|
Consulting training underway at the Thai-German Institute (TGI)
The consultancy industry in Thailand is still in its
infancy. Consultancy services offered by international auditing or
consulting companies focus on accounting or provide services for the
subsidiaries of international companies in Thailand. Local consulting
services are frequently offered by academic staff of local universities or
by individual consultants who have not had access to consultancy training.
Good consultants who have relevant experience based on sound consultancy
training are in short supply.
Group
photo on their last day of the Modul one: From Left: Chamnarn, Virot,
Somwang, Denchai, Sothon, Sinthu, Norbert, Siwawong, Banjob, Mongkol, Sue,
Reineke, Danupol, Winai, Richter, Manob, and Withan.
The Thai-German Institute embarked on a consulting
training program with the aim to reach a skill level of Thai management
consultants and project / program managers of Thai-German activities that is
in line with internationally acknowledged standards and at the same time
adopted to the Thai business environment. TGI started with its own staff. It
is TGI’s ambition to offer this kind of training to other interested
consultants in the near future. Two of the three modules have already been
carried out.
The training consists of three modules. All three modules
are delivered in a combination of off the job training and action learning
elements. The action learning takes place in selected Thai companies, where
participants work on existing or potential consulting projects, thereby
adding value to the company. Coaching of the participants and additional
inputs regarding consultant core skills (consultant-client interaction,
presentation, moderation, project management, effective teamwork) in theory
and practice is part of the concept. The specific features of modules 1 and
2 have been:
* Strategic management consulting and relevant basic
features of finance and accounting including business plan development
* Business process reengineering and value chain analysis
* Human resources consulting and change management
Module 3 is aimed at bridging the fields of engineering
and management consulting. Contents are based on the lean manufacturing
approach.
Prof. Dr. R.-Dieter Reineke acts as the course director.
He is the head of the postgraduate MBA-Program “International Management
Consulting” at the Ludwigshafen University of Applied Sciences in Germany.
The two modules have been delivered together with Dr.
Norbert Schmitz, who serves as the managing director of Me๓ Corporate
Development Ltd., a consulting company based in Germany.
Module 3 will be executed together with the LMC Lean Manufacturing
Consulting Ltd., a company of the DaimlerChrysler Group in March.
Transport upgrades to boost national trade
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra recently announced a
concerted drive by the government to solve the country’s transport
problems, pledging an outpouring of public funds to inject into the
transport network in order to slash transportation costs by 30 percent.
Addressing a seminar on transportation strategies to link
the Thai economy into the global economy, Thaksin stressed that his
administration had clearly stated its objectives to solve the nation’s
decades-long transport woes.
Noting that global competition had led to rapid changes,
Thaksin said, “Thailand should take advantage of its strategic geographic
location by developing its land and sea routes, particularly by forging
transportation links with countries in the Mekong River area, home to over
250 million people.”
The prime minister spoke of the importance of creating an
integrated transportation network by land, sea and air, whether by
developing deep-sea ports, creating road links between industrial areas and
sources of labor, or by transforming Thailand into an air cargo hub. “The
government is prepared to pour funding into making such projects a success,
while at the same time solving related problems concerning bureaucracy and
taxation,” he said.
Meanwhile Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkij confirmed the
commitment to transportation development, saying that the government would
work on expanding Laem Chabang Port and a second port at Chiang Saen on the
Mekong River, while also developing the port at Songkhla. “These ports
would be linked with road and rail networks,” he said, adding that the
eventual aim was to cut transportation costs by 30 percent. (TNA)
More measures
needed to control credit cards
The Bank of Thailand (BOT) expects to come up with more
measures to control the issuance of credit cards by non-bank institutions by
the end of March. Tarisa Watanagase, the BOT’s Deputy Governor, disclosed
that the central bank was studying information obtained by its own survey
and one by the Credit Card Association, so it could issue additional
controls to supervise the credit card business.
Tarisa said the study showed that the number of credit
cards, particularly those issued by non-bank institutions to low-income
people, had considerably increased, and the competition in the business had
intensified so much that it is causing concern. She said new measures would
be aimed at supervising the credit card issuance and credit transactions by
financial institutions and non-bank institutions and the controls could be
issued without having to wait for parliament’s approval for the Financial
Institution Bill.
BOT’s Governor M.R. Pridiyathorn Devakula said the
central bank has acknowledged the over-heating of the credit card business.
“We are urging the Financial Institution Policy Department to speed up
considering and issuing measures to strictly oversee the business. We expect
it will be able to come up with the measures by the end of this month,” he
said.
According to BOT figures, as of the end of the third
quarter of last year, the number of credit cards issued by commercial banks
and their subsidiaries totaled 4,032,424, with outstanding loans of 69.35
billion baht. (TNA)
Cabinet approves budget for food safety campaign
The cabinet has endorsed a budget to facilitate the
implementation of the food safety campaign. Government spokesman Jakrapob
Penkair revealed that the cabinet gave the nod to increase the Public Health
Ministry budget to over 270 million baht from 185 million baht last year.
“The money will be also be allocated to the government’s public
relations campaign to promote the country’s food safety projects,”
Jakrapob said. “The government has not only been working to restore
consumer confidence to revive the ailing poultry industry amid fears of the
bird flu virus but will also continue the food safety strategy to support
Thailand’s lucrative chicken export market”, he said. (TNA)
Thailand’s pearl industry urged to enter lucrative global market
The Kasikorn Research Center (KRC), Thailand’s leading
think-tank, sees bright prospects for premium-grade Thai pearl accessories
which have good potential to pursue a fair share in the world market.
Growing demand for cultured pearls in the fashion
industry attracts many countries. The market now faces fierce competition
among major exporting countries because those with cutting-edge technology
like Japan or Australia are in advantaged positions against their rivals.
Hong Kong-designed pearl accessories are also well-recognized among
customers.
In order to seek a fair share in one- billion- US dollar market, KRC
suggested that Thai entrepreneurs should develop technology to reduce
production costs and create high value-added products with skillful
craftsmanship. The research center said that the pearl business would not
only help turn Thailand into the world’s jewelry hub but also support the
government’s project to develop Bangkok as a fashion city. (TNA)
PM: Balanced budget 4 years ahead of IMF schedule
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has pledged that the
government will achieve a balanced budget for the 2005 fiscal year - four
whole years ahead of the schedule imposed by the International Monetary Fund
(IMF).
The 2005 budget, which was recently approved by the
cabinet, marks the first balanced budget since Thailand’s economic crisis
of the late 1990s.
Earlier this year Thailand was to repay its IMF loans
ahead of schedule, and the Thai leader pointed out that his administration
was pulling the nation out of the spiral of budget deficit four years before
the date stipulated by the IMF.
“I’d like to thank everyone who’s been working so
hard on this, and in particular, the private sector, which has shown
confidence in the government and which has worked to ensure the continuing
circulation of the economy. As a result, the nation has experienced
extremely favorable economic growth, and we have been able to achieve a
balanced budget by 2005", Thaksin said.
The 2005 budget has been set at 1.17 trillion baht,
higher than the budget for fiscal 2004. The budget consists of five key
strategies: a national competitiveness strategy, a sustainable development
strategy, a social fund strategy, a national security and justice strategy,
and a national administration strategy.
Next year’s budget will see an increase of 2 billion
baht in new investments, bringing up the total proportion of the budget
spent on new investments to 25.2 percent. The government will also increase
the proportion of the budget which goes to local administrative
organizations. (TNA)
Thai businessmen to seek investment in Da Nang
During a working visit to the central city of Da Nang,
Thai Ambassador to Vietnam Krit Kraichitti said he would bring leading Thai
businessmen to Da Nang to look into investment possibilities. “If Thai
businessmen are not quick enough they will lose investment opportunities
when the East-West corridor project starts”, he said.
Investors from Taiwan, Malaysia and other countries have
already invested in Da Nang’s industrial zones and the tourism sector.
The top Thai envoy to Vietnam said that the Thai and
Vietnamese governments are interested in the East-West corridor project and
had made positive moves to the project. The Vietnamese government has
invested in upgrading the Tien Sa Port and roads leading to the Da Nang
Port, while the Thai government has sent senior officials and researchers to
study the market in the Vietnamese central region, especially in Da Nang
City.
Da Nang has established cooperation with Thailand’s
eastern provinces of Khon Kaen, Mukdahan, and Nakhon Phanom, as well as the
southern resort province of Phuket. Eighteen businesses in Da Nang have
traded with Thai partners, mainly in textiles and garments, chemicals,
petroleum, and frozen seafood. Many Da Nang and Thai businesses have
participated in trade fairs held in their respective countries.
Thailand plans to open a branch office of Bangkok Bank
Pcl. in Da Nang, as Thailand’s PB Air has opened a new route to Da Nang
since last April with 232 flights, carrying over 5,000 passengers to the
destination.
Last year, Da Nang earned US$4.2 million from exports of
farm products, fine arts, and handicraft items and furniture to Thailand.
(TNA)
Interest rates likely to rise slightly this year
Local interest rates are expected to slightly increase by
0.25% this year, as liquidity excess has begun to ease due to more loan
applications by people, according to a senior executive of Bank of Ayudhya Pcl.
Chalot Thonavanich, the bank’s executive vice president, projected that
lending and deposit rates were likely to rise this year in tandem with the
country’s continued economic growth. She said although the economy had been
affected by the outbreak of an avian influenza, it was projected to grow around
7.8% this year. The continued growth would encourage people to seek loans for
spending on consumption or purchase of assets, she noted.
Under the circumstance, the liquidity excess, which stood at
around 700 billion baht now, would begin to decrease, she stated.
Chalot said, “Should interest rates really increase, lending rates for
housing loans would rise accordingly. Under the situation, commercial banks
would compete to introduce various loan programs with an aim to attract
potential customers. The most popular program offered by commercial banks is a
housing loan scheme with partial floating lending rates.” (TNA)
Asia Bond Fund to assist Vietnam
Thailand has proposed that the Asia Bond Fund be used to help
Vietnam free itself from debts owed to the US-based International Monetary Fund
(IMF), and Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has instructed ministers concerned
to carry on what the government has agreed to with Hanoi at the first joint
Thai-Vietnamese cabinet meeting, which ended successfully on February 21.
Government Spokesman Jakrapob Penkair stated that Premier
Thaksin was satisfied with the success of the first joint cabinet meeting, and
told cabinet members that his Vietnamese counterpart Phan Van Khai had expressed
interest in his proposal that the Asia Bond Fund be used to free Vietnam from
the US$400 million debts Hanoi owed to the IMF.
During the joint Thai-Vietnamese cabinet meeting, the two
sides signed agreements to boost bilateral cooperation in a number of areas
including a joint statement on Vietnam-Thailand cooperation framework in the
first decade of the 21st century, a framework agreement on economic cooperation,
a science-technology cooperation agreement, an agreement on plant quarantine and
hygiene, a joint statement on agreements on land traffic facilitation, a crime
control agreement, an education cooperation agreement, and a supplementary
protocol for the agreement on visa exemption for diplomatic and official
passport holders.
The Thai and Vietnamese governments also took the opportunity
to officially open the Thai-Vietnamese Friendship Village in Ban Najok of Nakhon
Phanom. (TNA)
Foreign investment expected to rise
Figures for 2003 from the Board of Investment of Thailand
(BOI) show that projects for which investment concessions were requested
last year were valued at 248,692 million baht, up 39.2 percent from the
previous year.
The Kasikorn Research Center forecast that foreign
investment across the world this year was likely to rise on the back of
global economic growth. At the same time, the formation of free trade areas
(FTA’s) within the Asian region and beyond was likely to pull investors
into the region.
Turning to domestic factors, the research center said
that investors would be attracted by the strength of Thailand’s economic
base, stable economic growth trends, government policies to develop
competitiveness and open new markets, and government willingness to enter
into FTA agreements with other countries. This was likely to lead to net
foreign investment of around US$ 3.9 billion this year, up 95 percent from
2003, with the inflow of foreign investment an unprecedented US$ 8.9
million. Outward investment, meanwhile, was likely to drop to around US$ 5
million.
The research center pointed to various government policies which it said
would help draw in more investors, including BOI road shows, amendments to
regulations governing investment concessions obliging companies to focus on
research and development, and the development of technology and human
resources. (TNA)
Trade exhibitions to increase sale of OTOP goods
The government will continue a drive to promote the sale
of products under the One Tambon One Product (OTOP) scheme with an aim to
increase the total sale to more than 35 billion baht this year.
Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak, in his
capacity as the chairman of the national OTOP committee, said the government
planned to set aside 260 million baht to organize a series of OTOP trade
exhibitions at a national level this year to boost the total sale of the
products. Among key events is the Second-Year OTOP Product Championship to
be held in June to select the top OTOP goods.
Somkid said the government had also earmarked around 40
million baht to develop tourism sites in the vicinity of OTOP villages to
attract foreign tourists into production sources. Three new OTOP villages
would also be set up in the northern provinces of Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai
with the completion expected in April. (TNA)
|
