March 11, 2008 - Young Thai people, as the next generation of workers, parents, and citizens, represent the future of their country. This stage of life is when personality, habits, lifestyles and skills are shaped and when previous investments in education and health can be reaped. Therefore, an inadequate transition into adulthood can have very negative long-term impacts that will be costly to mitigate later in life, according to Thailand Social Monitor on Youth 2008: Development and the Next Generation, a World Bank report released in March.

Ensuring that young people become healthy, educated, and productive workers, citizens, and parents needs to be regarded at the centre of the country's development strategy. This need is acute in the case of Thailand, which has been experiencing dramatic social and economic changes that have given its young people a much broader range of choices, while also giving rise to new risks that could threaten their development.

Thailand Social Monitor is the in-depth review of selected social issues in Thailand by the World Bank. It is a tool the Bank uses to encourage a healthy debate on social challenges in the country and engage stakeholders in discussions about the appropriate policy to address these challenges.