Dhanarak Asset Development (DAD) has unveiled Thailand’s first Green Government City, marking a major shift in how state-owned land is planned, used and shared with the public. The transformation of the Government Complex Bangkok positions the site as a national prototype for sustainable, walkable and people-centred urban development.
Led by DAD President Dr Nalikatibhag Sangsnit, the multi-year redevelopment reframes the role of government districts from car-oriented administrative enclaves into civic environments designed for health, mobility and daily life.
“For decades, government districts in Thailand were designed to manage paperwork, not people,” Dr Nalikatibhag said. “We wanted to reverse that logic. A city, especially one owned by the state, must first work for human life, how people walk, how they rest, how they breathe, and how they coexist with nature.”
The centrepiece of the initiative is a newly opened 5.1-rai landscaped connector between Buildings B and C. Previously used primarily as a traffic corridor and noise buffer, the space has been reimagined as a pedestrian-friendly green passage linking offices, transit access points and communal areas across the complex.
Designed as functional urban infrastructure rather than decorative landscaping, the connector acts as a climate buffer—reducing heat, improving water absorption and supporting everyday movement. Crucially, it also opens formerly restricted government land for broader public use, softening the boundary between administrative space and the surrounding city.
The project aligns with Thailand’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) priorities and the government’s bio-circular-green (BCG) economic model. Design elements focus on expanding tree canopy, increasing permeable surfaces and creating flexible spaces for exercise, informal gatherings and community activities.
Over the past six years, DAD has expanded green space within the Government Complex by more than 47 rai. When combined with adjacent landscaped zones, the total exceeds 138 rai, forming one of northern Bangkok’s largest continuous public green areas.
Dr Nalikatibhag described the City of Green Lifestyles concept not as a one-off redevelopment but as a scalable template for future public-sector land use, particularly in fast-growing Asian cities where governments remain major landowners.
“This is about proving that sustainability is not an added cost or a branding exercise,” he said. “When green infrastructure improves health, reduces stress, lowers energy demand and invites public use, it becomes economically rational and socially inevitable.”
DAD’s approach has earned international recognition. In 2025, the organisation became the only public-sector entity to win the Asia-level International Innovation Awards for two consecutive years, honoured for its Government Complex Smart City initiative and the GCC Super Application, a digital platform integrating transport, navigation and public services across the site.
Selected from more than 160 entries across 30 countries, the awards highlight Thailand’s growing role in sustainable and technology-driven public-sector transformation.
Urban policy analysts note that, unlike large-scale megaprojects, the Government Complex initiative relies on incremental, system-based transformation, repurposing existing assets rather than acquiring new land, an approach seen as both cost-effective and highly replicable.
“A government city should not feel separate from everyday life,” Dr Nalikatibhag said. “If public space eases the intensity of daily life, improves health and restores balance between people and nature, then governance itself becomes more humane.”
