Betong Airport to Open Late This Year

BANGKOK, Aug 22 (TNA) – The government is actively developing southern border provinces and plans to open Betong airport in Yala province by the end of this year. 

Deputy government spokeswoman Rachada Dhnadirek said the government endorsed many large-scaled projects for the development of the far South and their implementation was making good progress. 

She cited a 817.89-million-baht project to improve nine border checkpoints adjacent to the Malaysian border to facilitate Thai-Malaysian border trade. The project implementation was set to begin in fiscal 2021. 

Another project deals with campaigns for the development of community forests and land use improvement. Trees with economic value will be planted and the government expects 250,000 families to participate in the project. 

Another project is Betong airport in Yala. Miss Rachada said the government planned to open it by the end of this year and it would stimulate local economy because it would increase the number of visitors from 600,000 to 1 million a year. Tourism-related income would then exceed 4 billion baht annually, she said. (TNA)