PHATTHALUNG, Thailand – Prime Minister Paetongtarn on Monday visited Thale Noi in Phatthalung province, where she fed water buffalo and promised to address problems with shallow water and aquatic weeds.
The Prime Minister conducted an inspection before the first official off-site cabinet meeting of 2025, held at Prince of Songkla University in Hat Yai, Songkhla.
She also monitored the southern Gulf of Thailand provinces (Chumphon, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phatthalung, Surat Thani, and Songkhla) during February 17-18.
Her first stop was at the Thale Noi viewpoint in Khuan Khanun district, Phatthalung, to review water management in the Songkhla Lake Basin. Buffalo farmers requested her help in promoting Thale Noi buffalo milk products, as farmers are already producing them but lack support and purchasing centers. The Prime Minister inquired about this, noting buffalo milk’s popularity in other countries.
Local farmers also proposed two solutions for Thale Noi’s shallow water problem, which the Prime Minister endorsed: converting aquatic weeds into fertilizer to generate income for farmers, and using the weeds as landfill to expand tourist areas.
Farmers expressed hope for success under PM Paetongtarn’s government, recalling how former PM Thaksin Shinawatra successfully built the Ekkachai Bridge connecting Phatthalung and Songkhla in 2004. (TNA)
