Marketing OTOP products in Thailand, overseas

OTOP, which stands for the “One Tambon, One Product” program, is aimed at building up small enterprises in communities by encouraging the people to manufacture local products using their homegrown skills and expertise.

More than 200 OTOP traders from Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat, Satun, and Songkhla, especially those affected by unrest in the deep South, attended training arranged for new and old OTOP entrepreneurs by the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Center in Mueang district, Yala province, on 24 April 2014.

The Secretary-General of the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Center, Police Colonel Tawee Sodsong, said that, early in 2014, OTOP products from the five provinces had been sold and displayed at two trade fairs in Malaysia. The first one took place in Terengganu State between 28 January and 3 February, with the participation of 81 OTOP traders and with sales and orders worth 8.5 million baht. A total of 113 OTOP traders participated in the second trade fair, which took place in Kelantan State from 27 February to 6 March. The earnings and orders this time came to 16.3 million baht.

Within Thailand, the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Center will take OTOP traders under this project to sell their products in Phitsanulok, Phetchabun, Chon Buri, and Nakhon Pathom from May to July 2014.

Police Colonel Tawee told the OTOP traders to serve as ambassadors of goodwill, as well, in introducing their products, which are made in accordance with the local culture and lifestyle of southern residents. The training was organized to provide them with information about each southern border province and to give the participants opportunities to learn about business and to develop themselves.

He said that because of the unrest in the deep South, many people elsewhere do not want to go there for shopping, although local products in the southernmost provinces are recognized for their high quality. For this reason, the project has been launched to promote the sales of OTOP products in various parts of Thailand and overseas.

There are numerous products that make a name for the deep South. Among them are halal food, herbal products, handicrafts, Islamic clothing, and souvenirs.

A group of OTOP traders from Narathiwat recently visited Kelantan in Malaysia to study the strategies of the East Coast Economic Region (ECER), which covers the states of Kelantan, Terengganu, and Pahang, as well as the district of Mersing in Johor.

The visit has broadened their vision on production in response to the demands of ASEAN markets. It also provided them with business opportunities to expand trade with Malaysia, linking with other ASEAN countries, especially Indonesia and Brunei Darussalam.