Laos and Thailand take steps to promote business opportunities
Laos and Thailand take steps to promote business opportunities
Laos and Thailand are working together to promote trade, investment and tourism for business expansion and to further strengthen the relationship between the two countries.
The Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) in cooperation with the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LNCCI) and the Lao Association of Travel Agents (LATA) with support from the Thai Embassy and the International Trading Promotion Department of Laos yesterday held the first Thailand Meeting Incentives Convention Exhibition (MICE) Road Show Laos 2015 in Vientiane.
The aim is to develop business opportunities and increase the relationship between Laos and Thailand in developing the MICE concept.
More than ten private companies from Thailand were invited to show their products and take the opportunity to exchange experiences and discuss business operations with Lao entrepreneurs.
The event is also to promote the MICE programme to attract trading, investment and tourism in Laos and other Asean countries.
In previous years Laos and Thailand have cooperated on business development in different sectors especially industry, agriculture and services said TCEB's Domestic MICE Department Director General, Mr Puripan Bunnag.
He believed that MICE will expand business opportunities in the region, particularly in Laos, as well as increase the numbers of tourists.
Each year around 700,000 Lao people visit Thailand and MICE will encourage more of them to come while over 20 million people from around the world also visit Thailand and one million of these are participants in MICE events, according to Mr Puripan.
The income from visitors has contributed to socio-economic development and created business opportunities when sellers and buyers match up.
TCEB is trying to create long term, sustainable competitive capability for its strategy partners in Laos, especially LNCCI and LATA.
With Asean Economic Community integration at the end of the year, the TCEB and LNCCI have similar targets in MICE industry development through understanding and friendship between each other and through human resource promotion, cultural exchanges and economic cooperation.
TCEB is also focused on cooperation with Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar for MICE industry promotion in the region.
The TCEB is a public organisation in Thailand which has been in operation since 2004.
Its main objectives are to promote meetings, incentive travel, conventions and exhibitions, known by the acronym “MICE”, and to strongly develop this collective industry in order to make Thailand a regional hub for MICE events.
At the event, Vice President of LNCCI, Mr Thanongsinh Kanlaya and Vice President of LATA, Mr Saleum Khamphengvong on behalf of the Lao government welcomed the cooperation and provision of support for business expansion on trading, investment and tourism.
