Trat: After being hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic and seeing only 1.4% economic growth last year, the province's economy is picking up this year and expects to register 4.4% growth.
Governor Chamnanwit Terat said Trat's gross provincial product (GPP) stood at 44.7 billion baht last year or 0.3% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). However, this year the province's GPP is projected to grow at 4.4% due to increases in investment and border trade.
The province's economy is made up of the agricultural sector (47%), tourism and service sector (44%), and industrial sector (6%) and all sectors are picking up, he said.
On the demand side, the agricultural sector has grown by 1.3%, the tourism and service sector by 8.7% and the industrial sector by 3%. On the supply side, private consumption has risen by 1.9%, private investment by 7.8%, public spending by 0.7%, and border trade by 1.9%.
Mr Chamnanwit said the local economy will be boosted following the implementation of the airport development plan.
The airport, owned by Bangkok Airways, will see the runway lengthened from 1,800 metres to 2,120 metres to accommodate larger aircraft such as Airbus A319s and Airbus A320s.
He said local authorities and the private sector are pushing for the upgrade of Ban Tha Sen border pass into a permanent border pass to link the province with Cambodia's Pursat province.
They are also seeking to upgrade the Ban Ma Muang temporary border pass in Bo Rai district to turn it into a permanent border pass that links the province with Cambodia's Battambang.
Trat's Ban Hat Lek permanent border pass in Khlong Yai district is expected to see two-way border trade worth 32-33 billion baht this year, an increase from 31.2 billion last year.
In the first nine months, it recorded two-way border trade worth 28 billion baht.
