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National Development Indicators. Thinley DORJI (Mr.) National Environment Commission www.nec.gov.bt Email: thinleydorji@nec.gov.bt. Bhutan – country background. Area = 38,394 sqkm Population = 0.7m Forest cover = 72% approx Arable land = 2.93% (1125 sqkm)
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National Development Indicators Thinley DORJI (Mr.) National Environment Commission www.nec.gov.bt Email: thinleydorji@nec.gov.bt
Bhutan – country background Area = 38,394 sqkm Population = 0.7m Forest cover = 72% approx Arable land = 2.93% (1125 sqkm) Government = Constitutional democracy
Gross National Happiness (GNH) & its Indicators • Historically Bhutan is referred to as “Lhomenjong” – valley of medicinal herbs • Development philosophy is centered around the Gross National Happiness (GNH) concept (the term coined by His Majesty the Fourth King of Bhutan is early 1970s) • GNH concept implies that SD to progress in a manner giving equal importance to non-economic aspects of wellbeing (good life)
Gross National Happiness (GNH) & its Indicators • Four pillars of GNH • Good governance • Sustainable socio-economic development • Cultural preservation • Environmental conservation • The four pillars of GNH are further classified into 9 domains with 33 indicators (124 variables)
GNH indicators • The 33indicators under the nine domains aim to emphasize different aspects of wellbeing and different ways of meeting these underlying human needs – the indicators are further composed of 124 variables • The indicators are: • Statistically reliable • Normatively important, • Accuracy across time • Policy relevance • Clarity of interpretation
GNH Index • GNH Index uses two types of thresholds • Sufficiency Thresholds: Shows how much a person needs in order to enjoy ‘sufficiency’ – how much is enough, normally, to create a happiness condition. Each of the 33 GNH indicators has a sufficiency threshold. • Happiness Threshold: A person who enjoys sufficiency in more than six or more of the 9 domains is considered happy.
What it does? • All government polices & plans are screened for GNH (mandatory mainstreaming of environmental issues into plans, policies & programs) • All development projects/activities should be aligned with the GNH approved/endorsed plans • Quarterly review is conducted to measure progress & status
What it does? • GNH survey conducted and based on the results measures are taken to improve the GNH Index. • GNH Index effectively classifies the population depending on the degree of happiness (in sufficiency) • Deeply happy (>77%) • Extensively happy (66% - 76%) • Narrowly happy (50% - 65%) • Unhappy (0 %– 49%)
GNP ≠ GNH “Gross National Happiness (GNH) measures the quality of a country in more holistic way [than GNP] and believes that the beneficial development of human society takes place when material and spiritual development occurs side by side to complement and reinforce each other”