Chatrudee Theparat
Bangkok Post
Thailand is being pressed to ratify cross-border transport agreements before the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) meets in December in order to benefit from greater regional cooperation.
The six GMS members have reached 20 agreements to facilitate the movement of goods and people, but Thailand has ratified only 14 of them.
Two draft agreements were scheduled to go before parliament earlier this year, but the House was dissolved in May before they could be approved.
Under the agreements, goods arriving in transit to a third country will be inspected once at a checkpoint, then sealed and sent on without the need for further inspection at the final destination.
The agreements also include implementation of World Health Organisation regulations for immigration procedures.
Thailand, Laos and Vietnam have ratified agreements for two checkpoints _ Mukdahan/Savannakhet and Aranyaprathet/Poipet.
Only Thailand and Burma have yet to ratify all the agreements, while Laos, Cambodia, southern China and Vietnam have fulfilled their commitments.
Poramathee Vimolsiri, a deputy secretary-general of the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB), said his agency expects parliament will approve the agreements soon, hopefully in time for Thailand, Laos and southern China to implement them early next year.
Thailand and other GMS members must also speed up improvements to their information technology systems to facilitate customs and immigration procedures, he said.
Mr Poramathee also said Thailand needs an economic restructuring in which cheap-labour industries are relocated to neighbouring countries, with the Thai government supporting them in term of loans and other facilities.
The NESDB recently hosted a seminar in various border towns aimed at educating the public and investors on both economic opportunities and effects of the agreements.
Mr Poramathee said regional road development is almost complete, with only a few missing stretches of road, rail and bridge left.
Since 2000, the Thai government has provided aid and loans for 19 projects worth a combined 12 billion baht for infrastructure linking neighbouring countries – 14 projects in Laos, two in Burma and three in Cambodia.
The agency estimates 189 billion baht will be needed for further infrastructure development over the next five years to strengthen links under various cooperation agreements and the Asean Economic Community.
These include a high-speed rail network, roads, border town development and border economic zones.
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