According to Thailand’s “World Daily” report, Thailand’s Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives Thira said that it has successfully promoted the establishment of a sericulture hall, which was announced in the government gazette on December 4, 2009 in accordance with legal procedures. In the future, the department will be responsible for supervising the production of the entire silk system, including promoting the development of Thailand’s silk industry, improving product quality, and making it more popular in the international market.
Tira revealed that the average annual export value of Thai silk reaches 2 billion baht, affecting 100,000 farmers. In order to prepare for the implementation of the ASEAN Free Trade Market (AFTA) on January 1, 2010, Thailand must step up its efforts to improve its competitiveness, reduce production costs and increase output, reduce imports from abroad, and promote the development of Thai silk into a distinctive high-quality commodity.
Wittayewan, Advisor to the Permanent Undersecretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, predicts that Thai silk will not be greatly affected by ASEAN’s open free trade. Since the ASEAN region produces less silk, Thailand imports most of it from China. Since it does not belong to the ASEAN Free Trade Area , there is no need to adjust taxes and duties, and the amount of silk imported from Vietnam is still very small.
