Thailand to set up digital special economic zone

BANGKOK, July 18 (TNA) - The Thai government, through the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), plans to establish a digital special economic zone where incentives will be offered to draw in global investors. ICT Minister Dr. Pornchai Rujiprapa, in his capacity as chairman of a government task force on trade promotion through digital media, promotion of new digital businesses and promotion of digital content, on Friday told journalists of the plan, initiated by the Software Industry Promotion Agency (Public Organization) or SiPA, aimed to create the business environment which facilitates the development of innovations, digital services and the concrete promotion of digital industries and innovations, paving the way for Thailand to become a hub of digital services in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and a digital connectivity center between ASEAN and the international community in order to attract global investors. Pornchai said the incentives planned for the proposed digital special economic zone include investment promotion and tax privileges, as well as labor and stable infrastructure facilitations and modern resources which support innovative investors and developers worldwide. The ICT minister pointed out that the establishment of the digital special economic zone is a channel to attract more global investment and earn more national income through the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), set to established by the end of this year, where there will be free flows of trade and movements of services and human resources According to the ICT minister, the Thai government also plans on establishing the state-of-the-art national “Data Center” to be jointly operated by the state-run Board of Investment of Thailand (BOI) and the private sector, in which all official data will be stored and managed in an integral system, with its construction set to begin in October 2015. The ICT minister also announced that the auction of two operation licenses of the fourth generation (4G) mobile phones, to be issued by the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), will be held in November 2015. (TNA)