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BANGKOK, May 13 (APD) -- The Thai-Chinese Rayong Industrial Zone has benefited a lot from the China-proposed Belt and Road(BNR) Initiative, which gears with Thai government's touted Thailand 4.0 strategy, said a Thai-based Chinese entrepreneur.
Xu Genluo, chairman of Thai-Chinese Rayong Industrial Realty Development Co. made his remarks here in an exclusive interview with APD.
Xu said the ideas proposed by the two countries share the same concepts of win-win cooperation and connectivity.
As a plan envisioning greater cooperation,inclusiveness and higher growth, the BNR initiative raised by President Xi Jinping in 2013 aims to revive the historical Silk Road by building a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along the ancient trade routes.
Thailand 4.0 pushed by the current government, is an economic model aimed at pulling Thailand out of the middle-income trap, and push the country in the high-income range.
"Under this model, Thailand will move toward an inclusive society with equitable access to the fruits of prosperity, which echoes the major concept of the BNR initiative", said Xu.
He explained that the strategy will be jumpstarted by the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) project, with which the government hopes to turn three eastern provinces off the coast of the Gulf of Thailand into a hub for technological manufacturing and services with strong connectivity to its ASEAN neighbors by land, sea and air.
"The synergy of EEC and BNR initiative will undoubtedly bring more benefits to Chinese enterprises." said Xu, who runs the Thai-Chinese Rayong industrial zone that has attracted the total investment of more than 800 million U.S dollars from 35 Chinese enterprises during the past three years.
Xu pointed out that the industrial output value of the zone has reached 5,500 million U.S dollars since the BNR strategy initiated, accounting for two thirds of the total amount during the past decade since the industrial zone established.
Xu eyes broader industrial capacity cooperation between China and Thailand in the context of the BNR initiative and Thailand 4.0.
Under the Thailand 4.0 roadmap, 10 targeted industries are promoted as clusters by the government, including next-generation cars; smart electronics; affluent, medical and wellness tourism; agriculture and biotechnology; food;robotics for industry; logistics and aviation; biofuels and biochemicals; digital; and medical services.
Boosted by the two ambitious plans, the world's leader solar supplier like Trinasolar and industry with advanced technology like Futong optical fibre cable communication Co.ltd, have invested in the industrial zone and filled in Thailand's technology gap, Xu told APD.
"Regional integration is taking shape, industries and development will follow. Both Chinese investors and Thailand, the country along the Belt and Road as well as the center of the ASEAN region, will enjoy increasing opportunities."said Xu.
(ASIA PACIFIF DAILY)
