Thailand offers a helping hand in the integration game

The mission’s objective was to explore investment opportunities, which Jarusombat termed “golden” in an investment conference held in Hanoi.
“Thailand sees Vietnam as an important trade and investment partner and hopes we can join forces to develop Indochina’s economy. Our Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, has ordered Thai ministers to strengthen cooperation with ASEAN members, of which Vietnam is one of the most important,” Jarusombat said at a reception with the Vietnamese Minister of Planning and Investment, Vo Hong Phuc.
Jarusombat said Thailand wanted to see Indochina develop in order to function as a counterpart to developed economies.
“Thailand considers Vietnam as a potential cooperative partner, not a competitor,” he told the conference.
He cited the size of the Thai mission, the biggest business delegation to Vietnam so far, as an illustration of the increasing interest of Thai businesses in Vietnam.
“Vietnam has a hardworking and intelligent labour force which can play a dynamic role in economic development,” he said.
By combining populations, Thailand and Vietnam would constitute a market of more than 150 million people, he said.
“Given our similarities, we have the prerequisites to ally to attract investors from other countries to Vietnam,” he said.
Furthermore, Jarusombat said that Thai businesses had a long-established relationship with investors from other countries who were willing to invest in Vietnam, particularly in the motorbike industry and accessory manufacturing.
The electronics industry and tourism were also potential areas for increased investment cooperation between Thailand and Vietnam, Jarusombat said.
However, he said tourism promotion required developed infrastructure and services, including hotel and banking facilities.
Phuc shared Jarusombat’s view, saying there were dozens of areas in which Thailand and Vietnam could strengthen ties.
“Thailand could cooperate with third countries to constitute three- and four-party conglomerates to invest in Vietnam,” he suggested.
Stressing increasingly tough competition between developed and developing countries in the industrial sector, he called for enhanced cooperation between ASEAN members to promote investment from both outside and inside the association.
“Thailand has the edge of being a trailblazer and a developed ASEAN economy, including experience and established markets of which Vietnam could take advantage,” he said.
Phuc also welcomed the idea of setting up a tripartite investment modality encompassing Thailand, Vietnam and third countries to promote investment flow, and emphasised the promotion of cooperation within the Mekong sub-region.
Considering Laos’ role as a geographic intermediary between Thailand and Vietnam, he said enhanced collaboration with this country would play an important role in the promotion of Thai-Vietnamese investment cooperation. For this reason, he said, Vietnam had strengthened ties with Laos in the area of infrastructure development, particularly roadway construction, which plays a vital part in connecting Vietnam with Thailand’s northeast.
The Ministry of Planning and Investment sees Thailand as a ‘bridge’ to help Vietnam integrate into the global economy. Thailand ranks ninth amongst foreign investors in Vietnam, with 118 operating projects amounting to some $1.4 billion worth of registered investment capital.
Thailand is the second-leading ASEAN investor in Vietnam after Singapore, with direct investment increasing by 27 per cent in 2003.
Thai Ambassador to Vietnam Krit Kraichitti said that after one year in Vietnam, he had witnessed significant improvements in the local business environment and the strong commitment of the Vietnamese government to pursue a market economy.