Jirapon Sunkpho
ABSTRACT
Thailand new ICT Master Plan is the 3rd episode of the country's ICT development plan to cover 2014 to 2018. Four key strategies are set forth to include building optimal infrastructure, nurturing vibrant business, be a smart government and capitalizing ICT human resources which emphasize to target to the level of community and local entity in terms of development benefits and gains. Ageing people is among prioritized community to pay attention to thus in the form of e-Ageing development since according to ILO expert, Thailand will become ageing society in full stream in less than 20 years from now.
In building optimal infrastructure, highlighted projects such as Free WiFi and provisional internet service are eligible to cater certain ageing communities. In real terms, common devices and platforms to facilitate the elderly are to be encouraged for embracing their lives and works at a certain level of calibrated international standard. In an effort to drive relevant vibrant business, opportunities will rest upon e-Ageing products and services ranging from life-style to healthcare goods and solutions.
As for the smart government strategy, smart public service to react to expectation of ageing group of consumers is to be paid of attention as well as promotion of innovated devices and applications made specifically to serve the special needs of the elderly. While at the same time the last ICT development strategy which addresses obviously over human capital development during the five year plan will pave a distinctive channel to accommodate the elderly to succeed ICT literacy for improving their quality of life and work extensively.
Through the 5-year ICT master plan, Thailand aims high to drive the country toward "Digital Society" in a smart manner, defined in ICT2020 as "Smart Thailand". ICT enabled innovations and services for e-Ageing will be prevalent for transforming the country into an incumbent silver society in the next two decades. In an utmost mode of development, the country needs to adapt itself to avoid technological traps by adopting international standard as well as regional collaboration that Thailand already holds its stakes in ASEAN, APEC, IAC and etc.
The authors of this paper attempted to conduct an analysis over "Ageing Society" which Thailand has been categorized to be transitional into the dilemma among the fast evolving countries. The analysis was limited to an ICT development aspect scanning through the latest version of the country ICT master plan, since ICT, as perceived in the digital society, is an enabling tool for improving quality of life of human kind to date.
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Index Terms
- Thailand new ICT master plan to promote ICT innovations and services for e-ageing
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