On 7 March 2013, H.E. Mr. Sompong Saguanbun, Ambassador of Thailand to Hungary, led a Team Thailand delegation to visit the city of Bekescsaba, capital of Bekes County, to meet with Mr. Norbert Erdos, Government Commissioner of Bekes County, to discuss ways and means to promote relations between Thailand and Bekescsaba at the City’s Government House.

     Apart from the bilateral meeting, Mr. Erdos, in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Bekescsaba, organized a business meeting between the Thai delegation and representatives of the local private sector. During the meeting, members of Team Thailand delivered power-point presentation about strengths of the Thai economy and exchanged ideas about opportunities for trade and investment between Thailand and Hungary with all the participants, totaling over 30 people. Furthermore, the Thai Ambassador was invited to co-host the Opening Ceremony of an art exhibition of selected paintings from students of Bekescsaba Lutheran Secondary School and students of Amnatcharoen School of Thailand. The two schools participate in a student exchange program every year. In this connection, the Thai Ambassador handed out certificates of merit, on behalf of Amnatcharoen School, to the Hungarian students whose paintings received distinction awards. Later on the same day, The Thai Ambassador was invited to co-host the Opening Ceremony of Lilavadi Thai Massage Studio, the first traditional Thai massage center in Bekescsaba.

     Bekescsaba is a city with the size of about 194 square kilometers and population of 64,000 residents, making it the 14th most populated city in Hungary. The city is well known for its agriculture and horticulture activities. It is also home of the famous “Csaba” sausage of Hungary.