The Thai Chamber of Commerce is working with the Office of the Public Sector Development Commission (OPDC) and the Business Development Department to link corporate information electronically, facilitating paperless procedures and generating cost savings for residents and entrepreneurs of up to 7 billion baht per year.
Sanan Angubolkul, chairman of the chamber, said in the past business operators had to sign and submit many copies of documents. The government is working to develop an electronic system linking corporate information.
Spearheaded by the OPDC and the Business Development Department, the paperless project has been implemented by 10 public service agencies, linking and sharing corporate information.
As a result, state agencies no longer require signed documents from people or businesses seeking public services.
This information linkage can reduce document retrieval procedures by up to 392, cutting costs by nearly 800 baht per transaction or around 7 billion baht per year, assuming 8.8 million transactions per year, according to state agencies.
Apart from saving time and costs, the initiative also lets state agencies provide more transparent and effective services digitally, following the digital government model pioneered by Estonia.
Auramon Supthaweethum, director-general of the Business Development Department, said this collaborative effort will reduce duplication of work among state agencies, shorten document procedures, and reduce costs for the business sector and the public, while supporting the country's digital government policy.
The 10 pilot state agencies comprise the Food and Drug Administration, Land Department, Treasury Department, Office of the Board of Investment, Industrial Works Department, Excise Department, Bank of Thailand, Customs Department, Comptroller-General's Department and Revenue Department.
Onfa Vejjajiva, secretary-general of the OPDC, said the agency emphasises linking and sharing government information through digital technology to increase efficiency in providing public services.
Various legislation was passed to allow such services, including the Facilitation of Official Permission Granting Act of 2015, the Public Administration and Services Delivery Act of 2019, and the Electronic Operations Act of 2022.
The agency is in talks with 20 state agencies on information sharing, including the 10 piloting the project, she said.
The remaining 10 agencies are expected to join the scheme this year, particularly agencies related to fisheries and the Finance Ministry, said Ms Onfa.