Thailand English-language News for January 11

In Thailand English-language News for January 11, 2018, Newsline presenter Sandra Hanutsaha tells us about:

00:42 | Deputy prime minister Dr Wissanu Krea-ngam said yesterday that the Cabinet is yet to receive the draft laws on local and provincial elections from the Council of State (CoS), which has been asked for clarification on 40 points, and he did not know when they will be received.

Dr Krea-ngam also said that a plan by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to use Article 44 of the Draft Thailand Constitution to transfer personnel to the Office of Water Resource Management (OWRM) is aimed at kick-starting the agency until permanent staff are recruited.

With regard to the national salary review currently underway, Dr Krea-ngam advised that a decision had been deferred until January 17.

01:12 | Deputy prime minister for economic affairs, Dr Somkid Jatusripitak, told a seminar hosted by the Economic Reporters Association (ERA) in Bangkok yesterday that the Thai economy is expected grow 4 per cent this year with foreign capital, government investment in infrastructure, and the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) being major drivers.

Outlining details of the governments action plan, Dr Jatusripita said that the government plans to support agricultural SMEs who support lucrative crops, while the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) has been tasked with coordinating the creation of eCommerce platforms for communities.

Additionally, he said that the Tourism Authority of Thailand (ToT) is in the process of creating tourism routes to smaller cities, while the Ministry of Transport (MoT) has been tasked with constructing roads that connect with communities.

To encourage job growth, Dr Jatusripitak said that the government intended to offer tax incentives for enterprises which offered skills training for low-income citizens.

03:39 | The Ministry of Transport (MoT) is to hold an information seminar on January 31 on the Bang Pa-in-Nakhon Ratchasima, and the Bang Yai-Kanchanaburi, motorway projects. The two Public-Private Partnership projects will be opened for submissions in February.

04:59 | The Department of Land Transport (DLT) has partnered with Bangkok Airways to improve public transport between some airports and tourist attractions in a number of provinces to boost tourism.

06:26 | Newsline talks to Sontirat Sontijirawong, Thailand Minister of Commerce, about plans to establish Thailand as the world’s capital of tropical fruit, how the industry needs to focus on improving quality control, and to fruit vendors on the effect of Chinese buyers on local prices.

12:58 | The Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) is hosting the Eastern Economic Corridor Innovation (EECI) Fair at Space Krenovation Park in Chonburi’s Si Racha district until January 14 to support innovative businesses and community products.

14:21 | The Thai Dental Council (TDC) has teamed up with the Office of the Consumer Protection Board (OCPB) to require the registration of all orthodontic products and equipment in order to prevent the sale of counterfeit and imitation products containing dangerous products by online retailers.

16:08 | The Ministry of Education (MoE) has presented awards to the winners of the International Collegiate Snow Sculpture Contest (ICSSC), marking Thailand’s ninth straight year of taking the championship title. The event was held in Harbin city in China’s Heilongjiang province on January 5th with a total of 55 participating teams.

17:18 | The Thai Bankers’ Association (TBA) has instructed all banks to strictly verify the identity of bank account applicants following the discovery of identity theft cases. Additionally, the association is developing an e-authentication system that will link personal information of bank customers with the Ministry of Interior (MoI) database in real-time.

19:05 | Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday called for the Greater Mekong sub-region (GMS) to be connected with China’s Belt and Road initiative. General Chan-o-cha told the second Mekong-Lancang Cooperation (MLC) Leaders’ Meeting in Cambodia that Thailand was committed to developing the Mekong into a river of peace and sustainable development in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

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Newsline is a daily Thailand English-language news and current affairs programme produced by the National News Bureau of Thailand (NNBT) under the Thailand Government Public Relations Department (PRD) for *NBT World, the NNBTs 24/7 English language television service delivering Thailand government news and information to the Thai, Asean, and wider Asian communities. AEC News Today publishes Thailand English-language News M-F.