Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has ordered the acceleration of road construction linking the new Customs, Immigration, and Quarantine (CIQ) in Sadao District of Songkhla and Bukit Kayu Hitam Immigration, Customs, Quarantine, and Security (CIQS) in Malaysia.
After chairing the mobile Cabinet meeting on 18 February 2025 at Prince of Songkhla University, Songkhla Province, the Prime Minister followed up on the construction progress of the road alignment linking the new CIQ Sadao and ICQS Bukit Kayu Hitam and on cross-border trade.
The road alignment is part of the border infrastructure development projects, aimed at enhancing connectivity between Thailand and Malaysia. The Sadao-Bukit Kayu Hitam checkpoints are seen as the busiest and largest economic, tourism, and transport gateway between the two countries.
Deputy Director-General of the Customs Department Yuthana Poolpipat reported that the construction work was completed in 2019, but the project is yet to be open for use because of some technical problems and infrastructural differences between the two countries. However, the Songkhla Provincial Administrative Organization is fixing the problems, and the project is expected to be fully completed by 2025.
Sadao has been designated one of the districts in the Songkhla Special Economic Zone. It is also located at a strategic point along the North-South Economic Corridor, which has vast potential for development, since it is endowed with abundant natural resources.
Thailand’s total border trade value through the Sadao Checkpoint in the 2024 fiscal year was 450 billion baht, representing an increase of 4.8 percent over 2023. In the first quarter of the 2025 fiscal year (October - December 2024), the total trade value amounted to 114 billion baht.
Sadao has also played a significant role in enhancing tourism and transportation linkages between Thailand and Malaysia.
EN
CN
DE
JP
TH
