Chinese tech giant Huawei and the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) Office of Thailand signed a memorandum of understanding in Bangkok on Thursday to deepen cooperation in cultivating talent in information and communications technology and improving digital capacity in the 5G era.

(Photo provided to People's Daily)

The cooperation would enable progress to “Thailand 4.0,” said Supattanapong Punmeechaow, deputy prime minister and minister of energy.

Supattanapong elaborated on building four cooperation frameworks: a knowledge base of experts and platforms, a digital development ecosystem, digital training and a certification program for target industry standards.

Yang Xin, chargé d’affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Bangkok, said that despite the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economic downturn, high-tech cooperation in digital economy and innovation was becoming an important new highlight of China-Thailand cooperation.

“In this process, Huawei has made every effort to promote Thailand to become the first country in Southeast Asia to have commercial 5G services,” Yang said. “Today the Huawei ASEAN Academy (Thailand) EEC branch was officially established.

“We believe it will help cultivate more talented personnel in communication technology management and professional techniques in Thailand, help Thailand become a data center in Southeast Asia, and create a new model of China-Thailand digital economy cooperation.”

In collaboration with Huawei, the EEC aims to train 6,000 students and IT workers with digital development courses by 2021 and 30,000 by 2024.

In 2020, Huawei helped organize digital training for 16,000 people working in government and businesses, Yang said.

The memorandum marked an important milestone for EEC and Thai digital talent development in support of 5G technology, both officials agreed.

The memorandum would drive Thailand to become the region’s digital hub, increase the country’s competitiveness and help build a sustainable economy and society, Yang said.