BANGKOK, April 22 -- Prasarn Trairatvorakul, governor of the Bank of Thailand, said on Wednesday that China plays a strategic role in the progression of infrastructure development in ASEAN region.

Addressing the launching ceremony of the RMB Clearing Bank in Thailand in Bangkok, the Thai central bank governor said, due to the huge gaps in infrastructure, there's a large difference among the ASEAN countries in the time and cost of trading across borders.

"We can narrow the gap by mobilizing our region's abundant financial resources into infrastructure investment," he said.

In this regard, the governor said, China plays a strategic role in the progression of infrastructure development.

He said the improved infrastructure will allow regional economies at various stages of development to participate in regional production networks in line with their evolving comparative advantage. "Infrastructure investment is costly but it is worth the expense," the governor added.