Thailand is rapidly approaching an aging society. The Aspen Tree, an expert in providing services and developing housing for the elderly, has shared insights on the opportunities and challenges faced by seniors at the Fast Track Seniors Living & Care Thailand 2018 Masterclass.

Caption: Ms. Hee-Joon Park, Chairperson of The Aspen Tree Corporation Limited discusses the vision of The Aspen Tree project aimed at improving the quality of life for the elderly in Thailand at the Fast Track Seniors Living and Care Asia event.

August 9, 2018, Bangkok – The Aspen Tree, a leader in providing services and developing housing for the elderly under Magnolia Quality Development Corporation Limited (MQDC), presented its vision regarding the needs arising from Thailand's aging society, led by Ms. Hee-Joon Park, Chairperson of The Aspen Tree. It is projected that by 2040, more than one in four people in Thailand will be over 65 years old, as discussed at the Fast Track Seniors Living & Care Thailand 2018 event in Bangkok recently.

“Thailand is likely to be the first developing country to enter an aging society, or ‘aged society’. However, at the same time, we will see opportunities arising from this situation. According to analyses by the World Bank, we can transform this condition into an opportunity to develop the country into a service provider that meets the needs of the elderly in this region,” Ms. Hee-Joon Park stated.

“Under the mission of our parent company, MQDC, which focuses on developing ‘sustainable innovation’, The Aspen Tree has integrated service provision with housing development under the concept of ‘aging-in-place’, aimed at creating a happy and healthy lifestyle for the elderly,” she added.

Ms. Hee-Joon Park also mentioned that the challenges Thailand faces include issues related to memory loss, with projections indicating that by 2050, nearly two million elderly individuals will experience this problem. The Aspen Tree prioritizes addressing this challenge. The expansion of urban communities and declining birth rates are also significant issues, as the decreasing number of younger generations reflects a reduced capacity for family members to care for the elderly.

Glocalization Strategy by The Aspen Tree

“With our mission to reintegrate the elderly into society, The Aspen Tree has chosen to present new innovations under the strategy of ‘glocalization’, which is a globalization model focusing on internal development applied from North America to Thailand. We emphasize promoting housing development that creates a balance for sustainable physical and mental health,” Ms. Hee-Joon Park stated.

The event was initiated and organized by Ageing Asia Alliance, the first network for marketing activities targeting the elderly in Asia. The Fast Track Seniors Living & Care Thailand Masterclass brought together global operators and leading local entrepreneurs at the Westin Grande Sukhumvit Hotel, from 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM.

World-Class Best Practices

Ms. Janice Chia, founder and managing director of Ageing Asia Alliance, stated, “This market segment is heating up as leading operators are entering the market for developing quality housing and care for the elderly in Thailand.”

“The elderly market has the potential for continuous growth due to the increasing elderly population. Businesses are seeking opportunities, reviewing strategies, and aiming to gain knowledge and understanding of the growing elderly market to offer suitable products and services for this demographic, which is affluent, well-educated, and technologically savvy,” she added.

Future Trends

Thai real estate developers, operators, and investors participated in the event to network and identify relevant strategies, including finance, operations, and development, to ensure sustainable development of public utilities for quality living for the elderly and the elderly care service business, which can lead to significant changes in the elderly population in Thailand in the future.

Dr. Thongthana Permposri, Deputy Director of the Somdech Phra Yannasangworn Institute for the Elderly, Department of Medical Services, Ministry of Public Health, and Deputy Director-General of the Strategy and Reform Department mentioned that reforming Thai regulations and laws will create more opportunities for the private sector and non-profit organizations, especially in providing transitional care and rehabilitation services, as this period of care is quite lengthy before patients can return to normal life.

Speakers also predicted that in the near future, Thailand will have policies that facilitate the accommodation of foreign seniors wishing to relocate to Thailand, similar to Malaysia's long-stay visa program for foreign elderly individuals wanting to move to the country.