Bhutan’s “Gross National Happiness” governing philosophy has been praised around the world for striking a balance between economic growth and the well-being of its citizens.
But recent discussions”Gross National Happiness 2.0“Newly elected Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay says some level of change is taking place – as Tobgay puts it – as the country battles the economic crisis.”on the verge of collapse”.
As we all know, GNH has been a guiding principle in Bhutan since it was proposed by former King Jigme Singye Wangchuck in the early 1970s.
But youth unemployment is close to 30% About one in eight people live in povertyhas Bhutan reached a point where it must change its pursuit of national happiness?
“Yes and no,” Togai said in an interview with CNBC on May 10, “Yes, because we have to develop the economy.”
But he added that the principles of GNH would not be abandoned.
“Should we throw caution to the wind? No. We can grow, and we can grow in a balanced way.”
Find a new balance
He said Bhutan will continue to strengthen its economy in a manner that is sustainable, equitable and “balanced with social progress, environmental protection, cultural preservation and good governance”.
“We’ve had success in these areas that no one could have imagined,” he said.
We failed financially.
Tserin Togai
Prime Minister of Bhutan
But he also said the principles applied in the past may have been too one-sided.
“We’ve been very cautious, very conservative, so we’ve fallen behind,” he said. “We failed financially.”
Togai also said that Bhutan is also cautious in terms of tourism.
“As far as tourism is concerned, we’ve been very cautious in opening up to the rest of the world,” Togai told CNBC. “We’ve been very conservative, very cautious.”
He added that if Bhutan made a mistake, it was for the sake of sustainable development and conservation.
“We are now paying the price for caution.”
Redouble commitment to sustainable tourism
Bhutan’s tourism industry is recovering more slowly than other countries in Asia. In 2023, the number of international tourists in the country will be one-third of that in 2019.
Since reopening in September 2022, the country has revised its controversial “sustainable development fee” three times – first raising it to $200 per adult per day, Then lower twice.
Togay said the changes caused “a lot of confusion.” “Tourism is now starting to pick up as we speak, but it’s not yet at pre-pandemic levels.”
Togai told CNBC that although mass tourism can bring unexpected economic income, Bhutan has not abandoned its “high value, low volume” tourism policy.
Today, its sustainability fee is $100 per adult per day, but Togay said, “Honestly, I think a lot of tourists would be willing to pay $200 per day as a sustainability fee.”
He said Bhutan remained focused on increasing tourism “while keeping numbers under control”.
The country’s booming tourism industry is one way to “create the types of jobs that our capable, very capable young people aspire to,” he said.
Thousands of young Bhutanese workers are leaving the country to seek employment opportunities abroad, According to Reuters. The report said that in the 11 months to May 2023, about 1.5% of the Bhutanese population migrated to Australia alone to seek work and skills training.
“We hope this is just a temporary development… and will give us time to strengthen our economy through tourism and other interventions,” Togai said. “Then our children will stay here and those outside People who work and gain valuable experience will return home.”
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