Chia Meng eyes Africa investment
Djibouti site to open up huge new market
Bangkok Post, 11 June, 2004
Phusadee Arunmas
Chia Meng Marketing Co, a leading Thai rice exporter, plans to set up a rice distribution centre and offer corp management and silo storage services in Djibouti as a springboard to the rest of Africa . Djibouti is a small country of 23,000 sq km located in Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea , between Eritrea Somalia.
Thawal Manathanya, the company's president, said that while Djibouti had a small population of only 400,000, it was in a good location which could serve as a gateway to an enormous market with a combined population of more than 400 million in the northern and eastern part of the African continent.
The region has bought about two million tonnes of various types of rice from Thailand annually for five years.
Since the construction of the distribution centre and silos with a capacity to store 300,000 tonnes of rice could cost up to 1.5 billion baht, Mr. Thawal said forming a joint venture with local businessmen a joint venture with local businessmen was preferable.
Chia Meng sells about 20,000 to 30,000 tonnes of rice to Djibouti each year.
He said more than talks on the investment were expected when a delegation led by Djiboutian President Ismail Omar Guelleh comes to visit Thailand next month to promote bilateral trade.
Meanwhile, envoys of Djibouti, led by Foregin Minister Ali Abdi Farah, visited Chia Meng's mill in Nonthaburi yesterday. The visit came after Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra met with Djibouti 's president at the meeting of the Non-aligned Movement in Malaysia last year and offered to provide rice management services for Djibouti .
Mr. Farah said his country's doors were open to foreign investment, especially in the food, telecommunications and auto and parts sectors. Various incentives are being offered such as tax exemptions good for 10 to 20 years.
Mr. Farah said the country already had a large port, built in 2000 and operated by Dubai Free Trade Port, which could accommodate a large volume of farm and industrial goods.
The Chia Meng Group exports about 200,000 tonnes of rice per year.
The company recently jointed an Italian company, Riserea Mongferrato Co, in setting up a rice distribution centre in Italy to supply rice to European Union countries.
Plans are in the works to set up a similar operation in the Netherlands sometime in the near future.
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