On Thursday, September 12, 2024, Ms. Sasithorn Palattadej, Advisor on Policy and Planning at NESDC, representing the Deputy Minister of Finance (Mr. Julapan Amornvivat) in the capacity of Minister for the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) program for Thailand, attended the 30th IMT-GT Ministerial Meeting in Johor State, Malaysia. The meeting was chaired by Mr. Mohd Rafizi bin Ramli, Minister of Economy of Malaysia, with Mr. Edy Priyono Pambudi, Deputy Minister for Economic Affairs Coordination of the Republic of Indonesia, in attendance. Also present were representatives from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), ASEAN Secretariat (ASEC), the Governor of Trang Province (Mr. Songklod Sawangwong), Deputy Governors from all 14 southern provinces of Thailand, senior officials, representatives from the Joint Private Sector Advisory Council (JPAC), and representatives from relevant agencies.
During this meeting, the Ministers and Ministerial Representatives of the three IMT-GT countries acknowledged the progress report of the IMT-GT program, with key points as follows:
1. The development in various aspects of the IMT-GT subregion has increased significantly after the COVID-19 pandemic, such as trade, foreign direct investment (FDI), domestic investment, and Gross Domestic Product per capita (GDP Per Capita).
2. Progress in the implementation of 8 areas of cooperation, with each working group reporting
significant developments under the 5-year Implementation Blueprint 2022-2026, including:
– Tourism sector: IMT-GT Tourism Year campaign 2023-2025, promotion of Muslim-friendly tourism, and single destination tourism, as well as discussions to develop cross-sector cooperation between tourism and transportation working groups.
– Transport connectivity sector: For Thailand, important projects include the construction of a connecting road between Sadao-Bukit Kayu Hitam customs checkpoints, the construction of the second Kolok River Bridge, and the construction of a double-track railway from Hat Yai to Padang Besar, which are progressing according to plan.
– Agriculture and agro-industry sector: Ongoing efforts to promote sustainable and environmentally friendly agriculture, such as Malaysia’s Super Fruits project, young farmer incubation project, and support for rubber cooperation in the subregion. A draft Memorandum of Understanding on palm oil in the IMT-GT subregion is being prepared to promote palm oil value chain linkages and exchange of best practices among IMT-GT member countries as major global palm oil producers.
– Trade and investment sector: Drafting of a Framework of Cooperation in Customs, Immigration, and Quarantine (FoC in CIQ) between the governments of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand to facilitate cross-border movement of goods and people in the IMT-GT subregion. It is scheduled to be jointly signed at the IMT-GT Leaders’ Meeting in 2025 in Malaysia.
– Halal products and services sector: Continuous development of experts, promotion of halal product entrepreneurs for export, support for certification of halal products and services, and increasing consumer awareness of IMT-GT halal products and services.
– Human resource development sector: Joint projects to promote digital skills, competitiveness development, and labor standards development, with key projects including competency development and labor skill standards, as well as technical and vocational education and training.
– Environment sector: Initiation of capacity building for emergency response to oil spills at sea, through knowledge exchange with India as a partner country, leading to concrete policy formulation for addressing environmental issues from oil spills in the IMT-GT subregion.
– Digital transformation sector: In the process of developing joint projects among the three countries. Thailand has been implementing activities such as the 5G ecosystem stimulation project for commercial application of 5G technology and the project to develop measures to promote investment and utilization of 5G technology.
3. Progress of the Chief Ministers and Governors Forum (CMGF), which has successfully pushed forward the Sustainable Urban Development Framework (SUDF) of the IMT-GT program in 5 areas: electric vehicles, green buildings, solar power, greenhouse gas inventory, and solid waste management guidelines. There is also a proposal for a Green City Award for cities demonstrating commitment and innovation in sustainable urban development. Thailand has proposed that member countries establish CMGF Secretariat offices in their respective countries, as well as draft national action plans for concrete implementation at the local government level.
4. Cooperation of the IMT-GT Joint Business Council (JBC) and IMT-GT University Network (UNINET), encouraging increased private sector and academic participation in various working groups, proposing the establishment of an IMT-GT Business Council Secretariat office in Thailand, and proposing the IMT-GT Connect project for knowledge exchange and training of government and private sector representatives regarding the 6 IMT-GT economic corridors.
5. Cooperation with other development partners, such as the development of the ASEAN Smart Cities Network (ASCN) with the ASEAN Secretariat, knowledge exchange and training under the Asian Development Bank’s B-I-G project, cooperation initiatives with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), and the initial development of cooperation with India, with a Senior Officials’ Meeting between IMT-GT and India scheduled for 2024.
6. Future actions include: (1) Expediting the follow-up on the Mid-Term Review of the 5-year Implementation Blueprint, (2) Accelerating implementation under the SUDF framework, (3) Discussing approaches for developing IMT-GT subregional cooperation on the blue economy with relevant agencies and sectors, (4) Enhancing cross-border cooperation, such as signing the FoC in CIQ at the IMT-GT Leaders’ Summit in 2025, and (5) Seeking more diverse cooperation with potential external development partners.
Additionally, the Ministers and Ministerial Representatives of the three IMT-GT countries jointly endorsed the Joint Statement of the 30th IMT-GT Ministerial Meeting, emphasizing the importance of collaborative efforts both within the IMT-GT subregion and with external development partners to achieve integration, innovation, and sustainability, leaving no one behind, in line with the IMT-GT vision. They also expressed appreciation for the progress and achievements of all 8 working groups, supported the CMGF framework for green city development, encouraged JBC and UNINET to collaborate with various working groups, and commended the cooperation of other relevant development partners, especially the Asian Development Bank and ASEAN Secretariat, for their continued support of activities under the IMT-GT framework.
Thailand will host the 31st IMT-GT Ministerial Meeting and other related meetings in Trang Province in September 2025.
***********************
International Strategy and Cooperation Division
Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council
September 14, 2024
