“depa” Earmarks Bt10 Million In Second Round of Funding to Assist Digital Startups in Educational Technology, Aiming to Develop Coding Learning Platform to Deal with Impacts, Changes in Post-COVID-19 Era
April 23, 2020, depa building Ladprao – Digital Economy Promotion Agency (depa) revised the digital economy promotion and development budget again and set aside an additional 10 million baht to support digital startups in the educational technology development with an aim to help develop coding learning platforms through the use of digital technology and innovation. The e-learning platform will also help allay concerns about health and safety of learners, educators and parents to match the changing learning environment and evolving behavior of learners. depa stands ready to provide business growth opportunities for digital startups after the end of COVID-19 crisis.
Dr. Nuttapon Nimmanphatcharin, President/CEO of depa, said the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Thailand has dealt a blow to many parts of society, including economy, investment, way of life, culture as well as the education. The virus pandemic has raised concerns about health and wellbeing of students, undergraduates, teachers or educators and parents. The virus spreading might help reshape the education approach, creating new learning curve and new education landscape after the spread of the virus is contained.
Buddhipongse Punnakanta, Minister of Digital Economy and Society (MDES), has acknowledged such underlying problems that might emerge, so he instructed the depa to gear up adjusting its operation plan and creating budget planning in fiscal 2020 to assist digital startups through the depa Digital Startup Fund worth 10 million baht by giving priority to the educational technology (EdTech) development.
“The additional assistance measure focuses on providing support to digital startups in the field of the educational technology development area in order to leverage the coding education landscape through the use of digital technology such as learning course development for e-Learning and intelligent processing board equipped with skills in coding. The measure also aims to prepare for the evolving learning curve and changing learning behavior as it helps ease concerns over health safety of students, undergraduates, teachers and educators and parents on the back of the COVID-19 virus outbreak.
Moreover, the assistance measure plays a vital role in helping to broaden the business growth opportunities for digital startups in the educational technology industry. The measure also helps accelerate the digital transformation and digitization to become a digital society in the future,” said the President/CEO of depa.
The additional assistance measure for digital startups in the educational technology industry to promote coding education development (EdTech for Coding) is divided into five projects with maximum support fund of no more than 1 million baht per a project. The project proposal submission runs from now until May 16, 2020. There is also a Coding Thailand platform development project with the maximum support fund of no more than 5 million baht. The proposal submission runs from now until April 24, 2020.
Dr. Nuttapon added that the amendment of budget planning with support funds drawn from the depa Digital Startup Fund is the second action after the depa injected 90 million baht in a series of support measures to assist digital startups in late March this year. It received an overwhelming response from digital startups across segments. Also, depa is set to propose measures to improve the quality of life and safety of the people to reinvigorate the investments and stimulate the businesses in the tourism industry so as to prop up the liquidity in the economy after the end of COVID-19 crisis. Interested people can follow up on the updates on depa’s assistant measures at www.depa.or.th/thaifightcovid or scan QR Code below.
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