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

Spring Edition , May 1st, 2020 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 , May 1st, 2020 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 , May 1st, 2020 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 , May 1st, 2020 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 , May 1st, 2020 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 , May 1st, 2020 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 , May 1st, 2020 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 , April 28th, 2020 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 , April 28th, 2020 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 , April 28th, 2020 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...