Bangkok: Thailand is taking significant steps to address climate change through the promotion of the MEL (Measures, Emissions, and Transformation) system, spearheaded by the Department of Climate Change. The system is aimed at facilitating the practical implementation of climate policies.
According to Thai News Agency, the Department of Climate Change Mitigation recently held a forum to review lessons from the monitoring system, intended to create a central database for tackling global warming. The MEL (Measurement Evaluation System) was emphasized as a crucial link between policy formulation and practical execution.
The Department of Climate Change and Environment organized a meeting titled "Review Lessons Learned from the Pilot Project of the Climate Change Adaptation Monitoring and Evaluation System." This meeting aimed to summarize the results from system testing by real-world practitioners, with the goal of constructing a national database to systematically manage the climate crisis within the country.
Dr. Pirun Saiyasitpanich, Director-General of the Department, highlighted the findings from the Climate Risk Index (CRI) 2026 by Germanwatch, which revealed that Thailand's risk of extreme weather events has risen significantly, moving from 72nd position in 2022 to 17th in 2024. Concurrently, data from the Met Office suggests that 2026 will be among the hottest years recorded, with average temperatures 1.4 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. This data aligns with the World Economic Forum's Global Risks Report 2026, which identifies environmental risks as the primary threat impacting the global economy.
The Thai government is actively pursuing policies to achieve its Net Zero emissions target by 2050. As such, the Department is expediting the development of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) tools to support the National Climate Change Adaptation Plan (NAP). This system, developed alongside Ditto (Thailand) Public Company Limited and Chulalongkorn University, is envisioned as a 'national data infrastructure' employing Big Data and Data Visualization technologies to enhance policy-making and meet international reporting standards like BTR, NC, and SDGs.
The meeting signifies progress towards piloting the system in six key areas: water resources, agriculture and food security, tourism, public health, natural resources, and human settlements and security. The focus remains on learning from field practitioners to refine the E-FORM system, aiming for a solution that is "practical, sustainable, and nationwide" to effectively respond to global crises.
The event featured a lecture titled "From Policy to Practice" by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Phavisorn Chuenchum of Chulalongkorn University, highlighting the success of the monitoring and evaluation system's development. A demonstration of the E-FORM system, a digital tool for simplifying data collection from operational units in six key areas, was also conducted. The afternoon session included breakout groups for "lessons learned and brainstorming" with representatives from central agencies and implementers to address challenges and gather suggestions from the pilot system testing.
The launch of this monitoring and evaluation system indicates Thailand's commitment to enhancing its capacity to handle global warming. The Department of Climate Change and Environment remains dedicated to developing modern communication tools and databases to ensure that various sectors can access and use information for sustainable planning to mitigate the impacts of climate change.