Thai Cabinet on Tuesday approved a budget over 2.8 billion U.S. dollars to invest in over 100 development projects in the southern Andaman coastal provinces, Thai News Agency reported.

Deputy Government Spokesman Chalitrat Chantarubeksa told a news briefing after the Cabinet met in southern tourists province of Phuket that it gave a green light for a 2.8 billion U.S. dollars budget toward the development of the five Andaman coastal provinces of Phuket, Ranong, Phang-nga, Krabi and Trang.

Currently, 23 of all 117 development projects, valued about 21 million U.S. dollars, were ready to start up in Fiscal Year 2012, Chalitrat said.

Moreover, the cabinet also endorsed the project for transportation system improvement in Phuket, particularly air travel, in order to facilitate and to serve the burgeoning number of air travellers from the current six million to 12 million travellers annually, Acting Government Spokesman Anusorn Iamsa-ard said.

The Transport Ministry was instructed to urge Airports of Thailand (AoT) to speed up its plan to expand the existing Phuket International Airport, earlier allocated 190 million U.S. dollars, as well as to conduct a feasibility study to build an airport in Phang-nga.