Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha is satisfied with the successful rail delivery of durians and coconuts from Thailand to China.
Government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said Gen Prayut is satisfied with the arrival of two containers of durians and a container of coconuts in southern China. The exports departed March 27 from Map Ta Phut railway station in Rayong and ran through Laos and onto China, arriving three days later.
The Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry, however, will call a meeting of the Fruit Board tomorrow to improve on aspects of the delivery -- document processes, product inspection and how to avoid delays.
Mr Thanakorn said the government aims to also maximize fruit delivery from Thailand to China through the Nongkhai-Vientiane-Boten-Mohan checkpoint which can be used as an alternate export route.
As part of this, the government will coordinate logistics with Lao and Vietnamese authorities in relation to a checkpoint in Nakhon Phanom to Vung Ang Port in Vietnam's Ha Tinh province.
This will span some 300 kilometres.
Mr Thanakorn said the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry and the Commerce Ministry have sought cooperation with Asean countries and China to connect Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and China through the East-West Economic Corridor so as to further boost business opportunities.
Alongkorn Ponlaboot, adviser to the agriculture and cooperatives minister, said on Sunday the fruit delivery used multi-modal transportation methods -- a combined mode of railway and land transport. He said that China has been building a plant disease detection area at Mohan railway station where fruits need to be taken through a checkpoint.
Mr Alongkorn said that the new route from Nakhon Phanom to Vung Ang port of Vietnam's Hatinh province will expand Thai exports to China's Xinzhou Port, Nanning, Guangzhou Port, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Xiamen, Ningbo and Shanghai.
This route will also be used for exports destined to South Korea, Japan and the Americas, he added.
Thanakorn: Smooth logistics