According to a recent report, the Minister of Transport, Communication and Information Technologies of Armenia met with the Minister of Digital Economy and Society of Thailand, on the margins of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum being held in Geneva, Switzerland.
They discussed the opportunities for cooperation between Armenia and Thailand in the high-tech industry, the Ministry of Transport, Communication and Information Technologies informed reporters.
Also, an agreement was reached on creating a working platform for future discussions and cooperation.
In addition, the two discussed the ministerial roundtable discussion to be held during the 2019 World Congress on Information Technology (WCIT), which Armenia’s capital city of Yerevan will host in October 2019.
This news about possible international collaboration in tech could not have come at a better time.
According to another article, a survey found that while people in high-growth, emerging economies are positive about their future in the digital economy, they don’t feel like their digital needs are being met.
Those surveyed said they did not feel optimistic about the impact of digital technologies on health and well-being, or their ability to access skills that are needed to thrive in a rapidly changing labour market.
The executive chairman and chief executive of the major media company noted that the digital economy is the defining trend of our time.
Thirty years on from the establishment of the World Wide Web, the legacy of that breakthrough is extraordinary, he noted.
The proliferation of digital technologies has powered economic growth, created jobs, lifted millions out of poverty, put information into the hands of people the world over and growing access to cheaper products and services.
It is difficult to imagine a facet of everyday life that has not in some way been touched by digital. For people, businesses and society as a whole, it has been a massive source of growth.
In 2017, the firm established the Digital Society Index. The analysis recognises that the digital economy has been a hugely positive source of change and that securing these benefits in the future requires a longer view of how technological innovation can best serve people’s needs.
Currently, the emergence of new digital consumers has been observed. They are digital natives and use digital products and services across a range of activities. However, they are also digitally savvy and have learned to manage the online world on their own terms: limiting the amount of data shared and time spent online; installing ad blockers; deactivating social media accounts.
According to the research, digital technologies can enable us to be more connected, more creative and more human. But much of this potential remains untapped.
In the rush to expand the digital economy, humans have neglected to design it around our fundamental needs.
The digital needs model provides a framework around which new strategies can be built: the need to be connected through trusted networks; the need to enjoy a balanced sense of personal well-being; the need to be fulfilled in our work; the need to look positively to the future.
For societal and economic reasons, it must be ensured that these needs become the guiding principles for future technological development, researchers have cautioned.
Hopefully, the new partnerships Thailand is pursuing with various local and international bodies will help assuage the worry citizens feel over the digital economy.