Thai rice exports under G2G (government-to-government) contracts are expected to reach at least 2 million tonnes this year, which should enable the country to reach its overall rice-export target for 2012 of between 8.5 million and 9 million tonnes.

The government is confident that its ability to potential markets will not be affected by its rice-pledging scheme, despite its high cost, which has been estimated at Bt15 billion-Bt20 billion, Commerce Minister Boonsong Teriyaphirom said during his recent visit to Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates.

"We have conducted road shows to negotiate with the governments of many potential markets, which have shown strong interest in buying rice from Thailand under government-to-government deals. We have also signed memorandum of understanding contracts with many governments such as Bangladesh, Indonesia and the Philippines," Boonsong said.

Thailand's rice exports via G2G deals are expected to reach at least two million tonnes this year, pushing total exports up to between 8.5 million and 9 million tonnes this year, he said. Export value will be even higher than expected.

Boonsong said the government has put more focus on encouraging G2G rice deals and co-ordinating between governments on rice-trading activities. Bangkok recently proposed that five rice-producing Asean countries - Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar - supply rice reserves to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries to ensure their food supply. The GCC comprises Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, UAE, Qatar and Bahrain.

Boonsong said that regarding the two-year memorandum of understanding to sell 1 million tonnes of parboiled rice to Bangladesh per year, Dhaka is committed to making a purchase order within the next two months at an initial volume of no less than 250,000 tonnes. He plans to launch road shows to negotiate G2G rice deals with Indonesia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, China, Singapore and other Asian markets. Rice sales to the private sector will be considered after the G2G deals are complete. The government has so far relied on local exporters to distribute rice to those markets.

Source : The Nation