Group gatherings in crowded places now allowed, as Thailand prepares for post pandemic status

Effective 1 July, the country will enter the post-pandemic era, not an 'endemic' era as previously announced.

Following the initial announcement on 17 June 2022,  the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has provided a timeline for the relaxing of nationwide COVID-19 restrictions.

Published in the Royal Thai Government Gazette on 23 June 2022, the updated measures took immediate effect on the same date. This would include the following:

• Group gatherings in crowded places are allowed, but those with more than 2,000 participants must receive advance permission from the respective authorities in Bangkok or the 76 other provinces.
• The removal of colour-coded zoning, thus redesignating Bangkok and the remaining 76 provinces as green zones.
• Outdoor mask-wearing has been endorsed as optional, although the public is still advised to wear a face mask in crowded places, such as public transport, markets, and concert venues, or for people with certain health conditions.
• Entertainment venues (including pubs, bars, and karaoke lounges) that have been certified with Thai Stop COVID+ by the Ministry of Public Health are also allowed to operate in compliance with the applicable laws and regulations, as well as communicable disease control guidelines.
• Restaurants and eateries are allowed to serve dine-in customers alcoholic beverages in compliance with the applicable laws and regulations, as well as communicable disease control guidelines.

According to Permanent Secretary for Health Kiattiphum Wongrajit, who was cited in Bangkok Post, effective 1 July, the country will enter the post-pandemic era, not an 'endemic' era as previously announced.

The reason for this, he said, is that the Health Ministry has decided to wait for the World Health Organization to declare COVID-19 an endemic, before making its own declaration.

Thailand's employment rate expected to grow in 2022

In line with Thailand's transition to its endemic status, the country's reopening and push for economic recovery are expected to generate double-digit growth in the employment rate this year.

Particularly, IT, engineering, digital marketing professions, and those with skill sets to support the creation of the metaverse are in short supply, despite an increase in their salaries, JobsDB shared, per a report by Bangkok Post. 

Currently, IT workers have the highest demand since the pandemic and this trend will continue because of digital transformation. Looking further, programmers, software developers, data scientists, analysts, and those with skills in IT infrastructure, cybersecurity, cloud operations, and artificial intelligence are the most sought-after by IT companies.

Image / Shutterstock

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