Abstract
Towns along the Malaysia-Thailand border have always been associated with backwardness and being low-income regions. This is mainly because policy development in these border regions is based more on defence and security rather than economic considerations. Economic structures and cross-border trade towns of Sg. Kolok (Narathiwat, Southern Thailand) and Rantau Panjang (Kelantan, Malaysia) were examined with the objective to measure cross-border economic activity and the feasibility of establishing a Cross Border Special Economic Zone. Both towns are a shopping haven among local and foreign tourists, and have the potential to become a leading cross-border tourism product of the Malaysia-Thailand border. The Malaysian government has also implemented the Eastern Corridor Economic Region to develop the East Coast region including Kelantan. Meanwhile, the Thailand Government has carried out the Southern Border Provinces Special Zone to develop its Southern region, including Narathiwat. With the security assurance in Southern Thailand coupled with both development plans being implemented, this may intensify economic activities in the towns of Rantau Panjang and Sg. Kolok. It was revealed that this has a spill-over effect in the border areas and the potential of creating a Cross Border Special Economic Zone at these border towns.
Highlights
The objective of this study is to analyse the feasibility of cross border special economic zone (CB-Special Economic Zone (SEZ)) between the borders of Malaysia and Thailand, in Rantau Panjang (Kelantan) and Sg
Abdul Rahim, Muszafarshah and Amel (2014) have studied the twin borders town, namely Danok (Thailand) and Bukit Kayu Hitam (Malaysia) with the aim of promoting Danok-Bukit Kayu Hitam as a special economic zone border through an interscalar modelization approach which analyses cross-border spatial organization between DanokBukit Kayu Hitam. The reason behind this is because Danok and Bukit Kayu is located on a strategic highway network from Bangkok to Danok-Bukit Kayu Hitam which became the gateway to Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore through the North-South Expressway in Peninsular Malaysia
Kolok CBSEZ can be divided into three aspects, namely (i) Rantau Panjang-Sg
Summary
The objective of this study is to analyse the feasibility of cross border special economic zone (CB-SEZ) between the borders of Malaysia and Thailand, in Rantau Panjang (Kelantan) and Sg. Kolok (Narathiwat). Incentives are often based on duty-free trade and the absence of exchange controls, the facilitation of licenses and other regulatory requirements, reduced corporate and valueadded tax obligations, and the elimination of local fees. Those benefits are intended to lower production costs for goods processed and manufactured within the area and thereby offer companies the opportunity to sell those goods at more competitive prices than if they were produced elsewhere in the host country.
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