Recovery
Central Thailand is about to emerge from the worst floods in 50 years. Beyond the misery and the suffering of many people, especially people in the provinces immediately north of Bangkok, we now have to look ahead and see what can be done to avoid a repeat performance. Clearly one of the most crucial issues has been the unreliability of information and the conflicting messages issued by the national government as well as the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration. This has directly resulted in countries like Norway issuing travel advisories advising its citizens to stay away from the capital. The lack of reliable information has also had many investors worried about factories including workers, machinery and property eventually submerged in water. What became very clear was that Thailand is not an isolated incident. Ripple effects can be felt throughout the world as Thailand is a crucial part of the global supply chain in a number of industries, e.g. automotive and electronics, resulting in automobile and computer factories in faraway countries coming to a standstill due to lack of Thai components. The government needs to understand its role on the global arena and readdress investor confidence before companies decide to relocate to other countries. Thailand is also the world’s largest rice exporter as well as an exporter of other commodities like sugar and cassava. Efforts are needed to help farmers whose fields have been completely destroyed by the deluge. A proper water management system is badly needed. Norwegian companies are ready to help. During the flood, AquaFence, a Norwegian company arrived in Thailand to help erecting flood protection. Another company, Yara, is ready to assist farmers use the right type an amount of fertilisers to get the soil back in shape. Telenor is ready to contribute with technology making communications more efficient. Many of these technologies will be showcased at the technological part of the Polar Exhibition postponed till January 2012. Let me finally wish you all the best for Holiday Season and the coming New Year.
Sincerely, Axel Blom President Thai-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce
Thai-Norwegian Business Review
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