The Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC) has called on the government to promote 10 second-tier provinces as first-tier tourist provinces to expand revenue distribution.
Sanan Angubolkul, chairman of the TCC, said in order to raise annual GDP growth up to 3%, in accordance with the target, the TCC, in cooperation with the government, is preparing a flagship project to promote secondary cities with economic potential in terms of trade, investment and tourism to become major cities.
Ten provinces from all five regions were jointly selected for the pilot promotion, namely Phrae, Lampang, Nakhon Sawan, Nakhon Phanom, Sisaket, Chanthaburi, Ratchaburi, Kanchanaburi, Nakhon Si Thammarat and Trang.
The campaign is part of the government's primary policy to promote the tourism industry across three dimensions: to unlock the potential of targeted provinces to the global stage; to develop public utility systems and infrastructure for secondary cities; and to promote sustainable development of the local economy by stimulating the domestic tourism market and income for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has agreed in principle and set up a working group chaired by Prommin Lertsuridej, secretary-general to the prime minister, in collaboration with the TCC and related public agencies, with Nakhon Phanom as the inaugural province on April 5 and a plan to cover the other nine provinces within this year.
For its work plan in 2024, the TCC will continue to upgrade SMEs, which form a significant part of the economy, to increase their capabilities, in particular supporting SMEs to access funding by relaxing lending regulations.
The agency also supports the development of the digital transformation of SMEs by promoting the application of digital technologies to improve efficiency.
Furthermore, the TCC, in collaboration with the Federation of Thai Industries, the Thai Bankers Association and the Thailand Management Association, launched a project entitled "FAST SMEs: Enhancing SMEs Capability for Competitiveness" which creates a model for sustainable agricultural SMEs through the selection of 10 SMEs in the food and agriculture sector for mentoring, networking and a study trip of successful businesses in the field of food innovation.
The TCC is also in talks with Food Valley Netherlands to raise the productivity and income of the agricultural sector, with a plan to hold discussions with the Italian Chamber of Commerce, in particular through the signing of a memorandum of understanding on value-addition and branding of Thai SMEs' products, especially Thai silk, on the occasion of Mr Srettha's official visit to Italy in mid-May.
