Tourists wear face masks at Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok in August 2020 (Photo: AFP/VNA)
Bangkok (VNA) – The Thai government on March 4unveiled its “area quarantine” plan to open Thailand to foreign tourists fromnext month.
Minister of Tourism and Sports Phiphat Ratchakitprakarnrevealed details of the plan after meeting with the Ministry of Public Healthand 216 tourism operators.
Area quarantine will be piloted in five provinces popularwith foreign tourists – Chiang Mai, Phuket, Krabi, Surat Thani (Koh Samui, KohPha-ngan) and Chon Buri (Pattaya). The plan will be operated via 29 travelagencies supervised by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).
Under the plan’s timeline, tourists will quarantine in theirrooms for the first three days and then be swab-tested for COVID-19 at theirhotels. If they test negative, they will be granted access to the whole hotelor resort until their 14-day quarantine ends. After 14 days they will be testedagain. If no infection is found they will be allowed to travel freely throughthe quarantine area.
Thailand’s tourism has been hit hard by the pandemic. In2019, the country hosted 39.9 million visitors who spent about 1.9 trillionbaht (63 billion USD), or 11.3 percent of its GDP.
In 2020, the number of tourists to Thailand dropped to 6.7million. The figure is projected to decrease further to 5 million in 2021,resulting in the spending of just 260 billion baht./.
The business resumption sub-committee of Thailand’s Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) will propose that disease control measures be relaxed in 19 more provinces from the current 35.
Thailand’s National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC) has approved a framework for the country's 13th national economic and social development plan, spanning from 2022 to 2026, with the focus placed on high value-added economic development.
The Central Shrimp Market in Thailand’s coastal province of Samut Sakhon – the epicentre of the country’s second COVID-19 wave – reopened on March 1 after being closed since December 19.
The Thai cabinet on March 2 approved a budget worth 6.3 billion baht (210 million USD) for purchasing an additional 35 million doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine produced by the UK, bringing its total vaccine ordered to 63 million doses.
The Republic of Korea (RoK), China and Japan agreed on May 3 to reinforce the regional financial safety net, along with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), by launching a new financing facility programme meant to extend greater support in case of a financial crisis.
A technical issue combined with an extreme heatwave was blamed for a series of explosions at a military base that killed 20 soldiers and injured several others in Cambodia on April 27, the country’s Ministry of Defence said in a May 2 statement as reported by the Xinhua news agency.
The Customs Department of Thailand is scheduled to commence the collection of value-added tax (VAT) on imported goods sent via postal services, regardless of the goods value, starting in May.
A lecturer from Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Medicine has warned Thais to be more vigilant against COVID-19, saying infection rates appeare to be worsening with higher hospital admissions, deaths and severe cases.
Malaysia should harness the collective expertise and resources to drive sustainable growth and development of the halal industry, according to Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Zafrul Abdul Aziz.
Laos has officially restored the 10% value-added tax (VAT) rate starting May 1, in a bid to support the country’s budget revenue and socio-economic development.
The ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) entered its second plenary session in Hanoi on the afternoon of April 23, discussing ways to ensure comprehensive security for the people-centred ASEAN Community.
The first session of the ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) in Hanoi on April 23 focused on fast and sustainable growth for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The Canada-ASEAN Business Council (CABC) and the ASEAN Alliance on Carbon Markets (AACM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration and accelerate the implementation of carbon crediting programmes across Southeast Asia.
ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn reaffirmed ASEAN leaders' commitment to empowering the youth to unleash their full potential when he had a dialogue with ASEAN youth in Hanoi on April 22 on the sidelines of the ASEAN Future Forum (AF 2024).
The Thai Government is being urged to increase the proportion of renewable power generation to more than the target of 50% set in the power development plan (PDP).
The Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) of Indonesia on April 21 lifted its tsunami advisory issued previously following the eruption of Mount Ruang in Sitaro district of North Sulawesi province.
Thailand expects to export about 1 million tonnes of durian, valued at an estimated 130 billion THB (3.53 billion USD) this year, with most of the shipments to China, according to Minister of Agriculture Thammanat Prompao.
The 72nd meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation (AWGIPC) and related meetings are being held by the Ministry of Science and Technology’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) of Vietnam in the central city of Da Nang on April 22-26.
Enhancing regional food security and tackling the pressing challenges of climate change will be key agendas defining Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025, Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat (lower house) Johari Abdul told the press on April 19.
Tourists wear face masks at Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok in August 2020 (Photo: AFP/VNA) 
