On June 20, His Excellency Kallayana Vipattipumiprates, Ambassador of Thailand to Canada, and Mr. Nanthapol Sudbanthad, Director of the BOI New York Office, met with the Canada-ASEAN Business Council, and Export Development Canada (EDC) and hosted a working dinner at the Ambassador’s Residence in Ottawa. The purpose of the working dinner was to promote opportunities for Canadian trade and investment and to strengthen trade and economic relations with Thailand. His Excellency Ambassador Kallayana emphasized that Thailand is an ideal location for Canadian businesses and that there are many business opportunities of mutual benefit.

Attendees at the dinner included representatives from the Canada-ASEAN Business Council (CABC) and Export Development Canada (EDC). The Thai Ambassador introduced Director Nanthapol, who is responsible for helping facilitate the investors and attracting FDI from the U.S. and Canada. The meeting was attended by 11 people from government agencies, financial and private sectors. The representative from the Export Development Canada (EDC) also announced that EDC will be opening a new office in Bangkok next year as part of its global Indo-Pacific expansion strategies.

The working dinner opened with remarks from Mr. Wayne Farmer, the President of the Canada-ASEAN Business Council, followed by an introduction from Senator Clement Gignac, the Province Quebec – Kennebec. Senator Gignac expressed appreciation for the event and highlighted ASEAN opportunities for Canadian trade and investment. He also mentioned plans to lead a Canadian delegation to the Philippines and Indonesia at the end of this year and to attend the AsiaClean Energy Summit in Singapore.

Director Nanthapol provided the investment benefits and incentives offered by the Thai Government. He discussed Thailand’s new strategies for promoting investment aimed at fostering sustainable growth, and regional development in the region. He highlighted merit based incentives for human resources development, training grants and measures to improve the efficiency of energy conservation, alternative energy utilization, and environmental impact mitigation. He also discussed the Bio-Circular-Green Economy (BCG) policy, which targets clean energy use and sustainable growth through science, technology and innovation. Additionally, he presented incentives for the electric vehicle, semiconductor, agriculture, digital, medical and healthcare industries, and introduced the benefits of Long-Term Resident Visa (LTR) program to the attendees.

Additionally, Director Nanthapol held a meeting with the business alliance Invest in Canada, an agency to foster economic development and investment in Canada. The discussions focused on mutual benefits and collaboration opportunities, including investment ventures, export prospects for Canadian companies, and the exploration of cutting-edge technologies in Canada, for potential investment in Thailand.