General

Recently, officials of the Thailand International Trade Promotion Department said that they will continue to expand the export of Thai goods and services to the African market, and rely on the offices in Africa such as Nairobi to develop market shares in five countries including Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia and Congo. It is reported that at the business and trade cooperation matching fair that ended last week, the on-site contract amount was 51.8 million baht, and the annual contract amount is expected to exceed 100 million baht.

Minister Pusi emphasized that Thailand's export advantages lie in food, auto parts, plastic granules and products, chemicals, medicines and medical devices. Of course, textiles, clothing, agricultural machinery products and rubber are also key areas of promotion. In the recently completed business cooperation fair, 78 Thai companies were arranged to participate in 96 pairs of fairs. Among them, the on-site contract value reached 51.8 million baht. If the subsequent contract value of 65.35 million baht is added, the annual transaction volume is expected to be 115.15 million baht.

However, for Thai companies, the areas they most hope to expand in the future are circular economy, medical tourism and agriculture. Exports such as rubber, agricultural machinery, and medicine have great potential in Congo, Uganda and Tanzania. Natapon, the trade representative in Nairobi, believes that East Africa is a new continent for Thai companies in Africa, where there are huge business opportunities and potential. East Africa is rich in copper, precious stones, gold, tin, tea and coffee, which Thai companies can use as raw materials to supply the market. The ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war and poor exports of Chinese goods have provided an opportunity for Thailand to expand Kenyan goods.