Thailand English-language News for April 19

In Thailand English-language News for April 19, 2018, Newsline presenter Sandra Hanutsaha tells us about:

00:48 | Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday told a committee on Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) development policies to place an emphasis on developing labor residences and tasked the Board of Investment (BOI) with overseeing investment incentives.

The EEC committee was tasked with the development of six major aspects of the smart city initiative, while the government will focus on amending legislation to facilitate operations by the private sector.

The EEC committee is also expected to finalise the terms of reference (TOR) for the railway infrastructure project connecting U-Tapao International Airport with Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport and Don Mueang International Airport within the next couple of weeks, with a contractor expected to be appointed within November.

The meeting also discussed a proposal by the Alibaba Group to invest Bt10 billion (about US$320 million) to connect various tourist destinations popular with Chinese tourists as a way of boosting tourism and supporting local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as well as One Thambon One Product (OTOP) producers.

02:25 | Deputy prime minister for legal affairs, Dr Wissanu Krue-Ngam, yesterday explained that in addition to being appointed the Prime Minister’s political advisor, Sontaya Kunplome, leader of Phalangcho, will also be in charge of Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) policy.

Regarding the appointment of Mr Itthipol Kunplome as vice minister of Tourism and Sports, Weerasak Kowsurat, Minister of Tourism and Sports said he believes Mr Kunplome’s background as the mayor of Pattaya makes him a good fit for the role, denying the appointment was politically motivated.

03:37 | Deputy prime minister for legal affairs, Dr Wissanu Krea-ngam, said yesterday said that assistance measures were being considered for operators of digital TV operators with low audience ratings, but that any measures must be fair and in the best interest of the nation.

Dr Wissanu said that most operators disagreed with the idea of returning their license to the State, because substantial amounts of money had been invested in equipment and personnel, suggesting that making the licenses transferable may be an option.

04:56 | New US Defense Attache to Thailand, Colonel Wayne Turnbull, yesterday paid a courtesy call to the Supreme Commander of the Royal Thai Army, General Thanchaiyan Srisuwan, with outgoing US Defense Attache, Colonel Rocky Carter.

06:05 | Deputy commander of the Royal Thai Police (RTP), Police General Sriwara Rangsiphramnakul, yesterday said that police will be analysing the cause behind each crash and road death over the Songkran week and intensifying stringent measures ahead of future holidays, with particular focus on minor roads where most crashes took place.

07:32 | Secretary-General of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), Chalermchai Sitthisart, yesterday thanked all agencies for their efforts in attempting to minimise road crashes during the seven-day Songkran holiday.

08:46 | The National Film Board (NFB) and film experts have reviewed nearly 30,000 Thai films shown in theaters between June 9, 1946 and October 13, 2016 and declared 70 of them outstanding films of the Ninth Reign, in remembrance of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

The Ministry of Culture (MoC) will commence showing ten of them free of charge at Scala Cinema at Siam Square in Bangkok between April 24 and 27, and from May 7-June 23 in Nakhon Ratchasima, Chiang Mai, Phuket, and Prachuap Khiri Khan Provinces.

12:34 | Around 10.6 million foreign tourists arrived in Thailand during the first quarter of this year, generating Bt573 billion (about US18 billion) in revenue, 19 per cent higher than for the same period last year.

Meanwhile, domestic tourists made more than 12 million trips within the country in February, generating over Bt89 billion ($2.8 billion) in revenue, 15 per cent higher year-on-year.

During the Songkran holidays, the number of domestic trips increased 12 per cent to about 3.1 million journeys, generating Bt35 billion ($1 billion) in revenue.

14:21 | Newsline takes a look at Samut Sakhon at the wide range of seafood and produce that is seeing it develop as a culinary hub, as well as an attractive destination for investors.

16:51 | Nuntawan Sakuntanaga, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Commerce (MoC), and Lyu Jian, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to Thailand, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on projects for the Mekong-Lancang Cooperation Special Fund totalling Bt60 million (US$1.9 million).

Following the signing of the MOU on funding Mr Sakuntanaga, and Mekong Institute Executive Director Dr Watcharas Leelawath, signed an MoU on the implementation of the projects.

19:37 | Thailand is preparing to host the 12th ASEAN Skills Competition, with an aim of encouraging adolescents and workers in the region to be enthusiastic about developing their skills in line with new technology. The competition will be held from August 26 to September 5, 2018 at Challenger Building, IMPACT Muangthong Thani.

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Newsline is a daily Thailand English-language news and current affairs programme produced by the National News Bureau of Thailand (NNBT) under the Thailand Government Public Relations Department (PRD) for *NBT World, the NNBTs 24/7 English language television service delivering Thailand government news and information to the Thai, Asean, and wider Asian communities. AEC News Today publishes Thailand English-language News M-F.