On 22 January 2024, at the Embassy of Switzerland, Bangkok, Mrs. Ureerat Chareontoh, former Director-General of TICA, together with H.E. Mr. Pedro Zwahlen, Ambassador of Switzerland to Thailand, Lao PDR and Cambodia, and Ms. Géraldine Ansart, Chief of Mission of IOM Thailand, signed a Letter of Intent between Thailand International Cooperation Agency (TICA), the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), on the cooperation to implement the Project on Poverty Reduction through Safe Migration, Skills Development and Enhanced Job Placement in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Thailand (PROMISE Phase II) (2021 - 2025).

On this occasion, the Ambassador of Switzerland to Thailand, Lao PDR and Cambodia kindly hosted the signing ceremony and luncheon reception. In attendance at the events were the high-level representatives and working-level staff from TICA, SDC and IOM. The guests of honour, including Ms. Gita Sabharwal, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Thailand, H.E. Mr. Khamphan Anlavan, Ambassador of Lao PDR to Thailand, and H.E. Mr. Hun Saroeun, Ambassador of Cambodia to Thailand, also witnessed the signing ceremony for the Letter of Intent. It marks a significant milestone in the trilateral partnership for development between the three parties, given that TICA has attached great importance to North-South, South-South and Triangular Cooperation to advance development cooperation towards the attainment of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The overall goals of PROMISE (Phase II) are to offer migrant workers from Cambodia, Lao PDR and Myanmar, as well as the returning migrant workers, better protection throughout the migration cycle and to ensure their unimpeded access to skills development, which would lead them to decent employment and improved livelihoods. Meanwhile, those migrant workers can contribute to economic resilience and poverty reduction in the long term, in both the countries of origin and destination. Acknowledging the important role of migrant workers, SDC has been a driving force in the implementation of PROMISE since its first phase (2017 - 2021) to foster safe migration across the Mekong sub-region. 

TICA’s partnership with SDC and IOM to implement PROMISE (Phase II) in a trilateral manner will complement their ongoing work under the project. To this end, building on their achievements, TICA aims to support the facilitation of policy dialogues, capacity building for relevant government officials, and skills development programmes for migrant workers from Cambodia, Lao PDR and Myanmar. All these efforts align with Thailand's policy approaches to manage migrant workers in line with international standards. Furthermore, they create an enabling environment for the country to fulfil its international obligations in relation to migrants, notably the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM).