During December 10-11, 2019, Dr. Wanchat Suwannakitti, Policy and Planning Advisor at the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC), co-chaired the 5th Project Coordinators’ Meeting and the 3rd High-Level Meeting under the Thailand-Malaysia Committee on Joint Development Strategy for Border Areas (The 5th Project Coordinators’ Meeting and the 3rd High-Level Meeting of Thailand-Malaysia Committee on Joint Development Strategy for Border Areas: JDS) together with Dato’ Dr. Noor Zari bin Hamat, Deputy Secretary-General of Malaysia’s Ministry of Economic Affairs, at Weil Hotel in Ipoh, Perak State, Malaysia. Key participants in the meeting included Mr. Mongkol Sinsomboon, Consul General in Kota Bharu, Mr. Rachada Jiwalai, Consul General in Penang, Mr. Boontham Maneekarn, Assistant Secretary-General of the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre, and Mr. Mohammad Nasser bin Abdul Razak, Deputy Director of the Perak State Economic Planning Unit, along with representatives from various agencies including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Tourism and Sports, representatives from southern border provinces, and the Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand.
The meeting discussed progress monitoring of various development projects in the Thai-Malaysia border areas, with significant progress including the construction of two bridges across the Golok River (the new Golok River Bridge at Tak Bai District, Narathiwat Province – Pengkalan Kubor, Kelantan State, and the second Golok River Bridge at Su-ngai Kolok District, Narathiwat Province – Rantau Panjang, Kelantan State). Malaysia is preparing to organize a joint technical working group meeting for the bridges between the two countries in February 2020. The construction project for the connecting road between the new Sadao Customs Checkpoint and Bukit Kayu Hitam Customs Checkpoint was also discussed, with Thai representatives urging Malaysia to accept the proposal for road connectivity between the two checkpoints and to organize a joint technical working group meeting to finalize technical approaches for such connectivity as soon as possible to facilitate cargo transportation and cross-border movement of people.
Thai representatives also presented progress on the Secure, Prosperous, and Sustainable Triangle Model City project, which includes the 4th model city in Jana District, Songkhla Province. As a result, Malaysian representatives expressed interest and are preparing to organize a study visit to the project areas in early 2020.
Additionally, the meeting discussed approaches for developing the second JDS Action Plan to jointly promote Thai-Malaysia border area development in directions that are consistent and mutually beneficial. The plan details will include cooperation approaches for projects in 7 cooperation areas under the JDS program: (1) core infrastructure development and transportation connectivity, (2) human resource development including education, (3) tourism, culture, and people-to-people relations promotion, (4) trade and investment, (5) agriculture, fisheries, livestock, and irrigation, (6) finance, banking, and Islamic banking, and (7) energy. Conclusions will be reached and used for presentation during the 12th JDS Working Group Meeting in February 2020 in Bangkok. The meeting chairs from both sides also agreed on inclusive development principles, ensuring that no one is left behind as a guiding principle for JDS program cooperation.
The meeting outcomes, which include details on driving Thai-Malaysia border area development projects and conclusions on developing the second JDS Action Plan, will be presented to subsequent high-level meetings including the 12th JDS Working Group Meeting, the 8th JDS Senior Officials Meeting, the 5th JDS Ministerial Meeting, and the 7th Annual Meeting between Thai-Malaysian Leaders, all scheduled before mid-2020.
News/Photos: International Strategy and Cooperation Coordination Division
