Special economic zone to be set up in Sa Kaeo

Special economic zone to be set up in Sa Kaeo
By Digital Content



SA SAEO, Oct 20 -- To further boost cross-border trade, Thailand's Industry Ministry is now quickly setting up a special economic zone in Sa Kaeo province on the border with Cambodia.

Industry Minister Chakramon Phasukavanich inspected the area reserved for the special economic zone last Friday saying that the government's Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand (IEAT) is amending its law to facilitate setting up the zone.

Mr Chakramon said a committee on Special Economic Development Zone Policy will meet this week to discuss progress made on establishing special economic zones.

The committee earlier approved seting up special economic zones in five border areas including Tak’s Mae Sot district bordering Myanmar, Sa Kaeo’s Aranyaprathet district and Trat’s Khlong Yai district, both bordering Cambodia, as we as in Mukdahan province bordering Laos and Songkhla’s Sa Dao district bordering Malaysia.

The government is optimistic that establishment of special economic zones would further boost cross-border trade which now totals more than one trillion baht annually.

Sa Kaeo Governor Pakharatorn Thienchai said the province would reserve about 10,000 rai for foreign investment and that he would ask the National Economic and Social Development Board to open a permanent border crossing point in Ban Pa Rai in Aranyaprathet district to facilitate Cambodian workers inside Thailand and ease their return to their country.

Presently, Ban Pa Rai has only a temporary border crossing point.

Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand (IEAT) Governor Verapong Chaiperm said there are plans to establish industrial estates within the special economic zones on high expectations that many foreign investors would be interested in setting up plants there. (MCOT online news)


-- TNA 2014-10-20