On 29 – 30 October 2025, Mr. Chulvat Narinthrangura, Director-General of Thailand International Cooperation Agency (TICA), participated in the Ninth International Meeting on Triangular Cooperation, co-hosted by Camões – Instituto da Cooperação e da Língua, I.P., Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Portugal, and the OECD Development Cooperation Directorate (DCD). The meeting served as a platform for exchanging experiences and addressing challenges in implementing triangular development cooperation. The event gathered over 280 participants from 50 countries, including heads of development cooperation agencies, international organisations, and private sector representatives.

On this occasion, the Director-General of TICA and Ms. Florbela Alhinho Paraíba, President of the Board of Directors of Camões, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between TICA and Camões regarding Triangular Co-operation in Third Countries. Both sides agreed to implement joint development cooperation projects in Timor-Leste in key priority areas such as technical and vocational education and training (TVET), public health, and fisheries. The aim is to deliver tangible and concrete results that can be showcased at the next international meeting, which will also commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Triangular Cooperation Meeting. Notably, Portugal has signed MoUs on Triangular Co-operation with only two Asian countries: Japan and Thailand.

The Director-General also held a bilateral meeting with Mr. Carsten Staur, Chair of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC). The DAC commended Thailand’s proactive and committed role in development cooperation and expressed its support for Thailand to take on a greater role within the DAC. The DAC also welcomed Thailand’s participation as a DAC Participant, and proposed that Thailand take the lead in development cooperation efforts in Southeast Asia. In addition, the DAC expressed interest in co-hosting a regional meeting with Thailand on development cooperation agencies in the Southeast Asian region.