Prince Mahidol Day and Education for Humanity
Tanee Sangrat“True success is not in the learning, but in its application to the benefit of mankind”(His Royal Highness Prince Mahidol of Songkla).
The 24th of September is an important date in Thailand. Known as “Prince Mahidol Day,”it marks the date of the passing of His Royal Highness Prince Mahidol of Songkla in 1929.
Prince Mahidol is remembered for his impact on the advancement of higher education,
especially in the fields of basic sciences, public health and medical research. But there are
two particularly noteworthy undertakings credited to Prince Mahidol that have had significant
impact on the development of both the software and hardware of medical advancement in
the country.
First, Prince Mahidol allocated his personal funds towards scholarships for talented
Thai students to study basic sciences, and other fields of applied sciences, in the United Kingdom,
mainland Europe and the United States. These students would then return to Siam as the firstgroups of well-qualified teaching staff to “pay it forward” through teaching.
They would later make their own contributions to progress in the medical field.
Second, Prince Mahidol acquired modern equipment for teaching basic sciences andthe construction of laboratories and classrooms. He also served as Chairman of the Committee toestablish the Siriraj School of Medicine, now the Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol
University, which is one of the best in the country.
These and other meaningful actions have had a long term impact on the development ofmedicine and public health services, so much so that Prince Mahidol has been honoured with thetitle “Father of Medicine and Public Health of Thailand.”In 1950, 21 years after his passing, alumni from the Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital,
who had received scholarships from Prince Mahidol to study abroad, together with others who
had received other forms of assistance from the Prince, and members of the general public, came
together to build a monument at Siriraj Hospital in his honour. A year later,
the Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital, announced that 24th September would be known as“Prince Mahidol Day” and that important activities would be organized to commemorate
His Royal Highness. This started out with an annual commemoration speech and in 1960,
expanded to include tokens of appreciation for people who made donations towards medicaltreatment for the poor at Siriraj Hospital. These tokens came in the form of triangular flags madefrom white cloth with a picture of the monument of Prince Mahidol and the message“In commemoration of Prince Mahidol Day – 24th September, Siriraj Hospital” in green font.
Nowadays, these tokens of appreciation come in many different colours and there is a Siriraj
Foundation that accepts donations for modern medical equipment and medical treatment forthe poor at Siriraj Hospital, as well as human resource development at the Faculty of Medicine.
Prince Mahidol’s legacy on education for humanity was further institutionalized by
the Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital, with the proposal to establish the Prince Mahidol Award
Foundation, to commemorate the centenary birthday anniversary of His Royal Highness, on
1 January 1992. The Foundation is responsible for carrying out his legacy by organizing
the Prince Mahidol Award Ceremony, the Prince Mahidol Award Conference,and the Prince Mahidol Youth Award Programme Scholarship.

-2Two Prince Mahidol Awards are conferred annually upon individuals, or institutions,which have made exemplary contributions to the advancement of medical and public healthservices for humanity throughout the world. Each award consists of a medal, a certificate,
and a sum of 100,000 USD. Any national medical, or health authority, or indvidual, or group ofindividuals acting in a non-governmental capacity, may submit nominations for the award to
the Secretary-General of the Prince Mahidol Award Foundation before the 31st of May each year.
Last year, the Prince Mahidol Award in the field of medicine was conferred upon
Associate Professor Katalin Karikó, Ph.D., from Hungary and Professor Drew Weissman, M.D.,
Ph.D. from the United States, for their joint research on mRNA technology, which has led to thedevelopment of COVID-19 vacccines, and Professor Pieter Cullis, Ph.D. from Canada,
for his pioneering research on lipid nanoparticles, which have been used to develop mRNA
vaccines so that they are able to enter human cells. Mr. Anutin Charnvirakul, Deputy Prime
Minister, and Minister of Public Health of Thailand, met with the Prince Mahidol Laureates inJanuary 2022, to congratulate and to commend them on their dedication to assist hundredsand thousands of patients all over the world. He acknowledged that their achievements areextremely important contributions to humanity and was honoured that Thailand could play a rolein supporting their research.
The Prince Mahidol Award Conference (PMAC) is similarly an annual event held in
Bangkok, which invites leaders and experts to discuss global challenges. The theme for PMAC inJanuary 2022 was “The World We Want: Actions towards a Sustainable, Fairer, and HealthierSociety.” PMAC 2022 focused on six mega trends, which include a changing population,changing demographics, urbanization, climate change, land use change and transformativetechnologies. Participants explored the relationships between these issues and how to address
them through policy making and collective action. They noted that the growing world population
would impact natural resources and human health. An ageing society results in an increasing
number of people with non-infectious diseases, such as strokes and Alzheimer’s disease, requiring
more researchers to focus on these diseases. Urbanization and an increase in the number ofmegacities have a profound impact on pollution and related urban diseases, compoundedby climate change. Nevertheless, the rapid development of transformative technologies havethe potential to help us overcome such global challenges by advancing medical proceduresand forecasting natural disasters. At the end of the day, participants reiterated the need to join
forces to create the world we want, while also ensuring that technological advancements
and life saving innovations are equally distributed worldwide.
Finally, just as Prince Mahidol contributed funds towards educational scholarships,
the Prince Mahidol Award Foundation continues his legacy through the Prince Mahidol AwardYouth Programme Scholarship. Last year, five scholarships were awarded to students fromthe Faculty of Medicine at leading state hospitals, three from Siriraj Hospital and two fromRamathibodi Hospital, with the confidence that they would return the gesture to society throughtheir service.
Mr. Phurin Areesawangkit from the Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital, was one ofthe recipients. In an interview on Radio Thailand’s “MFA Update” program, Phurin explainedthat the scholarship provides youth who are interested in medical research, public health systems
and public health policy, with an opportunity to study in frontline institutions, in any country,
for one year. Phurin was motivated to apply for the scholarship for the opportunity to learn
from world class experts and to strengthen connections between academic institutions in Thailand
and those abroad. He aims to pursue research on the treatment of cancer in the hope of providing
more effective treatment for cancer patients in Thailand. He is an example of the powerfuland enduring legacy left behind by Prince Mahidol, carrying on the torch of His Majesty’s
pursuit of learning for the benefit of mankind and education for humanity.
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-3-Mr. Tanee Sangrat is Director-General of the Department of Information and Spokesperson for
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand. He is also the Chairman of the Sub-Committee on
Public Relations of the Prince Mahidol Award Foundation and has worked closely withthe foundation in this capacity. During his time at the Department of Information, he has given
importance to public diplomacy and engaging youth on international relations through variousactivities. He has served as the Consul-General to Los Angeles, the Ambassador of Thailand toVietnam, and is currently Ambassador-designate to the United States.