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Category: Article

Humanity and Technology

Spring Edition , The Druk Journal talks to Gerd Leonhard, a well known Europeanfuturist, keynote speaker, author and filmmaker who specialises in the debate between humanity and technology. The Druk Journal: We Bhutanese are asking how far behind are we in technology? The digital literacy in our society is relatively low and...

A Pebble in the AI Race

Spring Edition , Bhutan is sometimes described as “a pebble between two boulders”, a small country caught between the two most populous nations on earth — India and China. This pebble is, however, about to be caught up in a vortex — the transformation of our economic, political and social orders by...

Privacy and Security

Spring Edition , When the internet was invented, privacy was not the main issue. Everyone was too nice, and behaved themselves. Those days, sadly, have gone. The internet that emerged in the 1960s and early 70s was primarily a place for academics, and those technical and curious enough to scale the barriers...

When Your Personal Data Becomes Everyone’s Property

Spring Edition , How the EU adopted a legal framework to protect their citizens’ personal data from being misused or carelessly handled, and to what extent Bhutan can benefit from these (hard earned) experiences. In May, 2018, the European Union implemented a common set of data protection laws — General Data Protection...

The Technology Trap

Spring Edition , An Unashamed Editorial Opinion It is possible that we are lost. From the outside looking in, an interested observer, lacking access to the privy conversation of the nation’s leadership, could be excused for thinking that the drive to bring technology to Bhutan resembles nothing so much as wandering in...

Good, Bad, Neither: Some Reflections on Technology and Culture

Spring Edition , “From the Buddhist point of view, there are two types of mechanisation which must be clearly distinguished — one that enhances a man’s skill and power, and one that turns the work of man over to a mechanical slave, leaving man in a position of having to serve the...

A Steep Learning Curve: Bhutanese on Social Media

Spring Edition , Teeming Millions As of March 2020, 3.8 billion people in the world (49 percent of 7.7 billion people) are on social media. Of the 7.7 billion, 2.4 billion people (33 percent) are on Facebook, the world’s most widely used social media platform. According to www.datareportal.com, an online digital data...

Science, Technology, and Innovation: Finding a Bhutanese Path

Spring Edition , A Case in Point for Developing Economies Amid changes and challenges lie opportunities. In the last 300 years, when human civilisation has undergone three industrial revolutions, unprecedented innovation has taken place at fundamental and applied levels. As our civilisation adopts and adapts to the 4th Industrial Revolution, largely leveraging...

Stepping Up Technology to Improve Health Care

Spring Edition , “…Technologies excite me, as they present immense opportunities for the future. Among the many countries in the world, those which prepare for this change and build the foundations to take advantage of such technological advancements will prosper and develop. Those which are not able to do so will invariably...

ICT Education in Bhutan’s Tertiary Institution

Spring Edition , Industry 4.0 The new Industrial Revolution has dawned. Industry 4.0 has brought about unprecedented changes across economies. Technological disruption in the market, through automation and artificial intelligence and the like, has machines replacing humans in unimaginable ways. Scholars predict that about “five million jobs will be lost within 2020”....

Integration of ICT in Bhutanese Schools – Common Obstacles and the Way Forward

Spring Edition , Introduction Information and Communications Technology (ICT) is crucial for realising the national vision of transforming Bhutan into an IT enabled knowledge based society. To realise this vision, the Royal Government of Bhutan launched the Chiphen Rigphel Project in 2010 with financial assistance of Nu 2.05 billion from the Government...

ICT in Bhutanese Education

Spring Edition , Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has brought significant changes in almost all aspects of our lives — more so in recent years — and its pace of development shows no sign of slowing down; it is indeed developing faster than ever before. During the 14th Convocation of the Royal...

Bhutan Plans a National Technology Drive – Are We Ready?

Spring Edition , Bhutan plans to move into a new era – a technology-driven phase of development and growth. Spurred by the rapid global momentum in technological innovation, the government is responding to His Majesty The King’s advice – on National Day, 2019 – to articulate a 21st century economic roadmap. So...

The Role of Thimphu TechPark in Bhutan’s Technological and Socio-economic Advancement

Spring Edition , Introduction Science and Technology Parks (STPs) have played an important role in the socio-economic progress and technological advancement of many countries. STPs originated from the US in the 1950s to meet the needs of entrepreneurially-minded academics, to exploit their research results commercially. During the 1990s, an increasing number of...

Digital Transformation for a Sustainable Bhutan

Spring Edition , Frontier Technologies and Digital Transformation for Sustainable Development: The case of Bhutan Introduction The emergence of frontier technologies — such as quantum computing, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of things (IoT), Big Data, 3D printing and Blockchain — have ignited a series of far-reaching transformations globally. Examples abound — autonomous...

Digital Drukyul – an ICT Masterplan for Bhutan

Spring Edition , The Beginning Bhutan began looking at Information Communication Technology as a means to improve public service delivery as early as 2004 when a policy document, the Bhutan InfoComm Policy and Strategy (BIPS), was developed by the Ministry of Information and Communications (MoIC) to guide ICT development in Bhutan. The...

Editorial

Spring Edition , Bhutan in the Age of Technology “The question I have is how are we able to leverage technology… As a small country, unencumbered by the complexities faced by much larger countries, we can do things faster and better than others. Our institutions can be smart, flexible, responsive, dynamic and...

How Outsiders View Changes

Autumn Edition , Introduction We are friends of Bhutan. Our feelings for the country go back 27 years. We were then residents in Bhutan and have worked there for various periods since then. In between longer stays we have visited Bhutan numerous times. We have travelled to every dzongkhag in the country...

Managing Numbers – An Environmentalist’s View

Autumn Edition , Environmentalist and sustainable tourism development activist, Karma Tshering, believes that progressive development can be easily met simply through pragmatic approaches, consensus, and partnerships. The Druk Journal: You believe that the Bhutanese identity, stemming from our environment and our culture, has made Bhutan a tourism hotspot? Karma Tshering: Exactly. Basically,...

Then and Now – Adventurers Lead the Way

Autumn Edition , An interview with Brent Olson, Managing Director of Business Development at GeoEx, a San Francisco based travel company that for the past 35 years has been a leader in adventure travel and in introducing American travellers to Bhutan. The Druk Journal: Why did you first decide to organise tours...

Then and Now – Here Come the Japanese

Autumn Edition , An interview with Michiko Wakita who pioneered early journeys of the Japanese tourists to Bhutan and has been a regular visitor to Bhutan since the 1970s. The Druk Journal: Why did you first decide to organise tours to Bhutan ? Michiko Wakita: Bhutan was well-known among the fervent but...

Chinese Tourists in South Asia

Autumn Edition , China remains the world’s biggest market in outbound tourism, with nearly 150 million (M) Chinese travelling abroad in 2018, up 14.7 percent year-on-year, according to a recent report by the China Tourism Academy and Ctrip. In 2012, China became the world’s top spender in international tourism and continues to...

Kerala’s Responsible Tourism Approach

Autumn Edition , Tourism, a multi-faceted industry cutting across various productive sectors of the economy, plays a significant role in the growth of developing and developed nations. It mobilises resources, generates employment, and drives regional development. Being a capital-light and labour-intensive industry, tourism is also an effective tool to address issues related...

Tourism Trends in India

Autumn Edition , Once upon a time, not so long ago, one of the pleasures of going to Shimla was the picturesque three-hour drive from Kalka in the plains of north India, up to the Deodar-scented hills and bracing air of Himachal Pradesh. Last year, making that same journey, I found it...

Tourism in the Himalayas

Autumn Edition , Since opening its doors to the outside world in 1951, Nepal tourism has weathered the onslaughts of political upheavals, regime change, national insurgency, earthquakes and floods, as well as external forces such as wars, blockades, terrorism, and plagues that have affected global travel patterns. In 2018, foreign arrivals to...

Tourism in Nepal

Autumn Edition , Nepal opened up to the world in 1950 and has a history of nearly 70 years of tourism that has been filled with multiple layers of challenges and growth. Therefore, it will be interesting to understand Bhutan’s tourism development and growth compared with Nepal.   Bhutan Tourism As We...

The Sacred Mountains of Bhutan – Reprints of Past Articles

Autumn Edition , Kuensel 10/7/1984 Twenty-one snow-shrouded peaks in Bhutan, all over 7,000 metres, which have for centuries afforded the country an impassable natural protection and been the essence of its “Shangrila” image could now be almost worth their weight in gold, with mountaineering fast developing as the main activity of Bhutan’s...

Concept of Ecotourism

Autumn Edition , An old Asian saying aptly warns: “Tourism is like fire; you can either use it to cook your food or burn your house down.” This is relevant in the tourism– environment discourse because they are intricately interlinked. Many studies warn us about the negative impact of tourism on the...

Tourism and Hotels

Autumn Edition , Retired teacher and businesswoman, Kencho, planned to build a huge resi-dential complex in Babesa, along the expressway. With a shopping complex on the ground floor, she would never have problems finding tenants. Then the idea changed. Three factors convinced her. There is a cap on construction loans, and interest...

Tourism and Transport

Autumn Edition , Transport is integral to the tourism industry. If tourism has grown, it is largely because of improved transportation. This holds true for Bhutan, yet access can make or break a destination. Today, as thousands of vehicles enter the country with the sudden growth in regional tourism, questions are being...

Overwhelming Sacred Spaces

Autumn Edition , Growing Trends in Tourism It used to be that visitors to Bhutan would mention Taktshang (Bhutan’s famed Tiger’s Nest) with awe and consider it a privilege to be able to climb the steep trail on a spiritual journey. Today, tourists are asking: “ Should we do Taktshang, is it...

The Risks of High Volume Toursim

Autumn Edition , High-volume Tourism is Doing Irreparable Damage to Bhutan His Majesty the Fourth King of Bhutan’s vision for the country was one of universal sustainability, manifested in adherence to the philosophy of Gross National Happiness (GNH). His vision was to modernise Bhutan and develop a country with economic, environmental, social,...

The Bhutan Brand

Autumn Edition , The Importance of Brand Delivery Few countries have as strong a nation brand as Bhutan. Worldwide, there is widespread brand recall for happiness as a key Bhutanese brand attribute. The universality of this brand affinity is something quite rare among place brands around the globe. Happiness is what most...

Tourism Policy – the Way Forward

Autumn Edition , Under the blessed stewardship of our visionary Kings, from the very start of tourism in the early 1970s, we have always been on the right road: a road that is less travelled; a road that is globally envied; a road to a very special destination — a destination that...

Editorial

Autumn Edition , A Deep Dive into Tourism in Bhutan “… in the 1970’s, tourism as an industry was only introduced after the Coronation of His Majesty the Fourth Druk Gyalpo. It was suggested to us then that Bhutan would benefit economically from bringing as many tourists as possible into the country…...

People’s Democratic Party

Spring Edition , Education for the 21st century and beyond PDP’s Prayers for Education Bhutan’s story of education is one of success. It has given us a proud nation and talented people. We have achieved 74 percent literacy rate with 99.8 percent primary enrolment. Our education continues to be forward looking –...

Druk Phuensum Tshogpa

Spring Edition , The Removal of Cut off Point for Class X The cut off point is a certain percentage of marks set by the Bhutan Council for School Examination and Assessment (BCSEA) under the Ministry of Education for students sitting for the Bhutan Civil Service Examination (BCSE) in consonance with the...

Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa

Spring Edition , Re-visiting and re-envisioning Bhutan’s education system in the 21st century: Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa on its education pledges Education is free in Bhutan which invests a large amount of money in education. According to a report by the World Bank (2019), Bhutan’s spending on education constituted 5.1 percent of Gross...

Bhutan Kuen-Nyam Party

Spring Edition , Education – Transcending Your Own Domains The primary benefit of education, amongst a myriad of things, must be freedom. Freedom from poverty, freedom from ignorance, freedom from not having less, freedom from drudgery, emotional and psychological freedom, Freedom from the imagined order (social, economic and political constructs), and political ...

When Bhutanese Study Outside

Spring Edition , For centuries, Bhutan remained remote from the rest of the world due both to its mountainous topography and its desire to protect itself from outside influence and interference. But in the last half of the 20th century the country began to permit, as well as to seek, more international...

Implication of Bhutanese Studying Outside

Spring Edition , A Government Vision for Tertiary Education “Twenty years from now, we will be equipped with the full range of institutions required for the formation of the knowledge and skills required to sustain the nation’s further development. At the apex of our institutions of learning will be a well-equipped university...

Politics and Education Policy

Spring Edition , Broadly speaking, education, in itself, is a path towards a progressive human life. The Buddha viewed education as a path to human enlightenment, or liberation from repeated suffering. Thomas Jefferson, one of America’s eminent presidents, stated that education is central to creating an “enlightened citizenry… for the proper functioning...

Non-Formal Education – Learning Never Ceases

Spring Edition , Background The Non-Formal Education (NFE) programme in Bhutan was introduced in 1990. It was initiated by the National Women’s Association of Bhutan (NWAB) by Royal Command during the  53rd  National  Assembly,  mainly to empower Bhutanese women. Recognising its importance, the responsibility of overseeing the programme was entrusted to the...

Vocational Education in Bhutan

Spring Edition , Introduction The Royal Government of Bhutan accords the highest priority to the education sector as it believes that the country’s quality of health, prosperity, happiness and progression hinges on the quality of its education. In the early 1960s, modern education with English as the medium of instruction was introduced,...

The Value of Research Culture

Spring Edition , Introduction The two primary historic reasons for establishing institutions of higher education worldwide have been both a place of learning as well as a centre for generating new knowledge. This has been the case globally, and has its roots in a wide variety of philosophical traditions, from Buddhism to...

Mainstream School Education: a Critical Assessment

Spring Edition , The pursuit of quality education in Bhutan dates back to the beginning of modern education system itself. All the Five-Year Plans, without exception, have devoted a section to the subject. And yet, after 60 years of development and reforms, quality education remains as elusive as ever. The notion of...

Finland’s Success in Education

Spring Edition , On April 14, elections were held in Finland for the Parliament which is the supreme decision-making authority for national decision-making. The Finnish parliament is unicameral and has two hundred members who are elected for a term of four years. Currently, the members of the parliament belong to 11 parliamentary...

The Importance of Questioning

Spring Edition , As educators we want motivated students who aspire to learn, not just in schools, but throughout their lives. If we want our students to be motivated to learn and perform well, wherever they go and whatever they do, it is high time we assess why we send our children...

Looking at Education in Bhutan: a View from Afar

Spring Edition , I first worked in Bhutan in 1997 for the then Department of Education and have joined others in marvelling at the progress that has been made. Working alongside educators in the Ministry of Education and the two education colleges has been a privilege. Welcoming many Bhutanese to the University...

Educating for Happiness

Spring Edition , Introduction What is educating for happiness? It is certainly not cerebral studying of the four pillars, the nine domains, and the 72 plus indicators of Gross National Happiness (GNH). But many people may intuitively refer to the domains and pillars of GNH on encountering the above question. My doctoral...

Educating for Life

Spring Edition , “At this moment in time, circa 2018, it is clearer than ever that a new approach to education is key to the survival of the world in general and of Bhutan in particular. This is no exaggeration. The world’s current education system is not only outdated and even obsolete...

Real Learning Endangered

Spring Edition , Reflections on nature, sanity, and education from an ashamed Indian well-wisher One of the similies for the Buddha Nature, or the basic goodness, that we are all said to possess is like pure gold that has been lost by the side of the road which then gradually accumulates so...

Buddhist Education in the 21st Century

Spring Edition , Introduction The world has seen unprecedented progress in the fields of science and technology, transforming life on a scale unimaginable a few decades ago. Nations across the globe are exploring ways to enhance human life and experience through innovative economic and social activities. Universities and other educational institutions are...

Editorial

Spring Edition , Educating Bhutan – Nurturing a Society That Learns to Learn The theme for the Spring, 2019, issue of The Druk Journal reflects the long-term vision provided for Bhutan’s growth by His Majesty the King. On education, His Majesty said: “…as I serve my country, I have a number of...

Sangay’s Story – an Anecdote

Winter Edition , A few months after the launch of the Priority Sector Lending (PSL) initiative on 1 January 2018, the Governor of the Royal Monetary Authority (RMA) received a cry for help from a PSL client, 24-year-old Sangay Gempo. Sangay, who had completed his BBA in India in 2016, had returned...

Matching Skills and Jobs

Winter Edition , There are jobs, and there are people, and they need to be brought together. They need financial support. After learning about the mismatch of jobs that were available in the market, and the skills that technical graduates possess, a fibre optic specialist at Bhutan Telecom left his comfort zone...

Women Entrepreneurship in Bhutan – the Scenario and the Way Forward

Winter Edition , Introduction In 2016, the Department of Cottage and Small Industries (DCSI) reported that only 35.53 percent of the total registered micro, small and medium enterprises in the country were owned by women. Women mostly operate cottage and small enterprises and function in the informal economy with very small probability...

Promoting Bhutanese Products to Build Rural Economy

Winter Edition , Introduction To use a provocative pun, this article looks at the “real” Bhutan and “real people”. The writer believes that, beyond the snow clad peaks and lush valleys, rich biodiversity and spiritual monuments-all the wondrous things that we like to talk about-there are colours and flavours of a real...

Establishing a Bhutanese Creative Community: The Salient Driver for Bhutan’s Cultural Industries

Winter Edition , Background and Introduction The focus in 2019’s Bhutan Economic Forum for Innovative Transformation (BEFIT) will be on Bhutan’s small and medium enterprise sector (SMEs), also known locally as the cottage and small industries (CSI) sector. The aim of the forum is to review the Cottage, Small and Medium Industry...

How Not to Miss the Boat

Winter Edition , Across the world, cultural export, through film and music, had always been used by governments to create a positive image of their countries. For decades westerners knew about Thailand from the old musical, The King and I. James Hilton’s Lost Horizon built the image of Shangrila as the world...

Transport to Facilitate the Economy

Winter Edition , Introduction The purpose of transport is the movement of people and goods. It is critical for Bhutan’s economic development, like tourism, which should include scenic drives and cultural tours and treks. The effort to diversify the economy by encouraging Cottage and Small Industries (CSIs) also faces a major problem...

Transforming the Economy Through Tourism

Winter Edition , A High Value Low Impact Dilemma For international tourists, Bhutan has long been a much sought after “global hotspot”, a rare destination. A veteran American tour operator who has been a promoter of high-end tours to Bhutan since the 1980s, now disagrees: “Bhutan used to be a high value,...

Towards Food Sovereignty and Organic Farming

Winter Edition , State of Play: Farming and Food Security in Bhutan Bhutan’s ambition to become wholly organic has drawn much attention among experts and policy makers worldwide. Conventional farming practices are increasingly facing scrutiny, especially in the light of climate change, shrinking wild habitats and agricultural biodiversity, reduced soil fertility, and...

Priority Sector Lending — Redirecting the Course of the Economy

Winter Edition , “Our nation has seen great socio-economic growth but it is more important that we have growth with equity. We must raise, with all our effort, the less fortunate so that they may, at the earliest, begin to partake in the opportunities brought by modernisation and progress.” His Majesty The...

How Much Should Bhutan Worry About its Public Debt?

Winter Edition , Financing for Development Investment is key for high and sustainable growth. The Commission on Growth and Development1 concluded that high levels of investment (25 percent of GDP and above) are needed for strong and sustained growth.2 Investment requires financing from domestic and foreign savings. In Bhutan, investment as a...

Fiscal Support for Cottage and Small Industries

Winter Edition , Fiscal Incentives Bhutan, like all developing countries, offers fiscal incentive packages that reduce direct as well as indirect taxes in various forms of tax incentives and exemptions, like general exemptions and sector-specific exemptions, with the intention of attracting investors and fostering economic growth. Fiscal incentive means slashing taxes legally...

Harnessing the Power of IT for Development and Nation-building

Winter Edition , The so-called Industrial Revolution 4.0 has arrived and it is being driven by advances in technology, such as artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, blockchain, virtual reality, augmented reality, 3D printing, robots and drones. The trend shows that we will be able to create systems and robots which are as...

The Entrepreneurship Culture

Winter Edition , Defining Entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship is the act of being an entrepreneur, which is a French word meaning “to undertake”. Entrepreneurs find resources and apply innovation, finance and business acumen to transform innovation into economic goods. This may result in new organisations, or it may revitalise mature organisations to seize a...

Doing Business Bhutan

Winter Edition , Past — What and Why? Whilst 4,500km apart, from Tashichho Dzong in Thimphu to Parliament House in Singapore, the Land of Thunder Dragon and the Lion City are both small countries sandwiched between the geopolitical realities of large neighbours (one landlocked, one sea-locked; one known for prosperity, one for...

How can Bhutan Become a Global Player in the Fourth Industrial Revolution?

Winter Edition , Introduction The current rise of populism in many countries is a clear sign that many people are not happy with their lives. They want a better and happier life but successive governments have failed to meet their expectations. Will populist governments succeed to meet their expectations? Most likely not,...

Bhutan’s Journey to Economic Transformation

Winter Edition , Path of Economic Progress in Bhutan: Retrospection Our development philosophy has never considered economic growth as an end in itself, nor has it been viewed as a panacea for any ills that may threaten the holistic socio-economic progress of the country and well-being of its people. It is nevertheless...

What is a GNH Economy?

Winter Edition , A group of people found themselves at the intersection of many paths, deep in a valley named “Economy”. After a night spent in pursuit of delights other than the knowledge that derived from study, or the Enlightenment that may result from meditation, they looked around and saw many signs...

Editorial: Are We Talking GNH and Doing GDP?

Winter Edition , With the theme “Transforming the Bhutanese Economy” this issue of The Druk Journal will be a comprehensive analysis of Bhutan’s economic aspirations, policies, and realities. In the absence of adequate thinking and discourse in the formulation of our national economic vision we will take a macro economics perspective to...

Some Impact of Democratic Politics in Bhutan

Spring Edition , Democratic transition is usually a process of successive developments. Such was the case in Bhutan. Taking into account the context – the point from which it took off and the environment in which it took shape – where every initiative to modernise the country has emanated from the Kings....

How the Bhutanese Vote in Elections: a Broad Mindscape of the Bhutanese Voter

Spring Edition , The Family Factor As the 2008 general election loomed, a family of six in Baynangra village in Pemagatshel was forced to flee their home to a nearby cowshed. Seventyyear-old Lungten and his 66-year-old wife Phurpa had to take shelter in the cowshed, along with their four children, when their...

Bhutanese Women in Politics: Myths and Realities

Spring Edition , Policy and Legal Framework (At National and International Level) Bhutan has given due importance to increasing women’s participation in development activities, elected offices and decision-making positions. A review of the five-year plans indicate that, while a gender-neutral position had been maintained by the Government in its policies, plans and...

Democracy in Bhutan

Spring Edition , Too much has been written about democracy. Still, many in Bhutan (both before and after 2008) crave a closer understanding – an education – of the relevance of this new approach to public policy. In this life, and in this age, we need to hone our abilities for change...

Editorial

Spring Edition , Bhutan is approaching its third general election under the Constitution, which was adopted to establish a Democractic Constitutional Monarchy. The election being scheduled for late 2018, the Spring 2018 issue of The Druk Journal aims to contribute critically and constructively both to the 2018 elections and to the process...

Youth and Politics in an Evolving Democracy

Spring Edition , The Implications of Politicising Youth Come November this year, an estimated 432,000 Bhutanese citizens are eligible to go to the polls to elect the party which will form the government for the next five years. It is difficult to gauge how many will actually do so but the question...

Political Parties in the 21st Century

Spring Edition , How to Address the Challenges? Once upon a time My mother was born into a social democratic family, just like her father. She had been a party member since she was old enough to vote, and she voted for the party in every election. I once asked her if...

The Bhutanese Politicians

Spring Edition , It was almost typical in the past for a family in the backwoods of the country to occasionally greet “government people” at their doors. It was either the agriculture extension officer communicating about the use of fertilisers, or the village health worker conveying health and sanitation tips, or the...

National Interest Versus Party Interest: What Former Chimis Think of Parliamentary Discussions

Spring Edition , Norzang, after returning from Thimphu, tells the farmers in his remote village that members of ruling and opposition parties “argue like a married couple” during the live broadcast of National Assembly (NA) sessions. The villagers, who do not have television to watch the deliberations and news, say that since...

Socio-economic Status and Electoral Participation in Bhutan

Spring Edition , Bhutan transitioned to a Democratic Constitutional Monarchy in 2008 and conducted its first parliamentary elections. In the words of former Chief Justice of Bhutan, Sonam Tobgye, the chairman of the then Constitution Drafting Committee, ‘Democracy in Bhutan is truly a result of the desire, aspiration and complete commitment of...

People’s Democratic Party

Spring Edition , On 1st September 2007, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) got registered as the first political party in the country. As we celebrate our 10-year journey and service to Tsa-wa-Sum, it gives us an opportunity to reflect on our past and look at our present and the future: where we came...

Druk Phuensum Tshogpa

Spring Edition , Introduction Druk Phuensum Tshogpa (DPT) was founded in 2007 and is one of the two oldest political parties in the country. DPT is dedicated to realising the vision of our Kings. It is committed to the creation of a unique democratic culture, the fabric of which is woven from...

The Thromde Elections: an Inadequate Constituency?

Spring Edition , Whose City? Whose Thrompon? Last summer, like in most summers, numerous potholes appeared in the stretch of road below the Kuensel office at Changzamtog. When it rained, water overflowed from the storm drainage and poured onto the road, filling the potholes. It became a trap for motorists. Those plying...

Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa

Spring Edition , The Birth of Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa When democracy came to Bhutan in 2008, it began on a hopeful note. It came as a gift from the Golden Throne to the people of Bhutan. As was articulated by His Majesty The King to the newly elected members of the National...

Social Media in Elections: What have We Wrought?

Spring Edition , Social Media — a group of online tools that enable users to create and share content and to participate in social networking — has made citizen participation in determining their future a real possibility. But in a very short period of time social media, most associated with Facebook and...

The Micro Effect of Democratisation in Rural Bhutan

Spring Edition , Introduction Bhutan made its transition from an absolute Monarchy to a Democratic Constitutional Monarchy in 2008. Since then, I have noticed a change in the community relations among rural voters in my own community in Radhi-Sakteng, in eastern Bhutan. The Radhi-Sakteng constituency has four gewogs1: Radhi, Phongmey, Merak and...

Social Media and Democracy: Is Something Missing?

Spring Edition , Much has been written about the impact of social media on democracy, especially in recent years. In part, this explosion of commentary on the role of social media came about as the result of several very high-profile elections, among them the presidential election in the United States, that some...

Dhar from the Throne: an Honour and a Responsibility

Spring Edition , The 203 gups (heads of county) who received the Dhar (scarf symbolising confer of rank) from His Majesty The King in October 2016, are negotiating a new era in Bhutanese politics. As one gup, a veteran of more than 20 years as a village headman, described it: “The situation...

Dr Karma Phuntsho On Bhutanese Democracy

Spring Edition , After two successive elections and governments, Dr Karma Phuntsho shares some of his reflections on Bhutan’s democracy and electoral practices with The Druk Journal. The Druk Journal: How would you rate the introduction of democracy to Bhutan in the past 10 years? Dr Karma Phuntsho: Democracy was not introduced...

Editorial: Coordination, Collaboration, Consolidation, and the Fourth C (Civil Society)

Winter Edition , The theme for this issue of The Druk Journal, “civil society”, is a critical element of democratic governance. It is an active sphere where civil society organisations (CSOs), non-government organisations (NGOs), and groups work in areas of common interest. This could include areas where the government’s impact is limited...

Civil Society is Important – But Not a Magic Bullet

Winter Edition , Introduction Towards the end of the 1990s, the Administrator of UNDP decided to establish a “civil society advisory committee” with members representing the global civil society community. This was a wise and timely decision, considering how important civil society organisations (CSOs) had become in the field of development cooperation....

Civil Society: Change, Challenge, and Chance

Winter Edition , The Change Bhutan has been going through a tremendous transition in all aspects of life. I have often been reiterating that, in the gap of half a century, the country has moved economically from subsistence farming to a consummerist market economy, socially from a totally rural country to a...

The Pros and Cons of the Traditional Self-help Mechanism: A Story from Shari Gewog, Paro

Winter Edition , Traditional Self-help Mechanism Traditional agrarian Bhutanese society relied on locally available self-help mechanisms to address various societal challenges. There were none of the registered civil society organisations (CSOs) which exist today. People relied on naturally formed systems that were based on local needs at the grassroots level in the...

Emergence of Civil Society in Bhutan

Winter Edition , Given that civil society is generally understood as the total space outside the domain of the government and private sectors in which civilians act collectively to pursue common interests, there is no denying that civil society in Bhutan existed long before we even knew what civil society actually meant....

Birth of the National Youth Association of Bhutan (NYAB) – the First Non-governmental Initiative

Winter Edition , An Interview with Dasho Paljor J. Dorji, one of the pioneers of NYAB The Druk Journal: How did the idea of starting the first non-governmental organisation, the National Youth Association of Bhutan (NYAB), come about? Dasho Paljor J. Dorji: We felt that the growing number of youth coming out...

Nurturing Civil Society – Building Legitimacy, Ensuring Relevance

Winter Edition , Introduction The government of Bhutan has initiated a process to review the civil society organisation (CSO) rules and regulations, nearly eight years after the establishment of a formal registration system for CSOs. This is expected to provide a much-needed analysis of the direction and impact of civil society in...

Civil Society – Why it Matters

Winter Edition , Civil society refers to the web of interpersonal connections that includes community engagement, volunteer work, social support networks, and groups of people who get together to help each other and benefit society. These connections can be completely informal, encompassing people in the village helping out those who are sick,...