Graduate School History Program Lead and Faculty of Arts and Letters Department of History academic staff Assoc. Prof. Augusto V. de Viana, Ph.D., held an onsite lecture at the Srinakharinwirot University (SWU) in Bangkok, Thailand, last February 7, 2025. The lecture was made possible through the invitation of the SWU Faculty of Social Science Dean Prof. Poom Moolsilpa, Ph.D.
The topic of the lecture was the Philippine experience with One Town, One Product (OTOP). It was part of the discussion of the course Thai Wisdom and Creative Economy, which advocated promoting and improving local goods and services. The course is one of the major subjects in the history curriculum in SWU.
In his lecture, de Viana discussed the origins of OTOP, including similar programs in Japan, Vietnam, and other countries. The Philippine OTOP was envisioned as a stimulus program to assist micro, small, and medium enterprises in producing goods and services unique to their locality, aligning with the sustainable goal to develop local economic growth. He discussed the program’s success and the challenges and obstacles it faces.
Before conducting the lecture, de Viana visited the SWU Library, where he donated two copies of his latest book, “Andres Bonifacio and the Revolution,” which was published by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines in December 2024.
