By Staff
Friday, July 01 2005 02:04 PM
URL: http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/software/0,39044164,39240301,00.htm

Microsoft will invest about US$3.4 million in cash, manpower and resources to help Thailand embrace Web services technologies and develop local software expertise.

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates announced this investment towards "Thailand.Net" on Thursday during a visit to Thailand. Thailand.Net is a multi-staged three-year strategy designed to help the country train and certify its IT students and professionals, as well as build up the local software industry.

Under the Thailand.Net project, Gates launched the Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) "5 Star Program" designed to help developers become internationally certified at their own pace. The site, free of charge and localized using Thai language, aims to train the Thai community of 69,000 developers in Web services and professionally certify a target number of 2,600 to an international standard. Following beta testing, the site will go live in August 2005.

Gates also announced another two projects in partnership with the Royal Thai Government. To ensure that skills are built up at primary and secondary levels of education, the software giant is working on a project to provide affordable software for new PCs in schools throughout Thailand.

Microsoft will also invest about US$100,000 in manpower and technology know-how to kick-start the "Thailand Gateway", an e-government project to help citizens gain easy access to public information.