Thailand, Quang Tri maintain strong momentum for cooperation

The conference “1st Meet Thailand,” organized by Quang Tri province in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam and the Thai Embassy, marked the first time such an event took place in Vietnam in August 2023. This presented a significant opportunity for promoting and facilitating investments from leading Thai businesses in Vietnam, particularly in Quang Tri Province.

Delegates attending the Vietnam - Laos - Thailand - Cambodia - Myanmar Business Forum in 2023 will have the opportunity to take commemorative photos with Thai expatriate entrepreneurs. Photo: B.B

Following this important event, Quang Tri province has undertaken various practical activities to enhance connections with Thai enterprises, fostering collaboration in areas discussed during the workshop. Special emphasis has been placed on sectors such as renewable energy, high-tech agriculture, supply chain integration, and promoting cooperation along the East-West Economic Corridor (EWEC).

In mid-September 2023, the Investment Promotion, Trade, and Tourism Center of the province organized a delegation comprising 17 businesses and cooperatives to engage in trade transactions in the northeastern provinces of Thailand, specifically Khon Kean and Ubon Ratchathani.

This initiative, involving the participation of 31 entities, aimed to provide opportunities for promoting the national image, brands, and products of the participating businesses. The focus was on supporting and boosting the export of goods, particularly agricultural and aquatic products, industrial items, handicrafts, and One Commune, One Product (OCOP) products from businesses in the North Central region to the markets of the northeastern provinces of Thailand.

During the event, the provincial delegation showcased and introduced distinctive products such as medicinal herbs, natural essential oils, Khe Sanh coffee, organic rice, nutritious cereal powder, and peanut oil.

Additionally, the event featured exhibitions and promotions related to tourism, as well as a portfolio of investment projects calling for investment in the province, aiming to facilitate activities in promoting tourism and investment.

Tran Phi Tuong, Deputy Director of Quang Tri Investment Promotion, Trade, and Tourism Center, stated, "This trip has helped businesses promote their image and product brands while exploring the market, establishing joint ventures, and fostering production and import-export connections." As a result, 14 memoranda of cooperation were signed between the businesses of both sides.

Thai Ambassador to Vietnam Nikorndej Balankura visits booths on the sideline of the “1st Meet Thailand” event. Photo: T.T

Following the Thailand Meeting Conference, the mutual goal of both sides was to strengthen meetings, exchanges, and connections to understand investment cooperation opportunities between Thai provinces and Quang Tri. On October 9, 2023, the Investment Promotion, Trade, and Tourism Center collaborated with the Young Entrepreneurs Association of the province to welcome a delegation from the Young Entrepreneurs Association of Thailand, consisting of 30 members, for the program "Meeting for Investment and Trade Connection."

Kraisorn Chatlekavanich, President of the Young Entrepreneurs Association of Thailand, expressed, "The associations from Thailand, Mukdahan Province, and Quang Tri Province exchanged information on preferential policies, investment attraction, markets, distinctive products, destinations, tourism services, and the needs and desires for connections to reach the signing of memoranda of cooperation."

“We hope that Quang Tri businesses and those from Mukdahan, Thailand, will make efforts to jointly organize promotional programs, investment promotion, tourism forums, and business connection forums to create numerous opportunities for cooperation and business,” added Kraisorn Chatlekavanich.

A significant event took place from November 17-19, 2023, in Udon Thani Province, northeastern Thailand—the Vietnam-Laos-Thailand-Cambodia-Myanmar Business Forum 2023. The forum aimed to enhance trade, connections, and network formation among businesses in agriculture, tourism, services, high technology, exports, and finance.

Addressing the event, Le Duc Tien, Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Quang Tri Province, highlighted the province’s advantages lying along the East-West Economic Corridor (EWEC) and the PARA-EWEC corridor to become a hub for goods transportation in the region and the world, connecting the Central and Coastal regions of Vietnam with neighboring countries in the East-West direction.

“Quang Tri Province has been implementing strategically important projects to shorten transportation distances further, creating favorable conditions for customs clearance, transportation, and logistics through international border gates of La Lay and Lao Bao,” noted Tien.

He also emphasized the proactive deployment of the Quang Tri Airport project and the submission of the conveyor belt project for transporting bulk cargo through the La Lay international border gate for the Prime Minister’s consideration. These are favorable conditions for cooperative supply chain implementation, minimizing transportation costs for partners and businesses in the region.

Representatives of Quang Tri’s businesses sign a memorandum of understanding with their Thai counterparts. Photo: T.T

To enhance collaboration effectiveness in the future, the province needs to continue researching, refining, and issuing mechanisms, policies, and incentives to encourage and facilitate the effective implementation of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) programs and projects from Thai investors within the province’s jurisdiction.

Strengthening collaboration with provinces in the key economic region of Central Vietnam is essential by clearly defining each province’s advantages, common interests, and the inherent trend of regional integration for economic development and international integration. This includes building coordinated mechanisms, cooperation in exploiting shared advantages in the EWEC, and promoting the process of facilitating favorable conditions for freight and passenger transport between Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand.

Additionally, the province must leverage the role of associations and industries to establish a reliable and effective trade network through collaboration networks among associations between countries. Through these association networks, businesses can proactively expand markets, seek partners, develop cooperative relationships, and engage in joint activities in investment, trade, and tourism.

To further these efforts, facilitating favorable conditions for the Vietnamese community in Thailand to contribute to the local economic and social development, as well as participating in investment promotion, trade cooperation, and the promotion of products and services of Quang Tri province, is crucial. This also involves strengthening the role of bridges to tighten relations between provinces and localities in both countries.

Thanh Truc - Ngoc Mai