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BUSINESS NEWS

HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]:
ATCC annunces Australian-Thai Business Awards

BCCT Breakfast Briefing

PM affirms Thai commitment to foreign business community

BOI Investment strategies to facilitate Thailand’s economic restructuring

ATCC announces Australian-Thai Business Awards

Dr. Viphandh Roengpithya recently presented the Australian-Thai Chamber of Commerce Annual Business Awards. The winners in the five categories were (from L to R) Tony Mitchener, Australian Education International, Special Commendation; Joseph Patrick Leslie, Thai Leighton Limited, special Project Award; Dr. Viphandh Roengpithya presenting the awards; Steele Lambrinos, Kirwan Industrial Services Co., Ltd., Best Small to Medium Enterprise Award; Gerrit de Nys, Unithai Shipyard and Engineering Limited, Business of the Year; and David Mills, Geodis Overseas Co., Ltd., Community Service Award.

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BCCT Breakfast Briefing

The British Chamber of Commerce Thailand is holding a breakfast briefing on “Developing your business through Cambridge University” on Thursday 24th May 2001 from 07.30 - 9.00 a.m. at Jamjuree 1, M Floor, Pathumwan Princess Hotel.

The BCCT is delighted to welcome guest speaker for this breakfast, Ms. Christine Cayley, director Asia Pacific, Cambridge International Examinations.

After a spell teaching English in British secondary schools and examining O level English Literature for both the Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate (UCLES), in 1984 Christine Cayley became the Professional Officer in charge of examinations in English at O and A level in both UK and internationally. She travelled extensively in this role, speaking to teachers in the UK and to ministry contacts overseas.

When UCLES reorganised into three business streams in 1998, one concentrating on UK examinations (OCR), one on English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and one on international work (Cambridge International Examinations - CIE), Christine chose to work in the international division and was given the post of director Asia Pacific. In this role, she liases with regional representatives in Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan and Beijing, promoting the qualifications and services of the organization and directs policy in the region.

The cost of this breakfast is 400 baht per person including VAT. If you would like to attend please RSVP with payment to the Chamber office no later than Wednesday 23rd May 2001. Fax: +662-651-5354, Tel: +662-651-5350-3, Email: [email protected]

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PM affirms Thai commitment to foreign business community

In an informal meeting with the Joint Foreign Chambers of Commerce in Thailand (JFCCT), Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra assured foreign businessmen that Thai government policies regarding trade and investment have not changed.

Speaking to the presidents of the 25 chambers, the prime minister sought to clear up any misconceptions about his government’s programs and their impact on the foreign business community. He indicated there would be no major changes to investment policy, adding that, for future projects, there will be increased focus on the use of local resources.

The prime minister added that a clear and unambiguous statement of Thai government policy would be presented to the international business community at the Fortune Global Forum in Hong Kong next week, including an interview on CNN.

BOI Secretary General Staporn Kavitanon reiterated that at last week’s workshop on the economy, the Board of Investment was tasked with developing strategies to strike a good balance between resource-based and knowledge based industries, using both SMEs and LSEs (Large Scale Enterprise) to help the country achieve a high-performance economy.

On the trade front, Prime Minister Thaksin indicated that the government was willing to negotiate with any country, so long as the programs were of mutual benefit.

In order to increase Thailand’s competitiveness, the prime minister vowed to give strong support to research and development and science and technology, adding that transfer of technology will be a part of the investment scheme.

Following the meeting, Peter J. van Haren, chairman of the JFCCT, said, “Today’s meeting was an important first step in strengthening the relationship between the foreign business community and this administration. We welcome the prime minister’s remarks about the need to improve Thai competitiveness and look forward to the implementation of his programs.”

Recognizing that the JFCCT represents some 8,000 Thai and foreign businessmen, the prime minister agreed to hold regular meetings between the government and the JFCCT, and assigned Deputy Prime Minister Pitak Intrawitayanunt to coordinate this activity.

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BOI Investment strategies to facilitate Thailand’s economic restructuring

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra chaired a two-day workshop on April 27-28 to discuss and develop strategies for turning Thailand into a knowledge-based economy. The workshop stimulated fruitful discussions from the nation’s top leaders (including heads of government agencies, key business executives, leading academics, as well as cabinet ministers and advisors) on strategies that could be implemented to move Thailand to become a high performance economy.

The thrust of the meeting was the need for good balance between resource-based and knowledge based industries, using both SMEs and LSEs (Large Scale Enterprises) to achieve a high-performance economy.

Investment is one of the key fundamentals in achieving these objectives.

During the investment session of the workshop, the following strategies were formulated:

* All investors, both foreign and domestic, should be assured that existing tax-based promotional privileges will be honored

* The government will continue to provide a good environment for foreign investment and the Board of Investment (BOI) will work with investors to facilitate the flow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)

* BOI will develop policies that strengthen the Thai economy and are geared toward the implementation of three main issues:

* Effective use of incentives and privileges

* Provision of all relevant information and knowledge

* Improve networking between the public and private sectors both within and outside of Thailand

* Investment promotion schemes will gradually be streamlined to achieve the above objectives in a manner that will ensure stability and investor confidence

* The promotion scheme will not only be based on tax incentives, but will also include other incentives that can help make projects more viable by reducing costs and increasing profitability to investors

* Investment policy-making will become more proactive in order to better address national development needs

* The BOI will continue to work with foreign investors to encourage technology transfer and increase the amount of value added in projects

* The role of the BOI will be expanded to take a more proactive role in marketing the country

* The BOI will continue to provide information and contacts to help Thai investors who wish to invest overseas

There will be several additional meetings to further define measures that will be used to fine-tune these strategies, with the ultimate objective of achieving a high-performance economy that will benefit all parties.

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Updated by Chinnaporn Sungwanlek, assisted by Boonsiri Suansuk.
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