Issue 33

Norway and Thailand have a long history of international relations, something which the advent of the AEC is set to continue.

“Our mission is to promote the interests and provide assistance to Norwegian individuals and businesses, and strengthen relations between government institutions, organisations, companies and people in Norway and Thailand,” says Norwegian Ambassador to Thailand Kjetil Paulsen.

“Thailand was one of the first countries that extended diplomatic relationship with Norway and recognised Norway as an independent state. The relationship … dates back to 1907, when King Chulalongkorn, Rama V first visited Norway.”

According to Paulsen, bilateral relations are prospering, particularly in the fields of commerce and tourism. “Not only has the numbers of Norwegians visiting Thailand increased, but also the number of Thais travelling to Norway is high,” he says. “The number Norwegians residing in Thailand permanently is on the rise too, which suggests that citizens of both countries feel comfortable adapting to each other’s culture.”

Bilateral trade has also been robust, rising from 20 billion baht in 2013 to almost 30 billion baht last year, says Paulsen, who adds that this trend has continued through the first four months of 2015.

Axel Blom, vice-president of Thai-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce and country representative of Innovation Norway, believes there are many fields in which the two countries can work together.

“One of the areas I work a lot in is to get Norwegian investment into Thailand,” he says. “We work closely with Thailand’s Board of Investment to promote … production in Thailand. Another area is energy and the environment. Norway has a lot of environmental technologies, and we are looking to implement some of them in Thailand, which comply with the rules and regulations of the current government in order to better the environment for the Thai population.”

Manufacturing labour skills is another area in which Thailand’s workforce can prove attractive to Norwegian companies, according to Vibeke Lyssand Leirvag, president of the Thai-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce.

“A lot of Norwegian companies are investing in Thailand because of the consistency and quality [of the workforce],” she says. “One example would be a Norwegian company located in Laem Chabang, Aibel, which is a leading supplier of services related to oil, gas and renewable energy. The company is so impressed with the quality that it is now looking to have more projects in Thailand.”

Paulsen sees the upcoming ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) as creating many opportunities. “A zone in which all obstacles for internal commercial activities are taken away is obviously of great interest not only to the region, but also to countries that would like to conduct business [in it]. If this can be implemented, great opportunities would open for European countries and ASEAN,” he says.

Leirvag believes that Thailand has a geographical advantage within the AEC. “The location is very important and Thailand is a gateway to ASEAN,” she says. “Thailand should take this opportunity and open the borders for more free trade. Thailand should also open the service sector more, allow competition to come in and use the opportunity of having the best location in ASEAN.”  

For more information, visit http://www.emb-norway.or.th , www.norcham.com , http://www.innovasjonnorge.no

Words by: Manisa Phromsiripranee