The Effectiveness Of ThailandLaos Border Trade Strategic Management

Abstract

The objective of this study is to study the management strategy applied to the ThailandLaos border trade. This study was conducted in the years 2010 and 2011. The areas under study were Nong Khai, Nakhon Phanom, and Mukdahan provinces in the northeast of Thailand with the application of a mixed-methods research methodology including both quantitative and qualitative methods. Using the quantitative method, we provided 352 questionnaires to entrepreneurs who conducted cross-border trade through the customhouses in these provinces. We analyzed this data using means, percentages, factor analysis, and regression analysis. Using the qualitative method, we conducted a focus group of 16 key participants, such as entrepreneurs, customs officers, directors, and officers of the Office of Provincial Commerce, as well as the management team of the Provincial Chamber of Commerce. We analyzed this data using content analysis and descriptive analysis. On the basis of our analysis, we determined guidelines for the strategic management of cross-border trade between Thailand and Laos. The first strategy we suggest is that both Thailand and Laos should solve any border-trade problems together. The second is that border trade management should have only one unit and/or department with management authority. Currently many units and departments are involved in managing cross-border trade. Moreover, before opening a new port of entry, both governments should prepare all facilities and train officers and entrepreneurs to gain more knowledge about relevant laws, as well as providing resources for new officers in order to avoid problems of insufficient status and lag in crossing. One-stop service points should be created at customhouses to avoid long customs lines. Equipment such as X-ray trucks should be provided to support one-stop service to increase convenience and effectiveness as a way to avoid a situation where traders circumvent the law by not declaring goods at customs.