Special Economic Zone to Be Set up in Sa Kaeo, Eastern Thailand

SA KAEO, October 19 (TNA) - In an attempt to further boost cross-border trade,Thailand’s Industry Ministry is now accelerating the setting up of a special economic zone in Sa Kaeo province bordering Cambodia, approximately 245 kilometers from Bangkok. Industry Minister Chakramon Phasukavanich, who inspected the area which is reserved for the special economic zone in Sa Kaeo last Friday, said the state-run Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand (IEAT) is now amending its law, designed to facilitate the establishment. Mr. Chakramon said a committee on the Special Economic Development Zone Policy will hold a meeting this week and discuss progress made on the establishment of special economic zones. The committee earlier gave an approval to set up special economic zones in five border areas including Tak’s Mae Sot district bordering Myanmar, Sa Kaeo’s Aranyaprathet district border Cambodia, Trat’s Khlong Yai district bordering Cambodia, 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 Pakkaratorn Thienchai said his province would reserve about 10,000 rai to cater for foreign investment and that he would propose to 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 in working inside Thailand and return to their country. Presently, Ban Pa Rai has only a temporary border crossing point. IEAT governor Veerapong 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. (TNA)