The government is pursuing avenues to address workers’ issues for those seeking employment at Tom Yam Kung restaurant businesses in Malaysia. These efforts include transforming the southern provinces into a global metropolis of halal food and services.
Deputy Prime Minister Gen Prawit Wongsuwan, in his capacity as the chairman of the Southern Border Provinces Development Strategy Committee, has instructed the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Center (SBPAC) to accelerate its plan to address the issue of Tom Yam Kung restaurants in Malaysia. It is estimated that Malaysia has around 5,500 restaurants, with an estimated 150,000 Thais from the southern region traveling to the country to work in these places, generating around 200 billion baht in total for the Southern provinces.
According to SBPAC Deputy Secretary-General Chonthun Sangpoom, the center is currently tackling the issue of Thais traveling to Malaysia to work in restaurants. The network association for Tom Yam Kung entrepreneurs wishes for Thai authorities to assist in addressing and improving the quality of life for Thai workers at these establishments. Some of these issues include providing assistance to obtain passports, work permits and other necessary documents for working or doing business in Malaysia. Addressing these issues would reduce complications, allowing restaurants to resolve labor shortages caused by the global panldemic.
Chonthun said the SBPAC has met with Saifuddin Nasution, Minister of Home Affairs in the Pakatan Harapan administration under Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, to discuss the situation. The minister has stressed the importance of the issue and said he will work with Thai authorities to address it as soon as possible.
The Thai government and the Southern Border Provinces Development Strategy Committee have laid out important policies for the southern border provinces to become a global metropolitan hub of halal food and services. These measures include halal chef training and agricultural product preparation for worldwide export. The success of the Tom Yam Kung network will also establish the framework for future career networks, helping to facilitate the long-term growth of the southern border provinces. (NNT)
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