Chiang Mai is mapping out a future as a smarter metropolis by utilizing superior applied sciences to assist rework its tourism and agriculture industries and create different new drivers of inventive financial development.
Linking affected person databases and healthcare asset data might assist create a hub.
Using expertise to construct a robust medical tourism sector and enhance meals manufacturing is a part of the Good City programme supported by IBM.
IBM defines a Good City when it comes to the enhancements in high quality of life and financial well-being that may be achieved by making use of data applied sciences to planning, designing, constructing, and working city infrastructure.
The corporate is awarding $50 million price of expertise and providers to 100 municipalities worldwide over the following three years. Chiang Mai is receiving $400,000 or 12 million baht to usher in international specialists to advise on new approaches, stated Parnsiree Amatayakul, the overall supervisor of IBM Thailand.
Chiang Mai was chosen primarily based on its 700-year-old tradition, plentiful pure sources and strategic location within the Higher Mekong Subregion.
Nonetheless, Chiang Mai’s gross provincial product (GPP) is just one.59% of complete gross home product, and its development fee has been low as a result of its financial system just isn’t very diversified. It depends closely on tourism and agro-industry in meals processing and agriculture.
The federal government, native universities and the non-public sector have been attempting to enhance native financial potential by way of the Chiang Mai Inventive City marketing campaign.
IT coaching and creativity will probably be fostered by way of a proposed Software program park programme.
Nat Voravos, chairman of the native inventive metropolis growth committee, stated bettering IT functionality was one of many facets of selling a inventive financial system, with the purpose of constructing Chiang Mai a pretty metropolis for international funding, residing, travelling, finding out and dealing,
Mr Nat stated expertise and innovation might add worth to services and products, create extra job alternatives and enhance productiveness.
The committee is working with IBM to assist develop a roadmap for a Smarter City. It envisions utilizing sensible IT structure to broaden the standard tourism {industry} with a robust concentrate on medical tourism. A “Smarter Meals” venture, in the meantime, will concentrate on growing yields and managing manufacturing plans for farmers.
Within the healthcare subject, private and non-private service suppliers can use real-time location monitoring of sufferers and hospital belongings to extend effectivity and construct an internationally recognised service identification, stated David Hathaway, a venture adviser with IBM Corp.
Digital medical file (EMR) expertise must also be adopted to standardise data exchanges to hyperlink all medical service suppliers together with conventional medication and spas.
Niwate Nuntajit, dean of drugs at Chiangmai College, stated the town already had some experience in serving longstay guests, particularly Japanese. High quality providers at low costs are additionally a main promoting level in mainstream healthcare, dental and ophthalmological care and Thai conventional medication.
The college had been awarded 500 million baht to construct a centre of medical excellence together with robotic surgical procedure and geriatric medication to accommodate the ageing society of the longer term.
Many international locations are selling medical providers to drive their economies. Singapore is working to shift from a healthcare hub to a medical coaching hub for Asia, Malaysia is encouraging medical tourism to make a custom-made medical tourism community, India is specializing in various healthcare, and Qatar is trying to influence Thai companies to open hospitals within the nation.
“All these strikes sign that the medical {industry} in Chiang Mai is underneath stress and desires to extend its comparative benefit,” Mr Niwate stated.
For the Good Meals venture, understanding what to provide and when, utilizing technology-aided forecasting and planning system, would be the key, stated Nathalie Gutel, an adviser with IBM France.
The federal government might create an e-Farmer portal to collect information on all agricultural product classes for every season. It might then use these data to create pricing fashions underneath a supply-demand calculation system.
The knowledge might in the end cut back the chance of each shortages and surpluses of key crops.
As effectively, stated Ms Gutel, sensible irrigation might schedule water utilisation primarily based on particular land use varieties and seasonal wants to scale back waste.
Chiang Mai will select a district and a fruit for a pilot venture to check the brand new purposes. An IMB survey recognized longan as probably the most promising candidate since hundreds of northern households develop the fruit.
Ms Gutel additionally stated that since cell phones at the moment are ubiquitous, authorities agriculture authorities ought to reap the benefits of their potential for delivering climate data and catastrophe alerts.
Additionally rising in significance from a client security standpoint is traceability of meals merchandise from farm to desk. Know-how will help enhance traceability, construct model popularity and enhance export potential.
IBM opened a regional workplace within the metropolis final yr, she stated.
Town, in the meantime, is set to capitalise on native strengths in software program and digital content material growth to create new clusters and widen employment alternatives.
Martin Venzky-Stalling, an adviser to the inventive metropolis growth committee, stated the town had as many as 150 software program and digital content material companies, lots of them freelance operators specialising in graphic design. A few of them could be discovered understanding of espresso retailers alongside Nimanhaemin Street.
“Town has a pretty way of life with a decrease value of residing. It additionally produces a lot of graduate college students attracting new high-tech entrepreneurs,” he stated.
The committee plans to work on public-private partnership to determine a Software program Park with 2,000 sq. metres area to supply coaching services and dealing area for IT and design expertise.
The Board of Funding can also be being requested to declare Chiang Mai a particular financial zone with incentives for progressive companies.
Mr Venzky-Stalling stated the committee anticipated to suggest at the very least 10 initiatives with an funding finances of 200 million baht this yr.
Chiang Mai has been chosen as one of many 10 inventive financial system cities by the Commerce Ministry.
“We’re making use of to have Chiang Mai be part of the Unesco Inventive Cities Network, aiming to construct consciousness and appeal to funding,” he added.
