Poor need to be ushered in to digital age

The public sector should promote digital knowledge and internet usage among people with low incomes and little education to push the economy to the next stage, a seminar was told yesterday.

Even with Thailand as a highly connected country, with more than a half of its 68 million inhabitants having access to the internet and having the second-fastest internet speeds in Southeast Asia after Singapore, Yohan Totting, an Asia-Pacific Google Ambassador for web technology, encouraged the government to promote digital literacy among people living in poor communities.

“Educating farmers and other under-served people to get used to smartphones and apps which provide knowledge is an important step,” Mr Totting told a panel discussion.

Speaking at the launch of the so-called White Paper: Six Stories, Six Paths to Development: Online Platforms as Drivers of Inclusive Growth, released by the Asia Foundation in Bangkok yesterday, Mr Totting said workers in basic industries such as agriculture need to get to grips with the digital age.

In addition, the paper suggested basic online skills should be included in school curriculums and the poor should be educated on how the internet will benefit their day-to-day lives.

The papers cover six areas where greater online participation can pave the way for more inclusive growth and sustainable development. The sections are growing micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), enabling financial inclusion, supporting small farms, building human capital, greater engagement of women in services and promoting green growth.

According to the 26-page document, the MSMEs make up roughly 98% of all enterprises in the Asia-Pacific and employ two-thirds of the region’s labour force, which make them true engines of inclusive growth.

Failure to expand internet access and affordability will result in the wealth gap widening and will leave less developed parts of the region lagging, the report said.