NARATHIWAT (Southern Thailand): The Southern Border Provinces Administrative Center (SBPAC) has established a special task force to expedite the implementation of the Twin-City program linking five southern provinces of Thailand with five states in Malaysia.

Captain Jakapong Apimahatham, Director of the SBPAC’s Public Support and Development Division, stated that the establishment of this special task force, in collaboration with the five states in Malaysia, is aimed at driving efforts to accelerate the realization of the Twin-City program.

He mentioned that the five southern provinces of Thailand—Satun, Songkhla, Yala, Pattani, and Narathiwat—will each be paired with five states in Malaysia—Perlis, Kedah, Perak, Terengganu, and Kelantan.

“We have the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT), but it operates according to a different agenda.

“Yes! We have state and provincial-level committees (for the Twin-City program)… but the special group that was recently formed aims to speed up the work to ensure the program becomes a reality.

“This October, we hope to have further discussions about the Twin-City program with the five states in Malaysia,” he said during a special meeting with Apa Khabar TV recently.

On November 23, 2023, the Southern Border Provinces Development Strategy Committee, in its meeting, approved a framework to upgrade the development of cross-border Twin Cities between the southern border provinces that share borders with five states in Malaysia.

The Twin-City policy aims to promote sustainable development, improve the living conditions of local residents in Southern Thailand, particularly in the “Deep South,” reduce issues related to conflicts, and create a network of cooperation between the public and private sectors, as well as the citizens of both countries.

The “Deep South” includes the provinces of Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat, as well as four districts in Songkhla (Saba Yoi, Tepha, Chana, and Natawee).

This four-year project, running from 2024 to 2027, involves cooperation in various fields, especially trade, investment, tourism, logistics, halal industry, education, human resource development, technology development, and drug prevention and control.

The development of these Twin Cities will also facilitate the transportation of goods and boost tourism between Thailand and Malaysia.

Further elaborating, Captain Jakapong Apimahatham said that SBPAC proposed the development of Twin Cities as a model for economic and social development in the southern border provinces.

He added that SBPAC, which is responsible for all aspects of development in Southern Thailand, is also ready to assist any Malaysian investors interested in participating in the Twin-City program.

“However, SBPAC is not only focusing on the development of the Twin-City program. We are also concentrating on investments in the tourism, trade, and halal food industries.

“We are also promoting tourism in the states of Malaysia. For example, we helped promote Visit Perlis Year 2024/2025 in Satun.

“It has been reported that more Thai tourists are now visiting Perlis and other states,” he said.