On 6 June 2019, the Royal Thai Embassy in Brussels, in cooperation with the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society and the support from the European Union, organized a seminar entitled “Thailand-EU Seminar on E-commerce & GDPR” at Anantara Siam Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand.
H.E. Mr. Manasvi Srisodapol, Ambassador of Thailand to the European Union, Belgium, and Luxembourg, and H.E. Mr. Pirkka Tapiola, Ambassador of European Union to Thailand, both gave welcoming remarks, followed by a keynote by H.E. Dr. Pichet Durongkaveroj, Minister for Digital Economy & Society of Thailand.
The objective of the seminar is to help Thai businesses to deepen their understanding of the opportunities and challenges of e-commerce as well as the implication of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) on e-commerce and other aspects of digital economy. It also gave an overview of the current initiatives on e-commerce at global, regional and national levels, particular the work done so far by the WCO on Cross-Border E-Commerce Framework of Standards. The seminar, which was attended by 160 Thai and Bangkok based foreign participants from civil society, academia, public and private sector involved in e-commerce supply chain, helps promote EU-Thailand cooperation and enhance Thailand’s capacity in order to enter European e-commerce market successfully.
Some of the distinguished guest speakers include Mr. Fabian Delcros, International data flows and protection Negotiator at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Justice and Consumer (DG JUST), Mr. Jean Herveg, Head of Liberties & Information Society Department, University of Namur, Mr. Kazunari Igarashi, Head of World Customs Organization (WCO) Asia/Pacific Regional Office for Capacity Building (ROCB A/P), Mr. Robert Fox, ICT Committee Chairman of the Joint Foreign Chambers of Commerce Thailand (JFCCT) and Vice Chairman of ICT Group of the European Association for Business and Commerce (EABC), and Mr. Prinn Panichpakdi, a veteran businessman and the current Deputy Leader of Democrat Party. The guest speakers were also joined by panel of experts from relevant Thai agencies both in the public and private sector, who provided insight into e-commerce developments both in Thailand and abroad.
The seminar was also complemented by study visits to “True Digital Park”, “AI and Robotics Ventures” (ARV), a subsidiary of PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP) which showcases outstanding projects on digital technology and development in Thailand and meetings with the Ministry of Digital Economy & Society and Chulalongkorn University’s 5G Centre on future cooperation between Thailand and the EU on data protection.
