Bhutan

B

Language and Religion

Dzongkha is the official national language of Bhutan. It is based on Tibetan and uses chhokey (the Tibetan script) for writing. English is also widely used, particularly in education. Ngalopkha, also derived from Tibetan, is spoken in western Bhutan. Sharchopkha, which is an Indo-Mongoloid language, is the dominant language in eastern Bhutan. Nepali is spoken in the south.

The Drukpa sect of Mahayana Buddhism is the state religion of Bhutan. Nearly 75 percent of Bhutan’s population practices this form of Buddhism, which is closely related to Tibetan, or Lamaist, Buddhism. The rest mainly practice Hinduism, which varies in Bhutan from traditional Hinduism to a fusion of Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism, in which the beliefs and practices as well as the gods and shrines of both religions are worshiped. Although religious and secular authority is vested in the king, Buddhist lamas (monks) also exercise a powerful influence on national affairs.

C

Education

The adult literacy rate was estimated at 47 percent in 2000. Until the early 1960s no formal schools existed in Bhutan except for religious ones. Since that time the country has developed free and noncompulsory schooling that provides both primary and secondary education. Due in part to a lack of access to facilities, the attendance rate at Bhutan’s schools is relatively low. A greater percentage of boys attend school than girls.

Institutions of higher education in Bhutan include a four-year degree college (located in Kanglung), one junior college, and two technical schools. With the assistance of grants and fellowships, many Bhutanese students annually receive higher education abroad, mainly in India, Japan, Australia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Under a national service plan, students returning from their studies abroad take short courses that inform them of Bhutan’s current needs and also of the parameters of its development and resources. The students are then required to work in rural areas for a specified period of time (generally about six months), assisting the villagers in constructing schools, installing irrigation systems, improving the drinking water supply, or running health centers.

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D

Way of Life and Culture

Some 92 percent of Bhutan’s population lives in 4,500 rural settlements, which vary in size and organization from a group of 20 or more houses in the Duars to scattered groups of houses in the Middle Himalayan valleys and small settlements in the Great Himalayan region. Most of the populated valleys of Bhutan have a dzong, a fortified monastery that also serves as an administrative center. Dzongs are typically built on an outcrop on the steep side of the valley and guarded by rows of Buddhist prayer flags. Bhutan’s architecture is influenced by that of both India and Tibet.

Before the mid-20th century there were three social classes in Bhutan: the monastic community, led by the nobility; lay civil servants, who ran the government; and farmers, the largest class, living in self-sufficient villages. Elements of these traditional social classes still survive, but since the 1960s society has changed; class division is based on occupation and social status. Also, increased mobility outside the village has led to the development of nuclear family units.

Although men still dominate the politics and economy of Bhutan, development programs that were begun in the 1960s have led to increased opportunities for women in the fields of teaching, nursing, and administration. The National Women’s Association of Bhutan (founded in 1981) is working to improve the socioeconomic status of women in the country.

Food staples for the Bhutanese include rice and, increasingly, corn. They also eat beef, pork, poultry, goat, yak, and fish. Yak cheese is part of the diet of upland people. Meat soups, rice or corn, and spiced chilies comprise daily food; beverages include buttered tea and beer distilled from cereal grains.

Traditional clothing is worn throughout Bhutan. Women wear the kira, an ankle-length dress made of a rectangular piece of cloth held at the shoulders with a clip and closed with a woven belt at the waist; underneath they wear a long-sleeved blouse. Social status is indicated by the colors of the kira, the amount of decorative details, and the quality of the cloth. Men wear the gho, a wraparound, coatlike, knee-length garment with a narrow belt. Both men and women sometimes wear elaborate earrings. Both sexes also wear scarves or shawls, white for commoners and carefully specified designs, colors, and manner of folding for higher-ranking individuals.

Dance performances are a popular form of entertainment in Bhutan. Masked dances and dance dramas are held several times a year during Buddhist religious festivals in dzongs throughout Bhutan. Dancers wearing colorful wooden masks and special costumes create a splendid display of heroes, demons, animals, gods, and caricatures of common people. Many of Bhutan’s dances tell religious, historical, and other types of stories.

A national library is in Thimphu, and a national museum featuring paintings, decorative art, arms, and jewelry is in Paro. Bhutan’s national sport is archery. Competitions are often held weekly as well as throughout the Lunar New Year celebrations in February.

IV

Economy of Bhutan

The United Nations (UN) classifies Bhutan as one of the world’s least developed nations. The country is predominantly agricultural with limited industrial activity and services. Bhutan’s gross domestic product (GDP) was $844 million in 2005.

Agriculture, animal husbandry, and forestry employ 94 percent of the workforce and contribute 25 percent of GDP. Agriculture in Bhutan is primarily devoted to the cultivation of cereal crops to meet subsistence needs. Rice, corn, barley, millet, and wheat are the main crops. Farming methods are generally traditional and labor intensive. Only 3.8 percent of Bhutan’s total land area is cultivated. Livestock such as cattle, yaks, hogs, goats, sheep, and horses are commonly raised. Timber production is also important; oak, pine, and tropical hardwood trees are harvested from the country’s forests.

Trade and other services, including tourism, employ 5 percent of the workforce and contribute 38 percent of GDP. In 1975 Bhutan was opened to tourism, which became the country’s largest source of foreign exchange. However, the government restricts the number of visitors in an attempt to minimize any negative impact on Bhutan’s traditions, culture, and natural environment. Only 1 percent of the labor force is employed in industry (including manufacturing, mining, and construction), although this sector of the economy contributes 37 percent of GDP.

Bhutan relies on hydroelectric power resources for 100 percent (2003) of its domestic electricity consumption (see Waterpower). Hydroelectric facilities in Bhutan produce a surplus of electricity, which is exported to India.

India is Bhutan’s primary trading partner, although trade is conducted with a number of other countries, as well. Bhutan’s major imports include rice, manufactured goods, fuel, and machinery. Major exports include wood products, cement, agricultural products such as apples and oranges, handicrafts, and electricity. Bhutan’s monetary unit is the ngultrum (44.10 ngultrum equal U.S.$1; 2005 average), which is at parity with the Indian rupee. The rupee is also an official currency in Bhutan.

The first road linking India with the Bhutanese capital of Thimphu was opened in 1962. Since then Bhutan has developed a skeletal road system linking most of the Middle Himalayan valleys. These roads have opened up large areas of central and eastern Bhutan. The roads cut into steep hillsides and mountains; during the rainy season frequent landslides block the roads, and remote settlements revert to the isolation of earlier times. About 62 percent of the roads are paved. The Bhutan Government Transport Service operates a bus service to all parts of the country. An international airport is located in Paro. Druk Air, Bhutan’s national airline, was founded in 1981 and started flights between Paro and Calcutta (now Kolkata) in 1983; service has since been expanded to include flights to such cities as Bangkok (Thailand), Dhaka (Bangladesh), and Kathmandu (Nepal). Modern telecommunications link major towns.

Although government ownership of the country’s print and broadcast media ended in 1992, the government still exerts control over the media. The country’s only newspaper, Kuensel, is published weekly in multiple languages in Thimphu. Bhutan Broadcasting Service (BBS) offers radio and television programming. The government lifted a ban on broadcast television in 1999. Cable television is also available in the country.

V

Government of Bhutan

From 1907 until 1998 Bhutan was an absolute monarchy. Its king, called the druk gyalpo (dragon king), served as both head of state and government. In governing Bhutan the king consulted with his royal advisory council, a 150-member National Assembly (instituted in 1953), and the head abbot of Bhutan’s Buddhist monks.

In 1998 the reigning king, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, voluntarily relinquished his role as head of government and introduced a modified form of constitutional monarchy. Under reforms that he introduced by royal edict, executive power was vested in a Council of Ministers. The chairman of the Council of Ministers served as head of government. The 1998 reforms gave the National Assembly the power to vote, by a two-thirds majority, to require the king to abdicate in favor of his successor. In 2001 the king issued a decree setting up a committee to draft Bhutan’s first constitution, which would formally establish a constitutional monarchy with a democratic system of government. The draft constitution, unveiled to the public in 2005, was to be approved by referendum.

A new bicameral (two-chamber) parliament was established in 2008, comprising the National Assembly and the National Council. The National Assembly has 47 members, who are directly elected in multimember constituencies. In the 25-seat National Council, 20 members are directly elected in single-member constituencies and 5 members are appointed by the monarch. Members of both chambers serve 5-year terms.

Civil laws in Bhutan have been influenced by traditional Buddhist law. Village heads resolve minor civil disputes. The principal trial courts are a High Court and district courts; the king is the final, highest level of appeal in Bhutan.

Bhutan joined the UN in 1971. It receives most of its foreign aid for development from India and from international organizations such as the Asian Development Bank and the UN. India is Bhutan’s de facto military protector and weapons supplier. It also provides advanced training to the Bhutan Army, which numbers about 6,000. Bhutan pays India an annual sum in return for these services.

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