Bangkok: Supajee discussed promoting tourism through TAGTHAi, upgrading the Thai tourism platform to connect information, products, and services to the community economy. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce, Ms. Supajee Suthamphan, chaired a meeting to discuss strategies for driving the tourism industry through the TAGTHAi platform. The aim is to elevate Thai tourism by connecting information, tourist attractions, products, services, and local businesses, as well as increasing opportunities for income distribution to the grassroots economy.
According to Thai News Agency, Ms. Supajee stated that the government has a policy to shift the tourism model from focusing solely on the number of tourists to economic-driven tourism. This emphasizes increasing tourist spending and length of stay, as well as leveraging the unique strengths of each area-including products, food, culture, handicrafts, and community products-to create added value. The goal is to distribute tourism revenue more widely to local businesses and communities.
Regarding the development of TAGTHAi, the meeting recognized its potential to be upgraded to a National Tourism Integration Platform. This would connect tourism data and services from the government and various sectors into a single system, reducing duplication in platform development across different areas and facilitating seamless tourism planning and access to services for tourists. Simultaneously, data from the platform could be developed into Tourism Data Intelligence to analyze tourist behavior and support policy planning that better aligns with needs.
Furthermore, TAGTHAi can serve as a channel for promoting and marketing tourism in the country. The government and partners can jointly promote the platform through various channels, and showcase promising community products, especially high-quality goods and Thai textiles, by creating catalogs and presenting them on the platform. This will allow tourists to have greater access to community products and services, linking tourism with commerce and generating income for local entrepreneurs.
The meeting emphasized the need to clearly define TAGTHAi's role as a data platform and a channel connecting to tourism transactions, while simultaneously protecting user data and security to build trust among tourists and businesses.
Ms. Supajee stated that the government will consider integrating TAGTHAi with the Thai Help Thai Plus project to increase awareness and expand the user base, as well as promote the platform as a mechanism to connect tourists with Thai products and services, thereby increasing market opportunities and distributing income to small businesses and communities.
"The government aims to drive Thai tourism beyond simply increasing the number of tourists. Emphasis is placed on creating economic value, increasing tourist spending and length of stay, and utilizing technology and data in tourism planning and management. This will systematically connect tourists, entrepreneurs, communities, and businesses, leading to sustainable income generation and strengthening the grassroots economy," Ms. Supajee said.