Thai-BD businessmen urged to raise trade using sea ports Governor of Ranong Province of Thailand Suriyan Karnjanasilp, Ambassador of Bangladesh to Thailand Ms. Saida Muna Tasneem, BTCCI President Sajjatuz Jumma, ICC’B President Mahbubur Rahman seen at a BTCCI Business Meeting with Thai Port Authority delegation, in Dhaka on Monday. Governor of Ranong Province of Thailand Suriyan Karnjanasilp, presently visiting with a trade delegation of Thailand urged the businessmen of Bangladesh and Thailand to enhance bilateral business by using both countries’ sea port. He made the call at a business meeting between the Bangladesh Thai Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BTCCI) and the delegation of the Thai Port Authority held at the Dhaka Club Ltd on Monday. Bangladesh Thailand Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BTCCI) organised the meeting. The 13-member high profile Thai delegation is visiting Bangladesh to explore feasibility of signing MoU for direct coastal shipping between Chittagong port of Bangladesh in the Bay of Bengal and Ranong Port of Thailand in the Andaman Sea. Sajjatuz Jumma, President of BTCCI welcomed the delegation members and said that Bangladesh and Thailand have long-standing friendly relations as trusted and tested friends, even before the two countries established diplomatic ties on October 5, 1972. He also said that Thailand is an advanced economy, and is recognised globally as a hub of the Asia-Pacific region due to its impressive creation, innovation and development of versatile products. Being strategic partners in the region, Bangladesh and Thailand cooperate with each other both bilaterally and multilaterally. It is the high time for both of the countries to boost bilateral relations in order to nurture the economic diplomacy adopted in the recent times. Exploring MoU between Chittagong port and Ranong port is one step forward in growing bilateral diplomatic and business relationship between the two countries. Suriyan Karnjanasilp, Governor of Ranong Province of Thailand said that both the countries should extend their cooperation regionally and bilaterally by establishing sea and land routes. The MoU Chittagong and Ranong will start new horizon in the diplomatic and business relationship between two friendly countries, he said. He assured of all out support and cooperation from his side to implement a bilateral understanding between Bangladesh and Thailand embassy. He expressed the views and opinion to the business galaxy about the relevant issues of MoU. Saida Muna Tasneem, Ambassador of Bangladesh to Thailand emphasised on strengthening the existing relationship between Bangladesh and Thailand. She also stressed on promoting the fisheries sector of Bangladesh which could be highest foreign currency earning sector. Ambassador Muna said that Bangladesh as a member of BIMSTEC could be considered by Thailand as a hub to integrate with other ASEAN countries. She said that the involvement of a big company like Ital-Thai Development Company Limited for construction of the Elevated Express way and an agro-industrial and food conglomerate CP Bangladesh Co Ltd were the proof of Thailand’s interest to consider Bangladesh as an investment destination. She also emphasised that apart from trading only, now both the countries should try to establish strategic partnerships to establish labor intensive industries in Bangladesh.Prajak Sriwatthana, Assistant Director General of Asset Management and Business Development and leader of the delegation said that Thailand’s Ranong sea port, in particular, is a capable port of entry in logistics of goods, and now it is going to be a new gateway to accommodate trade expansion between Thailand and Bangladesh. Mingpant Chaya, President of the Thai-Bangladesh Business Council (TBBC) was present in the meeting and said the economies of Bangladesh and Thailand were complementary but there were some products like agro, fisheries, machineries, leather, jute and jute goods which could be manufactured at each others point to overcome competition and for the marketing of those products globally.
