GAVI award

November 25, 2009Posted inHealth
“I think I know why babies today hardly cry,” my father remarked as he bounced his granddaughter on his knee, ten years ago. “They hardly fall ill – they are vaccinated!” Father was right. And, GAVI, which recently honoured 15 low-income countries for excelling in child health and immunization, thinks so too. They recognized Bhutan for achieving the highest coverage of immunization. That Bhutan has achieved 95% immunization coverage is commendable. After all, we are a poor country with a scattered population, much of which lives in remote, hard-to-reach areas. Just consider the challenges involved in achieving such high…

Royal decree

November 24, 2009Posted inJustice, Monarchy
I see two important points in His Majesty the King’s kasho instituting the Royal Commission and outlining the process to establish the first Supreme Court of Bhutan. The first is that the delay in establishing the Supreme Court was deliberate. It was meant to make the “… new democratic institutions learn to work together in harmony, and with unity of purpose, in the interest of the Nation and People.” The second is that, His Majesty the King has devolved his authority and created an even more transparent process of establishing the Supreme Court. Though Article 21, Section 4 of…

Hidden beauty

November 23, 2009Posted inNature
Yesterday, on my way back from Haa, I stopped at Chelela (altitude about 3,900 meters) to see the sun set over our western mountain ranges. These mountains above the Haa valley offer some of the best, yet least known, treks in our country. They include a trek to the legendary lake Nub Tshonapatra, which I hope to revisit and write about in 2010. UPDATE: Lampenda Chuup's comment reminds me of the beauty that can be seen in and from those mountains. So I've changed the title from "Hidden treks" to the more appropriate "Hidden beauty".

Biking in Bhutan

November 23, 2009Posted inPeople
I’ve recently started cycling again. So I was happy to bump into Kuenga Wangchuk, Pasang, Singye Tshering, Amier Mongar and Nima Palden. Kuenga is a bike technician with Yu Druk, a tour company that specializes in and promotes cycling in Bhutan. Pasang owns a tour company, Singye and Nima are guides, and Amier is a bar tender at Bhutan Suites. The five friends bike together as often as possible, but at least every weekend. Most of their routes are around Thimphu. To Tango Monastery, for example. Or to Kuenselphodrang. And, sometimes, to Sangaygang from where there’s a lovely 5…

Helping hands

November 23, 2009Posted inMonarchy
. . . 9th November, 2009: RBA soldiers dismantling a house that had been damaged by the earthquake in Durung, Trashigang. . . . . . 22nd November, 2009: RBA soldiers dismantling a house that had been damaged by the fire in Haa town. . . From Trashigang in the east, to Haa in the west, the Royal Bhutan Army has played a crucial role in providing relief to the victims of disasters. They dismantled houses that were dangerously damaged by the calamities, they built temporary shelters, and, perhaps most importantly, they provided a sense of security. Now they…

Giving thanks

November 20, 2009Posted inLegislature, Monarchy
This week’s banner features members of parliament, in front of the Gyalyog Tshokhang, preparing to receive His Majesty the King to the inaugural ceremony of the fourth session of the Parliament. A quick translation of my statement thanking His Majesty the King follows: …………………………………………………….............…………………………………… A series of natural disasters have ravaged our country during the past 20 months. Nature’s four elements have created calamities throughout our country, in every dzongkhag, causing immeasurable problems for our country and our people. Recently, earthquakes, windstorms and fires have inflicted damage, and caused anxiety and hardship for the people living in the eastern…

Remote control

November 19, 2009Posted inMedia
So, BBS has not been permitted to broadcast live coverage of most of the proceedings of the fourth session of the National Assembly. Only the opening and closing ceremonies, and the discussions on the Anticorruption Commission’s annual report will be broadcast live. This is how it was in the National Assembly’s third session. And, like then, I am still concerned that the independence and freedom of the nation’s only TV station is being compromised. But what I recently read in the Kuensel got me even more concerned. BBS’s general manager was quoted as saying: “MoIC wants us to submit…

Parliament’s fourth session

November 18, 2009Posted inLegislature
The winter session of the Parliament will begin on the 20th of November. It is expected to sit for three weeks. The agenda and documents for the fourth session were distributed earlier today. The National Assembly will discuss: Standards Bill of Bhutan, 2009 Royal Monetary Authority (Amendment) Bill of Bhutan, 2009 Tobacco Control Bill of Bhutan, 2009 Civil Service Bill of Bhutan, 2009 Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2009 Entitlement and Service Conditions Bill for the Holders of Constitutional Offices of Bhutan, 2009 Anticorruption Report, 2009 SAARC Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters If you have comments on these documents,…

Haa fire

November 18, 2009Posted inTowns
Another disaster has struck, this time in Haa. Earlier today, a fire raged through the upper market in Haa. Four houses were totally destroyed before the fire was bought under control. Residents suspect that the fire was caused by electrical problems. By mid-afternoon, His Majesty the King was already in Haa. Photo credit: BBS

Gifted Sonam

November 11, 2009Posted inEconomy, Monarchy
Ever so often, a reader will leave a comment that is much more powerful and important than the original entry. I am delighted every time that happens. Someone called “Invisible” left such a comment to my last entry, “Farmhouse lunch.” The comment is insightful, thought provoking, and inspiring. So, if you haven’t already read Invisible’s response about SMEs and jobs for the “invisible people”, I encourage you to do so. “If you ‘genuinely’ believed in Aum Sonam, enjoyed her lunch, and saw a business potential in it…” advised Invisible, “…let it give you inspiration, reason, and energy to drive…

Farmhouse lunch

November 8, 2009Posted inEconomy, People
We had lunch today at Aum Sonam’s house. Aum Sonam, who was a member of the last National Assembly before the introduction of parliamentary democracy, served us a sumptuous meal of kharang, sikam, aima datsi, mushrooms, farm eggs, cottage cheese and papaya. I enjoyed Aum Sonam’s cooking thoroughly. It was clean, wholesome and traditional. So I asked her if she would be willing to make lunch for other travelers between Bumthang and Mongar or Trashigang. Her answer was “yes!” quickly qualified by “but they should call me first”. Her farmhouse is located among Thidanbi’s bucolic paddy fields about five…

Kaila’s

November 8, 2009Posted inPeople
I’m in Bumthang en route to Eastern Bhutan. And, like most public servants passing through Bumthang, I’m staying at Kaila’s Guest House. Kaila Tamang, originally from Katmandu, came to Bhutan in 1969 to cook for Fritz Maurer, a Swiss cheese-maker. He worked for Mr Maurer in Sha Gogona and in Chamkhar before joining the logging center at Lamai Goenpa as the head cook. When, in 1984, Mr Maurer built the Swiss Guest House, Kaila was recruited to manage the guest house. He worked there for 10 years till, in 1994, he bought an acre of land in Chamkhar (for…

Misleading numbers

November 6, 2009Posted inEconomy
The other day Kuensel reported that: Bhutan’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth slumped to one of its lowest at 5 percent in 2008 despite the Druk Phuensum Tshogpa’s target of achieving a 9 percent growth rate annually. To this Dr Saamdu Chetri, the head of good governance section in the cabinet secretariat and DPT party member, was quoted as saying: “With inflation going up to 9.2 percent and a global recession, a growth rate of five percent is still an achievement.” There’s no doubt that the recent global recession would have constrained economic growth. So there could be some…

Best commercial flight?

November 5, 2009Posted inGeneral
Wanderlust, a leading British travel magazine, has rated Paro International Airport as the world’s second best airport to fly into, behind Singapore’s Changi International Airport. That is good news. But what about the world’s best commercial flight route? Have you seen a ranking of the world’s best regular commercial flight routes? I haven’t. And, I’m not sure that such a ranking exists. But if there was one, I’m certain that Druk Air’s Paro – Katmandu sector would win hands down. Consider the pilot’s typical greeting to passengers traveling on that sector: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard this Druk Air…

Counting sheep

November 5, 2009Posted inMiscellaneous
A reader sent me this joke in response to my last entry about McKinsey’s recommendations on our tourism sector. A guy is driving around in his Porsche in the countryside. He stops outside a field full of sheep, walks up to the shepherd and says "I've got an offer. I'll guess how many sheep you've got in this field, and if I guess right, I get to take a sheep with me, and if I guess wrong, you get my car." Shepherd thinks he's on to a sure thing and agrees. "137" says the driver."Damn me, you're right." says…