|
Cluster development plan will help tourism related SMEs to grow
Suchada Tupchai
Cluster development of the tourism industry along the
Eastern Seaboard was the subject of a seminar staged at Ambassador City in
Jomtien, organized by Burapha University and conducted by Pak Thongsom, who
is deputy director of the medium and the small cluster support department.
(L to R)
Pak Thongsom, deputy director of the medium and small cluster support
department, Assistant Prof Ratchaneeporn Srapayakranon, director of the
technical service bureau at Burapha University, and Assistant Prof Kriangsak
Pramphan, deputy dean of the student activity department at Burapha
University.
Seven SME industrial groups with links to tourism have
been identified, such as those dealing in fresh and preserved fruits,
seafood, jewelry, and in vehicle maintenance.
During the first half of this year they have been studied
to see ways of increasing potential, and a performance plan has been drawn
up for each group. The seminar was designed to exchange ideas and present
experiences on the project to date.
Member of Parliament Sa-Nga Tanasa-Nguanwong, who is also president of
the Tourism Commission, attended the meeting and said that SME support needs
readiness from each department and good management. The provincial
governor’s office is also an important component in supporting SMEs in the
East, he said, as is structural planning, especially as Chonburi is growing
so quickly.
Municipality Officers receive performance training
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
A training session for 100 municipality officers was
conducted at city hall on July 25, the purpose being to update their
knowledge of the civil and criminal laws.
 Mayor
Niran Wattanasartsathorn opened the training session for municipality
officers.
Opening the session, Mayor Niran Wattanasartsathorn said
that the city is becoming larger and increasingly complex. Government
officials have to know and understand their own responsibilities in order
not just to help make the city work in a peaceful and efficient manner but
also for residents to have confidence in government departments and
officials.
Specific attention was paid during the course to the Pattaya
Administration Act 1999, Pattaya City regulations regarding the Control and
Support of Tourism Act 1988, and the Building Act 1999. Amongst the
specialists speaking were juristic officer Pattha Sriratda and sanitation
expert Chatcawal Chimtin.
Fresh longan from the North on its way to Chonburi
Chatchanan Chaisree
An expected bountiful harvest of longan from the North
this year, estimated at 640,000 tons, will see large quantities of this
delicious fruit coming into Chonburi from growers in the key areas of Chiang
Mai, Chiang Rai, Payao, Lampang, Lamphun, Tak, Prae and Nan.
Longans
on display at a mixed fruits shop.
A special low interest rate loan from the government to
the growers’ cooperative should result in fast distribution and low
prices.
Chonburi’s network of longan distributors will see the
fruit on sale throughout the province, at outlets as diverse as hotels and
department stores, shops in Laem Chabang and other industrial estates, and
of course in the markets.
Grade A longan from Lamphun will be available with each pack carrying an
official QC rating. A promotional campaign is also being staged throughout
much of the country to ensure the growers obtain the maximum benefit of the
harvest.
The powerful flavors of Issan available from Pattaya’s itinerant vendors
Chatchanan Chaisree
As tourism in Pattaya expands, the number of
entrepreneurs also expands to supply the needs of the growing number of
visitors and the ever-increasing population. This is particularly so in the
food and beverage sector, because everyone has to eat.
 Aunty,
an experienced Issan food maker, sells her sauce of shrimp paste and chili
with fried mackerel and Chinese sausage ... a delight for all Issan people.
Pattaya of course has an enormous number of food outlets,
ranging from hotels and independent restaurants through to noodle stalls and
hawkers.
Most of the street vendors are from Issan. Rotjana and
her husband are two hawkers who arrived in Pattaya two years ago. At first
they worked in a local restaurant, but their wages were not even enough to
cover their living expenses. Then they had the idea of making and selling
kanom jin, an Issan delicacy which they knew how to prepare well.
At first they wanted to have a cart or a sidecar, but
didn’t have enough money for that. So they decided to use a picul. All
that entails is a pole and two baskets, for a capital outlay of 260 baht.
After that, outlay is just for the raw ingredients, which is quickly
recouped if your product is good and people want to buy it.
Customers patronizing hawkers are looking for the
authentic tastes of Issan, often having originated from the Northeast
themselves. Hawkers specialize in various delicacies, and you will find
items such as grilled chicken, som tum and sticky rice, fried fish, Chinese
sausage, and the chili pastes and dips that make an Issan meal such an
unforgettable experience.
Locals are not the only ones who enjoy an Issan meal from
the hawkers; many tourists also like to try the food, and customers from
pubs and bars are a regular source of income.
The vendors, who can make between 300 and 400 baht a day, all agree that
food hygiene is of prime importance. This is of course in the interests of
the public and the image of Pattaya itself, but undeniably getting a bad
reputation for unclean food is not good for business. Consequently, unless a
visitor is totally unused to the powerful flavors of Issan, a hawker meal is
unlikely to have any ill effects.
Cooperation needed to meet nation’s energy saving goal
Suchada Tupchai
Chonburi Deputy Governor Preecha Kamolabut presided over
an energy saving seminar organized by the policy and energy planning
department of the Ministry of Energy, conducted in Jomtien on July 25. The
seminar was attended by 150 Central and Eastern officers.
 Chonburi
Deputy Governor Preecha Kamolabut conducts the opening speech.
Pichai Chamnibannakorn, director of the Provincial Energy
Department in Chonburi’s Region 3, said his department, which is under the
Ministry of Energy, is a centre and a link for energy management between
areas. Helping save energy is one of the duties of the department, and it
cooperates with the policy and energy planning department.
The seminar was held to provide knowledge and
understanding in saving power to officers and private organization personnel
in the Central and Eastern bureaus.
Deputy Governor Preecha said resolving Thailand’s
energy problems requires cooperation from all sectors, official, business,
industrial and the public alike. The government has a goal to reduce
consumption by 10-15 percent per year.
“To reach the goal of saving power we need knowledge,
understanding and good planning, because a productive plan like a good
compass will indicate the results of saving power,” said Preecha. “I
believe that the attending officers will attain knowledge from this seminar
to use in their daily lives, and transfer that knowledge to their colleagues
and their families.”
The seminar showed delegates how to make a performance
plan and to understand the benefits of teamwork. Guest speaker was Thana
Puttarangsi, a specialist in reducing energy consumption.
This seminar has already been conducted in Bangkok,
Chiang Mai, Khon Kaen and Songkhla. A total of 1,100 people have attended,
including officers and personnel from private organizations.
From Provincial Electricity Authority data in 2004 it was found that
about 557,270,033 units of electricity were consumed in the Central and
Eastern offices. In 2003 the electricity consumed was 493,752,715It units,
showing an increase of 11 percent over the one-year period.
|
|
|
|
|
