Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanavisit, speaking during the APEC trade ministers’ meeting, assured that the Thai government is working to ensure Thais have equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, supports moves to ease restrictions on cross-border goods transport and exempts taxes on medical supplies.
He told the meeting the pandemic has affected the business sector and economic growth in the region, adding Thailand has dealt with the crisis by adopting modern trade models, such as on-line trade and business matching, to provide small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and micro-SMEs with opportunities to export their goods.
Mr. Jurin said Thailand supports connectivity among APEC countries by calling for restrictions on international travel to be relaxed. Thailand will reopen its tourism industry, with Phuket to be the first province to welcome back foreign tourists and waive the quarantine requirement for those who have been vaccinated against COVID-19, under the so-called “Phuket Tourism Sandbox” program, starting on July 1.
The minister added that the Thai government is also supporting sustainable trade practices, such as promoting its bio-circular-green economy (BCG) development scheme, as a model for post-COVID economic recovery. (NNT)
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