The MDE is being set up as part of the government’s “Thailand 4.0” policy. The Royal Gazette announced yesterday that the MDE would become effective today.

All agencies under the ICT Ministry except one will be transferred to the MDE. They are the National Statistical Office, the Meteorological Department, TOT, CAT Telecom, Thailand Post Co, the Electronic Transactions Development Agency, the Software Industry Promotion Agency and the Electronic Government Agency. The exception is the National Disaster Warning Centre, which will move to the Interior Ministry.

There will also be a new Digital Economy Committee administrative office, but it still has to wait for the upcoming Digital Economy Act before it can become fully functional. Songporn Komolsuradej, the MDE’s permanent secretary, said the act was expected to be passed by the National Legislative Assembly and become effective around December.

The ICT Ministry was set up on October 3, 2002. There have been 12 ICT ministers and eight permanent secretaries.

Songporn said the ICT Ministry’s plan to establish free broadband Internet access in 30,000 villages nationwide, which was expected to get under way this month, would likely be delayed to next month. The first phase of the plan, to be implemented by TOT, will target 20,000 villages.

Earlier Uttama Savanayana submitted his resignation as ICT minister to pave the way for the establishment of the MDE. The Cabinet on Tuesday acknowledged his resignation and Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha assigned Deputy PM Prajin Juntong, who is in charge of ICT policy, to oversee the ICT Ministry on an interim basis.

It has yet to be confirmed whether Uttama will be reappointed to the head the new ministry or ifPrayut will nominate a new minister.

One main task of the new ministry is to reform the satellite industry, after the Cabinet’s recent acknowledgement of the ICT Ministry’s reform proposal.