Thailand must look to growth opportunities post Covid-19, Deputy Prime Minister Supattanapong Punmeechaow said on Friday.
Thailand would be attractive tor foreign investors after the threat of Covid-19 is lifted and growth would be likely in the medical and tourism sectors, he said
"Thailand will be interesting for foreign investors, especially for production expansion," he said.
'In addiion, foreign retirees will arrive to live in Thailand. They can get health insurance here. This will benefit both the tourism and medical sectors," he said.
However, at the moment the government remained uncertain how much the country should reopen to foreign visitors.
"Countries have just started Covid-19 vaccinations. So, there must be an assessment to determine if it will be worth opening up the country," Mr Supattanapong said.
The government had planned to reopen tourist provinces facing the Andaman Sea in the fourth quarter of this year, he said. Authorities in Phuket proposed that it be the first province to reopen and also pushed for an early start, before the fourth quarter.
"It is still unknown how many visitors will arrive... The most important thing is that when it starts, enough tourists must arrive to make it worth while, and their arrival must not affect Covid-19 control," Mr Supattanapong said.
The country must be prepared in the event the disease starts spreading again, and learn from what happened in Samut Sakhon province, he said.
