The Royal Thai Embassy in Brussels and the National Science Technology and Innovation Policy Office (NSTI) jointly organized the 1^st Thailand - Belgium Science, Technology, and Innovation Forum on 23 February 2015, at The Sukosol Hotel, Bangkok, Thailand.

                        This forum is part of Thailand’s science diplomacy initiative. It aims to raise the country’s competitiveness, improving quality of life, and further advancing sustainable development.  Mr. Nopadol Gunavibool, Thailand's Ambassador to Belgium and Luxembourg, and Mrs. Yada Mukdapitak, Deputy Secretary General of NSTI, jointly preside over the opening ceremony and present welcoming remarks.  

                        The theme of the forum is the management of knowledge regarding STI, so as to increase Thailand's competitiveness.  The Royal Thai Embassy and the Office of Science and Technology Attaché in Brussels invited 3 experts from the public sector as well as from KU Leuven, a leading research and development university in Belgium, to give presentations on relevant STI policy and its implementation. 

       The 3 speakers are: 1) Mr. Gerard Cielen, Research Policy Advisor to the State Secretary

of Science Policy; 2) Mr. Paul Declerck, Dean of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences at KU Leuven; and 3) Mr. Danny Pieters, Vice Rector of KU Leuven.  In addition, Mr. Chutintorn Gongsakdi, Director-General of the Department of International Economic Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will present the work plan for Thailand’s science diplomacy, the strategy for which is also being formulated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and NSTI.                  

                      Apart from the discussion session on 23 February 2015 which is open to academics, policy makers, researchers, and practitioners, there will also be a focus group dialogue in the afternoon.  This focus group aims to identify and explore potential areas of cooperation between Thailand and Belgium, such as in the areas of biomedicine, industrial biology, pharmaceutical sciences, and biotechnology.  They will also consider models of cooperation such as the exchange of experts, researchers and joint-research projects.     

                      This forum is a pilot project for STI cooperation between Thailand and Belgium, and it will provide a platform for relevant organizations from Thailand and Belgium, in the public and private sectors, as well as appropriate universities to maximize the outcome of this series of activities and continue to work for tangible benefits in the future.