Thailand leaps in digital competitiveness ranking, claims 35th spot globally

Thailand has made significant strides in its digital competitiveness, jumping five spots from the previous year to rank 35th out of 64 economic territories. This progress is revealed in the World Digital Competitiveness Ranking (WDCR) 2023, published by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD).

The uplift in ranking is a result of advancements in three pivotal areas: technology, knowledge, and future readiness. Specifically, the technology factor saw an improvement of five places to 15th, while the knowledge aspect climbed four spots to 41st. Future readiness also marked a notable rise, advancing seven places to the 42nd spot.

Within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Thailand’s position is third, trailing Singapore and Malaysia. Globally, Singapore secured third place, with Malaysia at 33rd. Other notable movements include Indonesia’s six-place rise to 45th and the Philippines’ three-place decline to 59th.

The top ten economies in the 2023 ranking comprise the United States, Netherlands, Singapore, Denmark, Switzerland, South Korea, Sweden, Finland, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. These economies, deemed as digital nations, are recognised for their comprehensive utilisation of digital technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI).

Prof Arturo Bris, director of IMD’s World Competitiveness Center, explained that AI technology, while not explicitly measured, silently forms the backbone of several subfactors we quantify, such as talent, regulatory and technological frameworks, and adaptive attitudes and business agility.

As such, factors like quality of digital regulation, funding for technology development, and company agility are all closely entwined with AI.

The growing emphasis on cybersecurity, driven by AI technology and national security considerations, is another significant trend observed in the ranking. A mere 5% of the 4,000 global senior executives surveyed for the WDCR stated they had not introduced new cybersecurity measures in the past year, reported Bangkok Post.

Teeranun Srihong, chairman of the Thailand Management Association (TMA) Center for Competitiveness, commented on Thailand’s performance. Despite the country’s less-than-stellar ranking in knowledge and future-readiness, the upward movement suggests a positive trajectory.

Teeranun emphasised the need for Thailand to keep pace with AI technology, enhance cybersecurity, and fortify privacy protection. He noted that the government’s capacity for cybersecurity and the protection of privacy by law was ranked 58th and 43rd respectively.