Migrants get SMS virus info alerts

Migrants get SMS virus info alerts

Move aims to help 2.8m workers

Thai people and migrants wait for swab collection for Covid-19 tests in Muang district of Samut Sakhon province on Wednesday. (Photo: Samut Sakhon provincial public relations office)
Thai people and migrants wait for swab collection for Covid-19 tests in Muang district of Samut Sakhon province on Wednesday. (Photo: Samut Sakhon provincial public relations office)

The Digital Economy and Society (DES) Ministry is working with five major mobile operators to update migrant workers on Covid-19-related information through SMS messages, as part of efforts to curb the spread of the virus.

Some 2.8 million migrant workers who subscribe to the mobile operators were expected to receive the SMS messages from Wednesday afternoon.

The MorChana mobile application will also be revived as another key tool to help the public assess virus infection risks and assist health authorities in tracking users in close contact with infected people.

DES Minister Buddhipongse Punnakanta said the first SMS was due to be sent Wednesday afternoon.

Of the 2.8 million migrant workers, one million registered with Total Access Communication (DTAC); 990,000 subscribed to Advanced Info Service (AIS); 800,000 signed up for True Move Universal Communication (TUC); 10,000 applied for CAT Telecom and the rest with TOT.

Mr Buddhipongse said the first SMS messages are meant to communicate with as many migrant labourers as possible. It is also intended to reach out to their relatives who may be residing in the country unlawfully, he said.

The SMS messages will be in Burmese, Khmer and English. The 1422 call centre contact number of the Department of Disease Control will be included in the SMS.

Mr Buddhipongse said his ministry will examine the responses from the workers after the first lot of SMS messages are sent. As well as SMS messages, the government will continue to update migrant workers on the Covid-19 situation via other platforms.

According to the minister, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) will be asked to approve the use of the MorChana app as another tool in addition to the existing contact-tracing app Thai Chana. The move is vital to strengthening the capability to curb the spread of the virus, he said.

MorChana, which was jointly developed by state and private organisations, can help identify individuals who have been in close contact with virus patients by using GPS and Bluetooth technology to pinpoint their location.

Mr Buddhipoigse said although the MorChana app was developed in April this year, it has yet to be broadly used after the spread of the virus was effectively curbed in the middle of this year and inbound foreign tourists were blocked from entering the country.

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