From August 20-22, 2024, Ms. Sasithon Palattadej, Policy and Planning Advisor, along with NESDC officials, attended the Special Senior Officials’ Meeting for the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) Development Program, the Greater Mekong Subregion Economic Cooperation Program (GMS), and other related meetings in Jakarta, Republic of Indonesia. Representatives from the ASEAN Secretariat, Asian Development Bank, and relevant agencies also participated in the meetings.
On this occasion, Thai senior officials provided comments in various meetings as follows:
1. Joint Special Senior Officials’ Meeting of IMT-GT and Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) on Blue Economy Strategy 2030 The meeting aimed to drive the blue economy through operations under interconnected subregional cooperation frameworks. The main strategies include: (1) Efficient ecosystem and natural resource management, (2) Reduction of marine, coastal, and inland water pollution, and solid waste reduction, and (3) Sustainable management of marine, coastal, and inland waters. Thailand emphasized the importance of developing strategies based on comprehensive data analysis and research methodologies, considering alignment with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and exploring cooperation with the GMS program to create linkages in subregional operations. Thailand also suggested considering the development of a clear action plan under the existing ASEAN Blue Economy Strategy framework instead of creating a new strategy to lead to a unified drive for blue economy development at the regional level.
2. Meeting of the B-I-G Programme Steering Committee The Asian Development Bank representative presented the progress of personnel training at all levels under the three subregional cooperation frameworks from 2019 to 2024 on various topics such as project management, smart tourism, and tourism management for entrepreneurs. The focus was on demand-driven training that aligns with member countries’ needs. New training topics were also presented, including the blue economy and smart cities. Thailand expressed support for these topics and proposed additional training topics related to air quality issues, especially the PM 2.5 problem, which is a cross-border challenge in the ASEAN region.
3. GMS Senior Officials’ Meeting The meeting held preliminary discussions on documents to be approved/acknowledged at the GMS Leaders’ Summit, scheduled to be held in Kunming, Yunnan Province, People’s Republic of China, in early November 2024. Thailand provided comments on having a clear mechanism to drive various strategies under the GMS program to promote efficiency and reduce duplication with existing mechanisms.
Additionally, NESDC officials participated in a consultation meeting to strengthen tourism cooperation in Southeast Asia, attended by representatives from the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO) and tourism representatives from various countries. The meeting presented tourism strategies for the subregion and ASEAN region. The Thai representative from the Department of Tourism emphasized the importance of sustainable tourism, focusing on Community-based Tourism (CBT), the need for a platform to create networks, language skills training, and the application of technology and innovation in tourism.
Story/Photo: International Strategy and Cooperation Division
Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council
