Thailand is well-positioned to benefit from digital transformation, which can unlock benefits such as increased productivity and high-quality jobs. The European Centre for Digital Competitiveness ranked Thailand as the second most digitally competitive country in East Asia and the Pacific, highlighting significant progress in its mindset regarding digitisation. Policies to enhance digital adoption have also been announced, such as the national ‘Thailand 4.0’ strategy. The economic opportunities available to Thailand through digital transformation are significant — AlphaBeta estimates that by 2030, digital technologies could support up to THB 2.5 trillion (USD 79.5 billion) of annual economic impact nationally.
However, challenges are hindering the capture of this potential, including the country’s gap in digital skills availability. For example, only 55% of workers in Thailand are literate in the digital skills required for future work (computer skills, basic coding, and digital reading, among others), which is relatively low compared to other countries in the region. These issues will persist unless the digital skilling needs of future job seekers, students, and teachers are not addressed, with public and private sector initiatives required to bridge this gap and usher Thailand into its digital future.
To enhance the country’s digital skills availability, Google Thailand officially launched the Samart Skills programme on 5 October 2022 through an event attended by over 100 participants from government agencies, companies, and media outlets. The programme aims to upskill digital talent by providing access to online digital skill courses, such as IT support and data analytics, and awarding participants with certification at the end of their course. To contextualise the importance of such initiatives, Archawat Chareonsilp, Senior Advisor at AlphaBeta, shared insights from our recent report ‘Unlocking Thailand’s Digital Potential: The Economic Opportunities of Digital Transformation and Google’s Contribution’, including trends on Thailand’s digital skills gap. This was followed by a panel with speakers from the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, as well as the Office of the Vocational Education Commission.
Source: CIO World Business (2022), Available at: https://www.cioworldbusiness.com/mdes-samart-skills/
To find out more about the economic opportunities of digital transformation in Thailand and initiatives to enhance digital skills training, read our full report here. If you are interested in working with us on this topic, please reach out to Cheng Wei Swee at Access Partnership.
