Secretary General of the Thailand Board of Investment

On behalf of the Thailand Board of Investment (BOI), I wish to express my warmest congratulations to The British Chamber of Commerce Thailand (BCCT) on the occasion of BCCT’s publication of the 2023 Handbook and Directory of Members. This 77th Anniversary edition continues to attest to the long-standing trade and investment partnership between Thailand and the United Kingdom and underlines the commitment to strengthen bilateral relations for the continuing prosperity of our two countries.

The BOI is committed to building a business environment that is conducive to the continuing expansion of economic engagement and growth. To this end, we have adopted a set of new incentive packages that include special privileges for long-standing investors and a relocation programme, which facilitates new establishment of headquarters as well as research and manufacturing facilities in Thailand. Most importantly, in this coming year, we are upgrading our investment promotion packages to support investments in our priority sectors including BCG, EV, Smart Electronics, Digital and Creative Industries. These and other incentives align with our aim of making Thailand an industrial base of the future and the technology hub of the region. With this in mind, premium incentives will be given to investments in upstream industries with a focus on innovation and high technology such as biotech, nanotech, and advanced materials that involve technology transfers.

For years, the United Kingdom and Thailand have shared a long strategic partnership based on unwavering goodwill. This spirit of friendship has laid the foundation for our economic relations which have remained robust even during challenging times. During 2016 - 2021, UK investment applications worth a total of USD 404 million were submitted for BOI promotion. The top three industries with the highest investment value during this period were service industries, automotive industry, and electrical appliances and electronic industries.

Since UK companies have played a significant role in advancing the competitiveness of Thailand, I truly believe that our collective efforts can sustain economic growth and continuing prosperity while helping address pressing issues such as food security, the search for renewable energy, and supply chain resilience. The BOI is confident that our two counties will continue to build on our past and current successes and reaffirms that we stand ready to provide our support in any way we can.

We wish the BCCT and its members every success in all future endeavours

Narit Therdsteerasukdi,