STREET WISE
Don't just hang out with your pals
A recent meeting at the Thailand Research Fund (TRF) discussed its findings on Australian businessmen's attitudes to investing in Thailand, including their perceptions of key government agencies.
The fund's staff has now been tasked to come up with recommendations to improve agencies such as the Customs Department, Excise Department and the Board of Investment. The TRF's recent research focused on Australian businessmen, following up on the Thai-Australian free-trade agreement. The upshot is that government agencies still have a lot of room for improvement. For instance, Australian businessmen in Thailand say the procedures for dealing with government agencies such as the Excise Department are far too complicated. Some says they had to pay bribes when dealing with some agencies. The researchers said Australian investors felt that the Board of Investment focused more on building its image than actually communicating with potential investors and inviting them to come to Thailand. A researcher who presented his findings at the meeting said that when Board of Investment officials went overseas to attend international business conferences, they tended to stick within the Thai group rather than making an effort to meet other delegates and contacting potential international investors. The audience at the meeting included well-known academics. Somkiat Tangkitvanich, research director of the Thailand Development Research Institute Foundation, said government agencies should come up with a list of things not to do, and that this might help improve the agencies' performance. He didn't elaborate on what should be included on the list. But certainly, this one is a must: when you go to international conferences, don't just hang out with your friends and colleagues. Chalida_e@nationgroup.com
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