Thailand's Digital Economy Promotion Council announced Monday that it will launch a "digital yacht isolation" project in a bid to revitalize Phuket's tourism industry, in collaboration with several private companies including the country's largest mobile operator, AIS.

According to reports, this is the first time that Thailand uses digital network to carry out isolation project. Under the "Digital Yacht Quarantine" program, international tourists can choose to stay in Phuket for 14 days, during which they can live on the yachts while touring the surrounding waters of Phuket and conducting maritime activities. Visitors only need to wear a smart health monitoring wristband, and medical professionals can conduct real-time health risk data analysis on visitors through the online platform to ensure safe isolation. After the end of the quarantine, tourists can go on the island and move freely.

The Thai government hopes that the new digital network system and platform will enhance Thailand's comprehensive public health capacity, boost tourism confidence and encourage international tourists to return to Thailand's southern islands such as Phuket.

Nuttapon Nimmanphatcharin, chairman of Thailand's Digital Economy Promotion Council, said at a news conference that the COVID-19 outbreak had hit tourism in Thailand hard, especially in areas like Phuket that derive most of their income from tourism. In 2020, Phuket lost more than 320 billion baht (about 68.3 billion yuan) in tourism revenue due to the epidemic.

Natapong said the Digital Yacht Isolation project is a standard example of high-end international tourist isolation developed by the Council for the Promotion of Thailand's Digital Economy in line with the development goal of Phuket Smart City. The smooth implementation of the project will also help to enhance Phuket's smart city potential and achieve the goal of making Phuket a "livable city for sustainable tourism" as soon as possible.