Thai Ambassador Talked Business with Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Gujarat
Ambassador Pisan Manawapat and his team received warm welcome from the Vadodara Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI). Business leaders of Vadodara and Ahmedabad held lively interactive sessions with the Ambassador and Mr. Tomwit Jarnson, the Consul-General in Mumbai and Mr. Adul Chotinisakorn, Executive Director of Thai Trade Center Mumbai.
In Vadodara, Mr. Jatin Bhatt, President of VCCI hosted a tea reception in honor of the Thai Ambassador. More than 60 members of VCCI attended the event. In Ahmedabad, the Ambassador had a round table discussion with senior members of GCCI, chaired by Mr. Prakash Bhagwati, Senior Vice President.
The Thai team was delighted to learn that many members of both chambers are already doing business in Thailand and keen to expand their commercial ties. They pointed out numerous opportunities in sectors ranging from gems and jewelry, automobiles, engineering, construction, aquaculture and fishery, tourism, as well as aviation.
Ambassador Pisan expressed his optimism about increased business relations between Thailand and India following the official visit of the first woman Thai PM to India as Chief Guest of India's Republic Day earlier this year. Her visit gave a boost to the political will to conclude the India-Thailand Comprehensive Economic Agreement by 2012. The Thai envoy also pointed out the importance of Thailand’s central location in ASEAN, which is becoming an Economic Community in 2015. The ASEAN Economic Community, with its extensive FTA agreements with other dialogue partners, will be a bridge for India to East Asia and the Pacific.
The Thai Ambassador showed his appreciation for Gujaratis who favored Thailand as their number one place for vacation and wedding, remarking that in an online poll conducted by readers of India’s Travel & Leisure Magazine, travelers voted Thailand as the world’s “Best Country 2011” and “Best Wedding Destination 2011.” According to the Consul-General in Mumbai, half of visa applications processed in their office came from Gujarat. In a move to facilitate Gujarati travelers, the Thai visa processing center will open an office in Ahmedabad in June this year.
Going beyond the tourism industry, Ambassador Pisan also shared with the audience other interest facts about Thailand: the country’s has been the world’s largest exporter of computer hard drives, sugar, and natural rubber. Until recently, Thailand was also the world’s largest exporter of rice, but India now has beat Thailand to the number one place.
Having witnessed the economic dynamism and excellent infrastructure in Gujarat, as well as the enabling business environment, the Thai team saw great potential for expansion of Thai business presence in the state. The upcoming mega-infrastructure projects such as the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) and the Gujarat International Finance and Tec-City (GIFT), would present enormous opportunities for Thai businesses, especially in construction.
Seeing that tourism and businesses between Thailand and Gujarat needed to be enhanced, both Team Thailand and Gujarati business leaders endorsed the Ambassador's initiative to persuade Thai Airways International to fly direct from Bangkok to Ahmedabad. Ambassador Pisan suggested that the travel industry, especially in Ahmedabad, should prepare information and relevant data to make a case for establishing this direct flight. He would urge Thai Airways to send representatives to visit Gujarat soonest to undertake a market survey.
Later in his meeting with Chief Minister Narendra Modi, the Ambassador reiterated that he would like to be an unpaid advocate for Gujarat and accepted the Chief Minister's invitation to a Thai business delegation to visit Gujarat later this year. The Royal Thai Embassy will also feature Gujarat in its business seminar, to be held in Bangkok this September.
Dr. Chamsai Menasveta
22 May 2012
