to immigrate no matter from Thailand mainland or international. However, most of the immigrants are Asian, including Chinese, Japanese, Malaysian, and Indians, some immigrants are from European countries and North/South American countries as well.