‘Logistics Business,’ the Sustainable Treasure of Thailand
If you take a look at the overall landscape of the logistics industry in Thailand today, you will find that the ‘logistics services provider industry ’ is part of a industry that has been overlooked, and has not received as much attention as other sectors from the Government.
Amidst the trend of disruption and the digital economy, Thailand is still heavily investing in logistics infrastructure. The logistics service industry is a service industry that plays a big part in an economic drive for every country around the globe. With proper support from the Government, I believe the logistics services industry can draw in a colossal amount of revenue to Thailand.
The Government has yet to recognize the opportunity to utilize the logistics services industry to generate income for our country in the same manner as other industrial sectors, especially the tourism industry. Moreover, it also has not recognized the potential and competitiveness of Thailand as a logistics hub for cargo from neighboring countries through multi-modal logistics services. Especially to compete with Singapore, which is one of many countries that have a clear strategy and a goal to become a regional or a global logistics hub.
It is challenging for logistics services providers to encourage the Government to prioritize and recognize the importance of its industry and persuade the government to believe that Thailand has the leverage in the logistics services industry, as it has the competitive ability and the potential to become an S-Curve industry while driving the country to the future.
The logistics services industry can generate income while offering GDP growth to Thailand alike in the tourism industry. It can provide Thailand with economic sustainability as well. With a geographical advantage, Thailand has the potential to become the regional air and multi-modal transport hub. Effectively, we have a better competitive advantage than other countries in the region.
Also, the logistics services industry creates a chain of other related service businesses which consists of airport business, ports and terminals, warehouses, airplanes, and ship maintenance, cargo examines/transport/storage and distribution, cross-border transport, customs formality services, and other value-added services, including insurance.
All of which will create investments, employment, and income will be distributed throughout the supply chain. The logistics services industry can establish hundreds of billions of revenue for Thailand annually and create hundreds of thousands of employment opportunities in the economic system.
The Logistics Services Provider (LSP) expects the Government to pay more attention to and prioritize logistics-related service industry, as well as creating strategies for logistics service industry development as a national agenda and put into Thailand’s national economic and social development plan in the same manner as the tourism industry, with a clear target of the total revenue and contribution to GDP growth.
It will be important to focus on driving Thailand forward as a logistics hub and utilizing the logistics service industry to generate revenues in the same strategy as leading countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and Malaysia. Should all of this be successfully put in motion, I am very confident that Thailand will have at least three hundred billion Baht of revenue annually and have the logistics services industry as one of the key drivers for sustainable economic growth.
Kettivit Sittisoontornwong,
Chief Executive Officer of Leo Global Logistics (LEO)