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Conclusions and Reflections

From Tibetan Buddhist Encyclopedia
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8.1 Introduction


Since the early 1960s, when Bhutan progressed from a self-imposed isolation to the modern era, a chain of extraordinary events has set the country on an irreversible transition, faster than the society could sometimes cope with. During this time, Bhutan chose a development path that ensured the preservation of historical and ecological heritage more than economic progress. At the same time the country developed a vision that intended to fulfil the development needs and spiritual aspirations of the people. This remarkable choice can be credited to the enlightened leadership of our successive hereditary kings who instituted a stable government.


At the outset, Bhutan's development plans encapsulated specific goals to achieve self-reliance, interpreted as ‘to be able to stand on ones own feet'. This was a bold step for a small and landlocked country. The smallness and inaccessibility acted as the comparative advantage for pursuing the development path leading to Gross National Happiness (GNH). Unlike other developing countries, Bhutan from early years, has been in a position to follow an independent development path without the influence of donor agencies.


As it progressed towards the late 1980s, more international donors were attracted mainly because of what we had, and not on account of what we lacked. As a result, the traditional development donors could not always impose their terms and conditions on the country. Often, the government refused the offer of assistance, if it meant posing threats to the local culture, institutions and the environment. Remarkably, the country declared to the world that for Bhutanese people, happiness is more important than the accumulation of material wealth; and that the overriding development strategy will be to follow the Middle Path. This is the Bhutanese development paradigm.


The unique development paradigm is guided by the philosophy of pursuing happiness - the spiritual and the emotional happiness as superior to material well-being. This philosophy can be equated to the international concept of sustainable development in all respects. The four pillars of Gross National Happiness: preservation of ecology and culture, equitable distribution of economic resources and good governance are the replication of domains of sustainable development. In reality, this philosophy has been challenged by globalisation, especially with the introduction of modern media and communication forms, which expose Bhutanese people to western consumerist, lifestyle and mindset.


Internally too, decentralisation of the governance system and democratisation was a dramatic shift of policy, which left the Bhutanese people at times perplexed emotionally, as the distance between HM the King and the subjects grew wider. These were the profoundly touching moments in the history of Bhutan. It is uncertain, whether the new governance system will live up to the expectations of society.


Until now, the governance system has worked to serve the people, under the dynamic leadership of HM the King, Jigme Singye Wangchuck. The generation that governs today also grew up in a Buddhist culture; the mental faculty and the physical conditions were attuned to this system of governance. However, in the wake of globalisation and the new constitutional era, the present generation sees development from a new perspective. Given the fact that they are born in a different environment and era, would they uphold the same values and principles of their predecessors? Will the Middle Path and Gross National Happiness

prevail in Bhutan's post constitutional era? In post constitution Bhutan, what can our traditional institutions and socio¬religious belief systems do to meet the national vision of Gross National Happiness? Or will it be necessary to do so? Will the constitutional democracy allow Bhutan to further sharpen the focus of its Gross National Happiness vision? What would be so fulfilling about being a Bhutanese citizen by 2008 and after? These are challenging questions that justify a thorough study of the actual practice. Such empirical research is quite new in Bhutan. As a result we formulated an exploratory

research approach enabling us to analyse the dynamics of the transitional process actually taking place in Bhutan's society and it's social basis. In this concluding chapter, we will synthesise observations made and also highlight lessons learnt from the case studies. To do so we will reflect on the observations of the case studies and interpret the results in the broader context of the social bases for sustainable development in the pre as well as the post constitutional era in Bhutan. We will also briefly reflect upon the role of religion and culture in post constitutional governance in Bhutan.


8.2 Main conclusions


This research study began by looking at Bhutan's development history, the evolution of it's development philosophy and the policy strategy. The main focus of the study was on the operationalisation of the strategy in various fields and on the perceptions of Bhutanese people. In the context of sustainable development, we find that a good support on the local level and by various stakeholder groups and a supportive institutional environment provide an indispensable force for achieving goals as defined in the Middle Path Strategy. However, in Bhutan this is a major challenge, as the soc

iety is experiencing sweeping changes in a short span of time and it is hard to foresee how society and government system will evolve overtime. The government is in a state of transition. The old structure of a hierarchical top-down governing system is less practicable and therefore, a bottom up process has been encouraged. However, the new participatory and performance-based rules are still rudimentary. The issue of social equity, especially the distributional aspects of the modernisation process, are a topic of discussion in the country. The challenge is to find a balance between openness and preservation, between hierarchy and participation, and between growing national income and distribution among the general population.


The public perceptions of Bhutanese people of the chosen development path, our first empirical research question, have mainly been analysed in Chapter 4 and 6. The empirical study on the public perception of Bhutan's approach to sustainable development in practice, particularly related to the four pillars of Gross National Happiness, highlights diverse views and expressions. By attempting to pursue the objective of Gross National Happiness, individuals are placed at the heart of all development efforts and it recognises the individual has material, spiritual and emotional needs. To this end, Bhutan was

inspired by Buddhism to follow a specific route to development: The Middle Path. The civil servants and people from civil society groups and the market fully support the spirit of this development strategy, although not always with a full understanding of the official concept. Generally, people are aware of the importance of the four pillars of Gross National Happiness and they fully support it. So far there is a general feeling that the past development results have been, to a certain extent, equitably shared amongst the citizens, except in some remote districts that enjoy relatively fewer benefits (Chapter 4).


Generally, most people see themselves ‘happy' or ‘very happy' with respect to their spiritual well-being, the natural environment, social life and cultural heritage. But levels of happiness relating to material wealth were valued relatively lower, reflecting Buddhist values (Chapter 4). In assessing ‘Gross National Happiness' a large number of respondents express their state of happiness as ‘very happy' or ‘happy' (92%). However, they are concerned about conservation of the natural environment and culture and (to a small extent) the risk of corruption spreading into the decentralised governance system.


In our study of the local communities' perceptions of nature conservation policy, we saw that people feel the conservation approach of the government is top-down and is disproportionately skewed to conserve nature at whatever costs. Yet, being a Buddhist country, they hold positive attitudes towards nature conservation; as a result the people give full support for nature conservation. On the other hand, the affect on change in land ownership due to conservation rules and regulations are not received well by the public. Further, wildlife depredation of crops and domestic livestock has affected the local economy and has become one of the causes of rural¬urban migration (Chapter 6).


The operationalisation of the development philosophy, related to our second operational research question, has been analysed in the case studies on tourism policy (Chapter 5), nature conservation policy (Chapter 6), and the impacts of the sustainability agreement with the Netherlands (Chapter 7). In Bhutan the tourism industry plays a vital role in socio-economic development. Tourism is guided by the policy of ‘high value, low volume', which means that visitors pay an all-inclusive high tariff of US $ 200 per day, which sets a limit to the number of visitors and consequently prevents negative impacts on the unique nature and culture of the country (Chapter 5).


The tourism sector is one of the fast-growing service sectors in the country. The revenues from tourism constitute an important source of income for the nation and a fair amount reaches small family businesses and local communities, although much of it does not reach the most remote areas. Rural communities benefit from the trickle-down effect of tourism revenue by selling local produce, goods and handicrafts and providing food and lodging on the trekking routes. In this sense, tourism development has the potential to avert urban migration from rural areas and to keep alive the local culture, arts and crafts.


The ‘high value, low volume' policy has been a successful policy so far in preventing negative environmental impacts. The local communities respond favourably to foreign visitors and feel that it has no negative impacts on their culture. But, in the last two years, some of the trekking routes and cultural events have become overcrowded during peak seasons. There is an urgent need for capacity building in infrastructure (hotels and trek routes) and human resource development and policy legislation in tourism industry.


In the second case we looked at the operationalisation of the Middle Path Strategy in the nature conservation policy. We observed somewhat negative impacts on the traditional art and culture of local people. The traditional norms of resource management were ignored. The new government rules restricting the use of non-timber products have affected the production of traditional local arts and crafts. These cultural products are the means of earning income for certain local communities with growing tourism industry in Bhutan.


Nature conservation policy was implemented as a participatory approach to conservation and development following the Integrated Conservation and Development Programme (ICDP). Our research showed that the programme had to face coordination and administrative problems. The district administrators did not appreciate park management initiating ICDP activities unless such programmes were incorporated in the Five Year Development Programme of the district. The third case analysed the operationalisation of the Middle Path Strategy in Bhutan's relation to the outer world; particularly the reciprocal

relationship with the Netherlands. During 1994, North-South relations took a different direction by signing a sustainable Development Agreement between and among Bhutan, Benin, Costa Rica and the Netherlands after the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. The objective of the agreement was to deviate from the traditional top-down (one way) method of providing development assistance to that of a partnership approach (two-way path) for the promotion of sustainable development, based on the principles of equality, reciprocity and participation. The agreement was interpreted differently in Bhutan and in the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, Dutch politicians were concerned with the legally binding implications of the agreement and demanded more clarity and meaning about the three guiding principles; whereas, in Bhutan, the agreement was viewed more from its emotional and spiritual aspects.


As a result, the Sustainable Development Agreement was received well in Bhutan and accordingly several projects were implemented as planned. It provided capacity building opportunities in all sectoral agencies through various projects and at the central ministries by supporting human resources and institutional capacity development activities of the government. In the Netherlands, however, the government was sceptical about the agreement and the programme received less political support and some of the projects implementated in the Netherlands were criticised. The internal strife between various political parties and the conflict between Ecooperation and the Ministry of Development Cooperation (DGIS) in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs affected the smooth implementation of projects. In this respect, the agreement failed in the Netherlands.


In hindsight, it can be said that, such cooperation can only be successful if all partners share the same vision, have equal input in the financial as well as technological resources. Further, the best starting point for such innovative ideas should be successfully tested smaller projects in the existing institutional setting, rather than by an agreement and a new ‘state-independent' organisation. If the results of such an approach were found favourable, the next step could have been the signing of a formal agreement between countries with similar backgrounds in order to achieve a specific goal.


8.3 Gross National Happiness: practical relevance and implementation in the constitutional era


Our third operational research question focused on the opportunities and risks of the current development path and possible improvements. Before we address this we need to have a look at the most recent development and Bhutan's ambitions for the near future. Since the Eighth Five Year Plan (1997-2002), the GNH concept has been adopted as the central theme of Bhutan's socio-economic development policies, advocating a balanced policy in every field of development. However, the results have not always been positive (Chapter 4). The past development did not result in an increase of the overall happiness of the people. The conservation efforts led to some increase in human-wildlife conflict, which may lead to increasing rural-urban migration, forcing people into a vicious cycle of poverty. Too much emphasis on culture conservation may disrupt individual efficiency and good governance. And finally the distribution of economic development is not equitable, as it concentrates in a certain part of the country (mostly where tourists destinations are prominently developed).


At the philosophical level, many scholars have argued that happiness is the subjective well-being of an individual and is therefore difficult to measure. But Bhutanese decision makers believe happiness need not be measured and it can remain a vision that should serve as an inspiration. This means that GNH will continue to guide and shape Bhutan's development policies, strategies and activities. With our study we showed that an empirical approach to monitoring happiness is possible and it could be valuable in operationalising the middle path strategy.


By June 2007, Bhutan will complete its Ninth Development Plan. Currently, the country is in the process of preparing the Tenth Plan. According to the guidelines for the preparation of the Tenth Plan (2007-2012), the philosophy of Gross National Happiness and the four pillars continue to form the core values (RGoB, 2006). The following includes the observations as to how each pillar represents the core development values.


Promotion of equitable and sustainable socio-economic development


The guidelines for the Tenth Plan reveal that poverty reduction will be the main development priority with the specific objective to reduce the number of people living below the poverty line from 32% (base year 2005) to about 20% by the end of the plan (RGoB, 2006). It also identifies

Table 8.1 Selected sectoral objectives and targets for Tenth Plan (2007-2012)


Proportion of rural households living below the poverty line 31.7% 20%

Access to safe drinking water 84% 100%

Adult literacy 59% 90%

Access to adequate, safe and affordable shelter by the low 5% 10%


income group


Increase energy exports contribution to GDP 12% 30%

Installed capacity 468 MW 2705 MW

Coverage of rural electrification 36% 84%

Tourism- contribution to national revenue 2.7% 5%

Annual tourist arrival 13,326 nos. 30,000 nos.

Unemployment rate 2.5% 2%

Source: RGoB, 2006




four key strategies: rural development, balanced development at regional and local levels, private sector development and infrastructure development as the key development priorities to achieve socio-economic development. Some key targets of the Tenth Plan are shown in Table 8.1. Preservation and promotion of cultural values.

The cultural industry has been recognised as one of the main drivers of social and economic development. The guidelines require every sector to set targets and build strategies to work in the following development areas:


• Continue protection and preservation of cultural heritage,

• Undertake cultural industry mapping,

• Establish a legal framework for the cultural industry,

• Recognise culture as a means of poverty alleviation,

• Promote global awareness and

• Establish an international Buddhist Institute.


These policy guidelines indicate the recognition of the utilitarian value of Bhutan's cultural heritage. Perhaps development of cultural industry and commercial production of Bhutanese arts and artefacts could enhance rural income. Though mass production may diminish the sanctity and emotional values of arts and crafts, it has the potential for socio-economic development and a wider distribution of income.


Conservation of natural environment


The need to preserve the natural environment is unprecedented in Bhutan. Article 5 of the draft constitution of Bhutan stipulates ‘It is the fundamental duty of every citizen to contribute to the protection of the natural environment...' (RGoB, 2004). This urgency is echoed in the Tenth Plan guidelines. It recognises the importance of the environment as a key to poverty reduction and continues to create conditions for environmental preservation. As Bhutanese people are

attached to the natural environment economically, emotionally and spiritually, the present policy and the implementation of this programme will contribute to national happiness.


Good governance


Fostering good governance is also a core value of the Tenth Plan. The value is rooted in four key determinants: transparency, accountability, efficiency, and professionalism. In an era of constitutional democracy, the happiness of the people will rest on the strength and robustness of this pillar. Each agency is required to strive to strengthen aspects of good governance to contribute to the efficient allocation and utilisation of public resources, bring balanced and equitable distribution of wealth, and hence promote happiness and the well-being of the Bhutanese people.


8.4 Bhutan in the era of constitutional democracy


Bhutan looks at a new horizon in the 21st century. It is less than a century since the country was united under a king in 1907. Four decades ago, Bhutan decided to come out of its self-imposed isolation in 1961, and launched a five-year development plan supported by the government of India. In 1990, Bhutan joined the international development partnership for sustainable development on its own terms. At the same time it declared to the outside world its development goal - the promotion of happiness by following the middle path strategy, as opposed to the western view of amassing material wealth. While the scholars were grappling with the concept of happiness, His Majesty introduced yet another milestone in the history of the Kingdom - the drafting of a new constitution in 2004.


The ordinary Bhutanese find it difficult to keep pace with the recent chain of events. The draft constitution was placed before public for open consultation in 2006. HM the King and the crown prince visited all districts and addressed the people and listened to the concerns of the people. In the midst of this eventful period, HM the King, in his address to the nation during the 97th National Day, announced that the constitution will be launched in 2008, and he will resign as the Sovereign Head of the State and handover to the Crown Prince HRH Dasho Khesar Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck. Our general research question addressed the consequences of the transition process Bhutan is in yet. In that light we will in the remaining of this chapter particularly reflect on:


i. The practical relevance of Gross National Happiness; ii. Some critical issues related to the social bases of development; iii. The role of Buddhism for the future of Bhutan; and iv. The strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and risks in the post constitutional era.


At this stage there are not definite answers to these issues. One can only speculate, using our empirical studies and to some extent personal intuition.


8.5 Practical relevance of GNH in the post-constitutional era


The philosophy of Gross National Happiness appeals to societies, both in developed and developing countries alike. An individual begins to search for happiness, spiritualism and environmental quality after attaining a certain level of material wealth (Veenhoven, 2004). By standards, the people in the developed countries enjoy a high level of material wealth and standard of living, compared to the people in the developing countries. For them, happiness may be viewed differently. However, for people in developing countries the priorities are different: meeting the basic necessities. In the case of Bhutan,

the respondents opined that sound material wealth is an important, but not the only element in pursuing happiness. As a developing country, the relevance of GNH in the post constitutional era in Bhutan can be viewed from: a) state level: the policy pursuit, b) local level: democratic governance and people's participation, and c) individual level: changing pattern of Bhutanese society and the application of GNH to an average Bhutanese citizen.


a. State level - the policy pursuit. According to the draft constitution ‘Tie state shall strive to promote those circumstances that will enable the successful pursuit of Gross National Happiness' (RGOB 2000, Article 9 Section 2). As such, GNH philosophy will continue to guide Bhutan's future path to development. The Centre for Bhutan Studies (CBS) is mandated by the government to develop indicators for GNH. This is a bold move, as many Bhutanese still hold the view that GNH should stay as an inspiration and vision.


b. Local level — democratic governance and people’s participation. In the 1980s, the Decentralisation programme started in Bhutan. Now after more than two decade, the process still continues with renewed impetus. Further, the draft Constitution promises to promote those conditions that will enable the pursuit of GNH (RGoB 2000, Article 9). This indicates, the pursuit of GNH will continue under the democratic governance.


c. Individual level - changing pattern of Bhutanese society where does GNH apply? Our research shows that generally people felt individual happiness is more important than GNH. The main constituent of individual happiness is being expressed as the basic necessities of life. Some argue that it depends upon where this question is asked. The level of happiness for people living in urban areas and the rural areas may differ; the individual living in the urban centres may have comparatively better access to the amenities to life. So, every Bhutanese will have the right to pursue happiness, however, in some cases one person's happiness may be another person's sorrow. While the responsibility of the state is to uphold the GNH concept, the internal and external environment will determine whether a person is happy, unhappy or indifferent.


Currently, the happiness philosophy is known mostly in the officialdom of the government bureaucracy. It is known much less in the private sector and the civil society. With democratic governance civil society is likely to have the power to influence government decisions on the development priorities. Consequently, the development focus could shift from pursuing Gross National Happiness to individual happiness.




8.6 Risks related to the social bases of development

Risks can be found at the various levels of capacity building:


a. The systemic level. The most often asked question nowadays in Bhutan is “are we ready for democracy?” This question is irrelevant as the timetable for democratic transition is already set. The question must be, is our judicial system ready for democratisation, do we have sufficient legislation, and how independent is the Bhutanese judiciary from the executive. Within the last decade the Bhutanese legal system has become more professionalised. However, the general public still has the notion that old practice continues to seep through the present judicial system. The guarantee of constitutional rights rests with the strengthening of an impartial and efficacious legal system and creating public trust.


b. Organisational level. A conducive organisational environment and the culture embody the principle of good governance. The present organisational system of governance is highly bureaucratic and hierarchical. Under such a system decision-making power is vested with either one individual or a group who is in authority, and these decisions are rarely questioned. This practice is expected to change or at least to be publicly questioned. Such a practice of public debate could be supported by the development and promotion of independent research institutions and enhance research activities within the existing

institutions. The Royal University of Bhutan, which was launched 2003, has recognised the importance of research in the academic field. Practical use of research for decision-making purposes is yet to make inroads and the challenge is to convince the politicians of its need and usefulness. In the new constitutional state a different organisational set up is planned to maintain checks and balances. The draft constitution recognises six

constitutional posts (some posts already exist) - the Election Commissioner, 'llie Auditor General, 'llie Civil Service Commissioner, The Attorney General, The Pay Commissioner, The Anti-Corruption Commissioner. These new organisations need to develop in an efficient manner in order to meet the challenges ahead. In fact, the whole state apparatus needs rethinking in terms of delivering transparent, efficient and effective governance with new organisational set up, managerial capability and professionalism.


c. Individual level. Individual capacity is the key driver for organisational success. Invariably, the new system will call for better, more qualified and experienced individual professionals. Besides, Bhutanese working culture, attitude and more importantly, the development of individual capacity should follow a more fair system. As said above, the University of Bhutan has plans to promote and encourage institutions and individuals to develop research capabilities.


As in many developed as well as developing countries, in Bhutan people also feel that the individual capability and the reward system do not match. Often personal acquaintance or other forms of relationship are used for recognition, while ignoring other equally or more competent individuals. One might question whether this practice will continue in the new constitutional state. The Royal Civil Service Commission (RCSC) is due to implement a new performance based system, recognising individual capability (in July 2006). The expectations are, as envisaged by RCSC, to enhance good governance by enhancing individual capability in the constitutional state.


8.7 Role of religion and culture for future of Bhutan


Bhutan is the only Mahayana Buddhist country in the Himalayan region. By tradition, two religious sects - Nyingma and Kayu - are prevalent in Bhutan. The Nyingma sect is mostly followed in Eastern Bhutan, while the Kayu sect is more popular in the Western part of the country. For centuries, Buddhist heritage has guided the kingdom spiritually and economically both in peace and in war. Buddhist principles are ingrained in the people's way of life - their

physical movements, daily activities, farming practices, and dealing with the natural environment are controlled by Buddhist astrology, beliefs and the philosophy of life. In troubled times, the resident deities and spirits provide support by helping to conquer the enemies of the people. Thus, Buddhism and pre-Buddhist religious beliefs (Bon culture) protected Bhutan's nation state for centuries.


The draft constitution recognises Buddhism as the spiritual heritage and state religion of Bhutan (article 3). Further, it recognises culture as an evolving force and that the “state shall facilitate the continued evolution of traditional values....as a progressive society” (article 4). At the same time the constitution also provides Bhutanese citizens the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion (article 7). When these provisions are placed in the context of modern Bhutan, one can foresee two pertinent issues emerging, which have already been experienced in the developed countries: a) deterioration of Bhutanese culture as result of freedom to choose other religious faiths and increased internal rift between the two sects and, b) Bhutan will experience a gradual shift towards a multicultural society influenced by globalisation.


a. Deterioration of Bhutanese culture as result of freedom to choose other religious faith and or increased internal rift between the two sects. Listening to the present discussion in the country, there is a mixed impression about the role of religion in the constitutional state. One school of thought foresees that Buddhist values, such as understanding, compassion, tolerance, contentment, discipline and generosity, will help to deepen democracy; while others see the religious values undergoing a passage of changes with the passing generations having more complex civil societies under the new governance system. However, a large majority of Bhutanese population still live under the auspices of Buddhism.


At the fundamental level, there is a deeper concern underlying the role of religion in the democratic society. Should there be any misunderstanding between the followers of the two religious sects, the basis of democracy could be jeopardised. However, amongst the lay Buddhists, this distinction is spiritually and emotionally less distinct and relevant compared to the ardent followers. At the moment, this reflection represents the feeling of few individuals, but more research in this area could provide valuable lessons, insights and guidelines for the democratic governance.


b. Bhutan will experience a gradual shift towards a multicultural society influenced by globalisation. Bhutan can no longer be content with a mono cultural society; it must be prepared to accept and govern a multicultural society. The main force of the change agent is globalisation. As discussed in Chapter 2, there is no question of accepting or rejecting globalisation; it is the question of managing it in individual countries. Bhutan's position is untenable despite the middle path


strategy and the philosophy of happiness. Some would see globalisation as the basis of happiness for it can provide much needed sources of material wealth. Besides material wealth, globalisation could also transform the societal culture through the media. This is particularly imminent in a society with a young population, which lacks spiritual and emotional maturity, a proper education and a weak governance system.


To what extent the present culture and value system be relevant in the post constitutional state will depend on how our education system is able to deliver the moral principles of Buddhism, which may be deepened to become part of Bhutanese way of life. Judging by the existing trends, Buddhism and the cultural heritage will remain as iconic figures with less spiritual and emotional reverence and relevance. Under this circumstance, the governance system and the development objectives may be more based on prudent economic decisions than on philosophical principles.


8.8 The strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats


In retrospect, the middle path strategy was launched at a time when the country was moving towards a major societal transition faster than other developing countries in the region. In Bhutanese society, with a predominantly rural based economy, such development has had minimal negative consequences for the society, nature and culture. However, today the peoples' perceptions are changing. They feel that while it is important to preserve the cultural identity of Bhutan as a nation state, it must allow for progress and the professional development of an individual. Similarly, environmental preservation is important for human well-being, but people increasingly see it less valuable unless the basic economic necessities of the people are met.


In the post constitutional era, the focus of the middle path strategy could shift. Mainly because the role of the state will be less dominant; and the participation of the civil society and the market is expected to be vigorous in attaining the national development goals. The main development impetus, whether top down, bottom up or a combination of both, will largely depend upon the strength and the character of the ruling government. In this context, we assess the future relevance of the middle path strategy based on its strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats, thus answering our third operational research question (see Table 8.2):


The above matrix shows that a strong political commitment exists to support the four pillars of development, but it is weakened by excessive conservation efforts and some unwillingness to delegate the development management functions from the central authority to the implementation level. Economically, the middle path strategy will tend to bring slow development. As in the past, development will continue to concentrate in those areas where resource potentials exist. For instance, tourism and hydropower development continues to be concentrated only in some parts of the nation and it results in imbalanced development.


The strong environmental policy of the government has a visible positive effect, at least on the physical condition of the environment. The forest cover exceeds the national mandatory


i5i


Table 8.2 Assessment of the Middle Path Strategy against four pillars of development


Development pillars Strengths Weaknesses

Economy • Selection of specific resource potentials for economic development

• Focus on integrated management systems • Restrict market driven economy (privatisation, exchange regulation, liberalisation of trade)

• Strong land used policy affecting rural agriculture

• Lack of state support to private sector development

Environment • Strong political commitment backed by


Buddhist conservation ethics


• Strong environmental legislation

• Strong public support • Too much focus on ecological preservation (wildlife)

• Unwilling to extract natural resources

• Too much restriction on the use of natural resources


Culture • Strong government policy for preservation of Buddhist culture • Too much emphasis on observing Bhutanese etiquettes


• It sometimes obstructs efficiency


Governance • Government committed to decentralised local governance


• Willingness of people to participate in local development

Opportunities • Lack of political support for administration and financial decentralisation of authority from the centre

• Unwillingness to strengthen local capacity


Threats


Economy • Controlled economic development


• Equitable distribution of income

• Preserve agro biodiversity • Slow and imbalanced development

• Increase rural urban migration

• Increase risk of food dependency on India

Environment • Increase natural capital

• Preserve biodiversity

• Enhance spiritual well-being

• Ecotourism development • Excessive forest cover leading to increased human-wild life encounter

• Less agriculture practices in the rural areas

• Risk of increasing rural urban migration Culture • Preserve Mahayana Buddhist tradition, spiritualism and cultural identity of Bhutan

• Niche market for international tourism and development of cultural industry • Dilution of cultural identity and loss of intrinsic cultural value and its sanctity due to globalisation

• Commercialisation of cultural arts and artefacts


Governance • Promote democratic governance with emphasis on people's participation


• Develop local capacity

• Bring balanced development • Weak local capacity in some districts could lead to imbalanced development as the people's representative are not capable to voice in the National Assembly.


requirement of 60% and is still perceived to be increasing. This could reduce the scale of agriculture practices due to increasing conflict between the wild animals and the farmers. The restrictive uses of non-timber forestry products could also change people's perception of the government's development strategy.


Bhutan's policy on the preservation of the cultural value system is strong. But increasingly it is seen as less efficient in resource management and professional performance. Further, with


globalisation, the culture instead of being a way of life, as in the past, could become an object of economy as already pre-empted in the Tenth Plan guidelines. Under this circumstance, economic valuation or this commercialisation of cultural industry could dilute the values.


The decentralisation programme has some history, but the central government is apparently slow in delegating the administrative and financial powers to the people. As a result, the implementation has been slow and the local capacity remained stagnant (which now poses major challenge in the constitutional era). In the era of transition, conflicts of interest have become visible. As they are immanent to democracy, these conflicts will be more pronounced in the near future. In our view The Middle Path Strategy, which used to be implemented by the state taking absolute control in all development matters, might be challenged too.


The Middle Path Strategy could stay a viable strategy if a more balanced approached between cultural and environmental preservation and economy could be realised. Therefore:


• Attention needs to be widened from Gross National Happiness to individual happiness aimed at improving the basic standard of living.

• To do so a more equitable private sector development is necessary as the backbone of growth.

• Attention should focus more on generating competitive skills of the younger generation.

• Plough-back mechanisms of the revenues of hydropower and tourism should be used to stimulate private sector growth and development of remote areas.

• Preservation of the environment should take more care of the negative effects on the development of local communities. A new balance should be found in which preservation helps the local communities to stay viable.

• Buddhism should stay vital as a binding force, separated from politics, as it is now.

• Agriculture is part of Bhutanese culture, so practices should be preserved to realise self¬sufficiency in food supply.

• The power distances in society, which are part of the traditional hierarchy, have become less efficient, and should be moderated.

• Governance is evolving. The state should put more emphasis on capacities of districts and geog level. Decentralisation of offices should be considered.


This inductive study is the first of its kind conducted in Bhutan. It focused on the operationisation of the Middle Path Strategy in practice and the social basis of striving for Gross National Happiness. The study provided snapshot views of Bhutan's development practices, governance system, and the people's view of the conditions of life, state of economy, ecology and culture, and their interrelationships. Based on the state of affairs prevalent in

the pre¬constitutional period, an attempt was made to look into the post constitutional era. The opinions and the expressions stated represent the reflection and the mood of the Bhutanese society at the time of this historical transitional period. At this stage many questions remain unanswered. We encourage future researchers to look for the answers and further in-depth study on Bhutan, to contribute to public debate, provide information and record historical underpinnings of Bhutan.




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