Klaikong believes in the power of technology for social development. With his expertise and over 20 years of experience in the world of ICT, he works and campaigns for issues of Open Government and Open Data. He has worked with global companies, including Google and Microsoft. His ‘FWP Hackathon’ initiative at Future Forward is a project which allows people to gather public data and put it to public use. He believes that technology will bring the people and the government closer, allowing the people to take part in the system of checks and balances of government, resulting in greater transparency and greater political participation. He helped develop DoctorMe, a mobile self-care application, in partnership with Thai Health Promotion Foundation, an autonomous government agency.
Profile
Klaikong was born on 18 October 1974 in Bangkok, Thailand, but grew up in Nonthaburi province.
He attended Kasetsart University Laboratory School and holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Faculty of Social Sciences, Naresuan University. During his time at the university, he served as the Vice President of Students’ Union in 1995. He also worked with Student Federation of Thailand during the tenure of Secretary-General Suriyasai Katasila and founded a northern network under the Student Federation.
After graduation, he worked with Campaign for Popular Democracy and played a role in campaigning for the referendum on 1997 Constitution, dubbed People’s Constitution and one of the most democratic constitution of Thailand.
His notable career milestones include his position as the secretary for research and development of Phitsanulok urban planning at the Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning, as ICT system development working group committee member for the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand, and as part of the Government Open Data team at the Electronic Government Agency.
From 2000 to 2005, He worked at the Information and Communications Technology office as a manager at Foundation For Children, then as the head of the ICT team at Thai Fund Foundation (2006-2008). Between 2009 and 2015, he was the Deputy Director at ChangeFusion, a non-profit institute under the Thai Rural Reconstruction Movement Foundation under the Royal Patronage (RCP). Then, since 2015, he is the Director of Technology Institute for Social Innovation, RCP.
Klaikong holds a Master of Science in Information and Communication Technology from Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University.
Why Future Forward
After the 2014 coup d’état, Klaikong sees Thailand moving quickly backwards. With his motivation to create a complete democracy in Thailand, he did not hesitate to join Future Forward Party.
Fun Fact
Klaikong is a self-admitted geek, with a passion for computers and data. In his free time, he enjoys travelling, especially to attend Bar Camp and Hackathon events both in Thailand and abroad. He also admits he does not have lots of free time, however, when he does, he likes to watch Star Wars and The Matrix, as well as many Netflix series, including House of Cards, Designated Survivor and Black Mirror. He is also into photography and is an avid Instagram user.
