ABSTRACT
Located in the centre of the Southeast Asian mainland, bordered by Malaysia to the south, Laos and Cambodia to the east and Burma (Myanmar) to the west, Thailand has an area of 513, 115 km2 and is divided into five regions. The north of Thailand is covered with thick tropical forest and fertile agricultural land. By contrast, the northeast is dry, arid and rich with mineral deposits, notably potash. The Central Plain is also very fertile, and the south is endowed with mineral deposits, tropical forest and rubber plantations. The western region is also rich in mineral deposits, and the land is generally suitable for farming and cattle ranching. Thailand's main natural resource is agriculture, while other significant resources are natural gas reserves in the Gulf of Thailand, tin deposits in the South, and small quantities of petroleum.
