Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has ordered the high-speed rail, double-track railway, and Land Bridge projects be expedited to position Thailand as the "logistics hub of Asia".
According to Jirayu Huangsab, spokesman for the Prime Minister's Office, during the weekly cabinet meeting on Tuesday the premier said Thailand has a strategic geographic advantage as well as political stability and neutrality.
The government wants to advance the Land Bridge, high-speed rail, double-track rail, and aviation hub projects, including the development of a large airport, as part of ongoing policies from former premier Srettha Thavisin.
The Transport Ministry and related agencies were tasked with creating detailed plans and accelerating feasibility studies for the Land Bridge project to ensure clear timelines and frameworks.
Ms Paetongtarn just returned from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland last week where she highlighted the country's economic, political, social and cultural strengths on the global stage. Thai government representatives met with leaders from Bangladesh, Bhutan, Montenegro, Sweden, Switzerland and Armenia at the forum, as well as executives from companies such as Google, Bayer, DP World, Coca-Cola, AstraZeneca and Amazon Web Services (AWS).
Mr Jirayu said Thailand showcased its potential in three areas: a logistics hub, its "Kitchen of the World" campaign, and green energy resources.
The second theme is a long-running plan promoting Thailand as a global leader in food security and a hub for global food storage, leveraging the country's abundant and stable agricultural output as a soft power.
He said the Agriculture and Cooperatives, Commerce and Foreign Affairs ministries were instructed to collaborate on plans to increase the export volume and value of Thai agricultural products and food raw materials to global markets.
Thailand is also committed to promoting clean energy to attract investment from global technology companies such as AWS, Google and Microsoft, as clean energy is a crucial determinant in their investment decisions, said Mr Jirayu.
The Energy Ministry and relevant agencies were directed to prepare plans and strategies to develop sufficient clean energy resources to meet international investors' needs, he said.
Mr Jirayu said the trip presented opportunities for new business ventures, as Ms Paetongtarn worked to facilitate business matching between Thai and foreign companies.
The government wants to improve the skills of the Thai workforce to support future industries investing here, he said.
The Commerce Ministry signed a free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Free Trade Association at the forum, which should enhance Thailand's trade and investment potential with other countries, said Mr Jirayu.
The Commerce and Foreign Affairs ministries were urged to expedite FTA negotiations with other trade regions, especially the EU, he said.
