On September 17, 2021, Prime Minister and Minister of Defense General Prayuth Chan-ocha visited to follow up on the Factory Sandbox project at Mitsubishi Motor Company Limited (Laem Chabang), Thung Sukla Subdistrict, Sriracha District, Chonburi Province. Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin, Chonburi Provincial Governor Mr. Pakrathorn Thienchai, Chairman of Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) Co., Ltd. Mr. Chokki Morikazu and the delegation gave a welcoming, together with other senior executives from the Ministry of Labour. General Prayuth said that the COVID-19 pandemic had affected the world and in all sectors. The government and private sector must work together to drive the country forward, create jobs, and build investor confidence. He thanked the Ministry of Labour, the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Public Health, and the Ministry of Industry for working together to integrate the government’s efforts in helping and healing those affected by COVID-19. The government has made vaccinations a national agenda to build immunity among Thai people by starting a Kickoff on June 7, 2021. He thanked all parties involved in driving the government’s national agenda.
General Prayuth spoke about past investments in Chonburi. He said that there had been enormous investments in infrastructure to drive the economy, especially the development of logistics, including the high-speed rail project connecting three airports and the development of the new port phase. This is to make the EEC a HUB for trade and investment within the region, increase the country’s competitiveness and promote the future industry, following the 20-year national strategy. The Ministry of Labour has contributed to vaccinating insured persons in the workplace, providing remedies for insured persons affected by lockdown measures, under Sections 33, 39, and 40, and worker campsites. Therefore, he emphasized the following key issues: 1) To systematically monitor the “Factory Sandbox” project and prevent the spread of COVID-19, especially the Bubble and Seal operation to provide organized supervision. 2) Drive vaccinations to insured persons to supervise and organize the services thoroughly, especially in high-risk areas, to prevent the spread of COVID-19. 3) Provide remedies for employers and insured persons under Section 33 in businesses affected by government measures in the most restrictive and controlled areas, and to provide effective remedial payment services and Section 40 groups, that must check their eligibility for remedies, to publicize this widely so that insured persons receive assistance to survive the situation.
General Prayuth emphasized the private sector’s role in transforming Thailand. He said that the combination of power between the public, private and civil society sectors would enable us to fight against COVID-19. The Prime Minister also stressed that the Ministry of Labour encourages workers to register for social security to gain access to remedies. In the past, the Ministry of Labour has continuously provided information on the workforce to keep him informed. As for cooperation with Japan, he recently made a phone call with the Prime Minister of Japan. Today, the Japanese Investors Association has 273 member companies located in Rayong, Chonburi, and other provinces. The implementation of this project is part of the government’s care for businesspeople to drive the business further.
Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin said that for the COVID-19 situation that has continued to have impacts until today, the Ministry of Labour had implemented the Factory Sandbox project, operating under the concept of managing structures and processes in a manner “Health Economics” to build immunity for workers and investor confidence in driving the economy from the manufacturing and export sectors, which are a mechanism that supports the country’s economy. The initiative aims to build immunity for workers and build confidence in driving the economy from the manufacturing sector to investors in manufacturing and large exports enterprises in the seven pilot provinces, namely Chonburi, Nonthaburi, Samut Sakhon, Pathum Thani, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Chachoengsao, and Samut Prakan. The project is a collaboration between the Ministry of Labour, the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Public Health, and the Ministry of Industry. The implementation of the project aims to maintain economic stability in the manufacturing and export sectors, valued at over 700 billion Baht, to prevent the spread of factory clusters so that the country can move forward and continue to build confidence for Thai and foreign investors. It also aims to maintain employment levels in the manufacturing and export sectors with over 3 million jobs. Phase 1 will operate in 4 provinces, including Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Sakhon, and Chonburi, in manufacturing/export companies with 500 insured persons or more. There are 387 companies that fit the criteria with 474,109 insured persons. The project is operating under the slogan “Inspect, Treat, Control and Care” and kicked off at the same time in 4 provinces on August 23. 1) Inspect is screening with 100% RT-PCR to isolate patients for immediate treatment and carry out self-ATK tests every week. 2) Treatment provides FAI (Factory Accommodation Isolation) of no less than 5% of the employee population, a Hospitel, field hospital, and ICU facility for green, yellow and red patients. 3) Control is to implement Bubble and Seal measures for prevention and control and DMHTT (Distancing, Mask Wearing, Hand Washing, Testing, Thai Chana) and 4) Care is to carry out vaccinations for workers, focusing on the seven risk diseases groups and pregnant women, including issuing a “Blue Factory” certificate to build investor confidence.
As of September 16, 2021, the phase one results of the “Factory Sandbox” project found that 50 establishments have been screened for COVID-19, comprising 95,240 insured people (or 38.10 percent of the targeted 250,000 people). Vaccinations have occurred in 36 establishments for 40,465 insured people (40.47 percent of the targeted 100,000 people). Chonburi is one of the pilot provinces. There are 17 establishments participating in the project, with a total of 28,149 insured people. A total of 15 establishments have been screened for 17,934 insured people, whereby 239 infected people were identified and have already been admitted for treatment according to public health measures.
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Division of Public Relations
17 September 2021
