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Phuket, Thailand’s largest island, is no doubt one of the most popular places to visit in in the country. With the easy access provided by Thailand’s new Smart Visa that attracts worldwide migrants, the Thai government has announced the launch of Phuket Smart City, the first Smart City established in Thailand, with the aim to support foreign investors from ASEAN member countries.  The Smart City project covers eight strategic plans in fostering the Digital Economy.

Phuket Smart City 2020: Smile Smart and Sustainable Phuket

Phuket’s Smart City plan has a funding of 430 million baht (US$13 million) to increase tourism, safety, improve the environment and boost the economy with technology. This will help to ensure that the town can keep up with the rising demand for new public services, which includes upgrading the city in the areas of  connectivity, education and healthcare. The Phuket Smart City Innovation park will be launched to promote innovation development, technology learning and business consultation. Additionally, this park will also pave the way for major infrastructure development for supporting tech startups and fostering the Digital Thailand 4.0 initiative.

With the vision of Phuket becoming a Smart City in 2020, steps have already been taken to promote investments, support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in innovation development in the Andaman area. More than 50 local retail shops in the popular Patong area now have Wi-Fi, and shop owners have the option to leverage digital marketing for their traditional businesses. Free Wi-Fi coverage will also be locally available in 1,000 locations around Phuket by March next year.

Phuket: Vast Opportunities For Digital Nomads

Phuket alone attracts over 13 million visitors per year and the numbers are expected to rise 17 percent from last year. The Smart City project will definitely help to open up the local economy and welcome more digital nomads around the world to establish Phuket as a base for new smart businesses that revolve around the new economy, tourism and environment. The incentives of working from Phuket are also alluring for migrants as it has a relatively affordable standard of living as compared to other Asian countries such as Singapore, Japan and Korea. It also has much more attractive property prices as well as an eclectic, vibrant and highly hospitable culture. Digital workers and investors also have the ability to apply for grants and special benefits to encourage a healthy growing relationship for digital startups as well as SME entrepreneurs.

With Phuket on the cusp of transforming into a Smart City, the property prices and rental demand of Phuket will definitely steadily increase. Roaring ahead with Smart City plans and its booming  tourism industry, Phuket’s housing market will be the next thing that investors look into to increase their funds or rental yield. With exciting plans coming up for the city, Phuket is definitely a venue that one should consider for their  next investment property. Sansiri has two properties located in Phuket, The Base Height Phuket and Baan Mai Khao Phuket. These fully established developments contain the familiar signature Sansiri luxury at attractive prices.

The upcoming launch of  THE BASE Central-Phuket, Sansiri’s latest development in Phuket, spells good news for investors looking to move to, or to invest in Phuket. With the blueprints for a smart city, the possibilities and potential are endless for these new developments in Phuket.