Thailand: Bangkok could become the Amsterdam of Asia

Coffee shops on every street corner, colorful neon lights, strip clubs, massage parlors, and a slightly risqué atmosphere. Does that remind you of anything? No, this isn’t Amsterdam—it’s Bangkok. The Thai capital is sending more and more signals to young people and wants to become the «Amsterdam of Asia.» This is largely thanks to increasingly lenient laws regarding cannabis.

In late 2020, the kingdom removed the hemp extracts (leaves, stems, roots) from its list of controlled substances. A few months later, it authorized cafes and restaurants to sell CBD extracts incorporated into food or beverages. The «land of the free» has also allowed medical cannabis since 2018, with a speed of opening rarely seen in our Western countries.

For now, the THC remains banned. But these coffee shops CBD-themed venues are popping up all over Bangkok. And the Thai economy is hoping to attract tourists who are interested in them. «CBD hemp is sure to become a source of revenue for Thailand and attract investors."«, says an entrepreneur in the sector, quoted by the Bangkok Post.

Are «CBD coffee shops» enough?

If Thailand wants to become the «Amsterdam of Asia,» it’s because the country’s economy depends on tourism. Foreign visitors account for one-fifth of the Thai economy. But COVID-19 has severely disrupted this model due to significant travel restrictions around the world. In 2020, only 7 million people visited Thailand—six times fewer than in 2019. As a result, the economy contracted by 6.1 % in 2020, according to the IMF.

To shift its economy toward CBD, the government even organized a convention in the northern part of the country to educate the public about the use of this compound. Ice cream, noodles, and beverages containing cannabidiol were on offer at what looked like a hemp-themed agricultural fair. «Cannabis is the rising star—it will put money back in our pockets and make the economy as prosperous as it was before, if not even better.», ", says the organizer enthusiastically, as quoted by the news agency Reuters.