On April 27, 2011, Mr. Kasit Piromya, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Mr. Declan Kelly, Ambassador of the Republic of Ireland to Thailand, Residence in Kuala Lumpur, agreed to push forward cooperation in the area of agricultural industry and education, on the occasion of the latter’s courtesy call on the Foreign Minister.
The Minister praised Ireland’s success in agricultural industry, and said that Thailand still needs technology for reprocessing as well as in producing agricultural products on a larger scale. He further proposed the sharing of Irish know-how in the agricultural sector and to intensify cooperation in this area. The Foreign Minister added that Thailand possesses a strong focus on development in the agricultural industry and has actively promoted foreign investment in this sector. The Ambassador noted that the main Irish approach to agricultural industry development was through the sharing of knowledge and expertise within the EU. He also added that Thailand possesses strong potential in agricultural industry, and that Ireland sees Thailand as suitable for further exploration of opportunities in Asia.
In the area of education, the Minister praised Ireland’s educational system and said that Thailand and Ireland should promote more cooperation between universities. The Minister also explained Thailand’s strategy to promote English as a second language and proposed the possibility of Ireland sending English teachers to Thailand, a project which would be conducted in close cooperation with the Ministry of Education. The Ambassador responded positively to the proposal, and said that English language education could be a suitable launchpad for further cooperation on education between Thailand and Ireland. The Ambassador also added that Ireland’s approach in education, research and development focuses on information and communication technology (ICT) and pharmacy. Knowledge and expertise in these areas were garnered directly from the experience of professionals in the private sector as well as knowledge-sharing between university academics.
For further information, please contact the Press Division, Department of Information, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tel.02-6435170, Fax.02-6435169, E-mail: div0704@mfa.go.th