Country of happy people. Government structure of Bhutan The happiest countries in the world

12.08.2023

The Kingdom of Bhutan is one of the most mysterious countries on our planet. This state is located between India and China, on the southern slope of the Great Himalayan Range, which rises to an altitude of 7000 meters above sea level.

Depending on the altitude, Bhutan has different climatic zones, from highlands to subtropical jungles.

The Bhutanese themselves call their country Druk Yul or Druk Tsenden, which translated means “the country of the thunder dragon.”

For many centuries, the country was reliably isolated by the Himalayas from the outside world, which allowed a unique, authentic culture to be preserved here. Tantric Buddhism is declared the official religion and “spiritual heritage” of Bhutan.

Ministry of Happiness

The government of Bhutan, considering it absurd to rely on such financial indicators as Gross National Product (GDP) when determining the level of well-being of the country, created the Ministry of Happiness.

The government of this country established the state “Commission for General National Happiness” (Gross National Happiness Commission) headed by the Prime Minister.

The government declared the main goal to be the pursuit of happiness for each of its citizens. This is even enshrined in Article 9 of the Bhutanese Constitution. When determining the development strategy of the state, the leadership of this country relies on such an indicator as the “Index of National Happiness” - Gross National Happiness.

The Ministry of Happiness held several international conferences, to which many Western economists were invited (including Nobel laureates in economics), with the aim of developing methods for calculating the National Happiness Index, based on a combination of the economic situation in the country and the life satisfaction of the population. The smile of the population is one of the indicators in the developed formulas.

Are you happy?

The question “Are you happy?” asked during population censuses. In the last census in 2005, 45.2% of the population answered this question “very happy”, 51.6% “happy”, and only 3.3% “not very happy”.

What else is characteristic of a country that considers the happiness of the population to be a category of economic development?

Respect for traditions

The most noticeable difference is that Bhutan carefully guards its age-old cultural traditions. Sometimes it’s funny, for example, one of the laws requires Bhutanese to wear national clothes.

Tourism and mountaineering are limited in the country. Expensive, non-extendable visas: 2 weeks - $100. Any movement around the country outside the capital, only in organized groups, with an official guide.

Until the end of the 20th century, television was banned in the country; in 1999, Bhutan became the last country on the planet to begin television broadcasting - when the only state television channel began operating.

There is virtually no corruption in Bhutan. In the 2006 Transparency International ranking, Bhutan ranks 32nd in the world for corruption, behind only Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau and the UAE in Asia.

Lawyers are outlawed here! According to the king’s decree: “Do not allow people into the courtroom who are capable of making black white and white black.”

The King of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk, is the youngest monarch in the world, (born 1980) very popular in his country and abroad. All over Asia, and not only in it, there are clubs for fans of the young monarch, from India to Indonesia, brochures and posters dedicated to him are sold everywhere, and several societies of girls in love with him operate on the Internet. The royal wedding raised Bhutan's happiness index by several points.

His Majesty is fighting for the health of his subjects - Bhutan has become the only country in the world where smoking is prohibited throughout its territory.

The government is actively concerned about the environment (half of Bhutan's territory has been declared national parks, in which, for example, hunting is prohibited), for this reason, industrial development is not included in the plans of the Bhutanese authorities.

Bhutan is an agricultural country. For more than 80% of the population, agriculture and forestry are the main source of income. The main export products are organic rice, fruits and electricity generated by hydroelectric power plants.

The country is still very little studied, and vast territories in the south and central part are completely undeveloped by people and represent huge reserves with amazing flora and fauna. Bhutan has preserved all this for very simple reasons - hunting is prohibited and deforestation is practically not carried out. The kingdom is fully self-sufficient in food and clothing. At the same time, almost the entire population wears national clothes - kho.

Life of people

People live in large and beautiful two- or three-story houses scattered along the mountain slopes along small valleys. There are not many cities, but the largest is Thimphu, which is also the residence of the king and the capital and has about 40 thousand people.

There are about 200 dzong monasteries on the territory of the kingdom, some of which were built back in the 7th century. King of Tibet Songsten Gampo. For several centuries they served as a refuge from Tibetan invaders and wild animals. Over time, settlements arose around the dzongs.

This is a truly amazing country without hunger and crime, where people live in joy, without knowing wars and poverty. The Bhutanese themselves, of whom, unlike other countries in the region, are quite small, are open, hospitable, completely uncorrupted by the modern world and carefully preserve their unique culture.

Despite the fact that the early history of Bhutan is still poorly understood, scientists, through archaeological excavations and examining stone tools, have come to the conclusion that civilization existed in the territory of modern Bhutan as early as 2000 BC. Although there is almost no written evidence of ancient times. The history of the country is known mainly in episodes, due to the fact that in 1827 the largest library in the then capital of Bhutan, Punakha, burned down. Historical events are now inseparable from legends.

History milestones:

III century BC e. - The Thepu tribes lived on the territory of Bhutan.

9th century - the beginning of the settlement of the country by Tibetan tribes.

XVI century - emergence of an independent Bhutanese state.

XIX century - establishment of British control over the country.

1949 - the country gained independence.

Source: veda-journal.ru

The Ministry of Happiness was created by the Government of Bhutan, which considered it absurd to rely on financial indicators (GDP) as the level of well-being of the country. The Bhutanese leadership is guided by the Gross National Happiness Index. The Nationwide Happiness Index is seen as a key element in building an economy for the Kingdom of Bhutan that is consistent with Buddhist spiritual values.

The Ministry of Happiness held several international conferences, to which many Western economists were invited (including Nobel laureates in economics), with the aim of developing methods for calculating the NHI (National Happiness Index) based on a combination of the economic situation in the country and the life satisfaction of the population.

The smile of the population is one of the indicators in the developed formulas.

What else is characteristic of a country that considers the happiness of the population to be a category of economic development? This information is worth spreading.

The most noticeable difference is that Bhutan carefully protects its age-old cultural traditions. Sometimes it’s funny: for example, one of the laws requires Bhutanese to wear national clothes. Tourism and mountaineering are limited in the country. Expensive, non-extendable visas: 2 weeks - $100. Any travel around the country outside the capital only in organized groups with an official guide. Until the end of the 20th century, television was banned in the country; in 1999, Bhutan became the last country on the planet to begin television broadcasting, when the only state television channel began operating

There is virtually no corruption in Bhutan. In the 2006 Transparency International ranking, Bhutan ranks 32nd in the world for corruption, behind only Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau and the UAE in Asia.

Lawyers are illegal! According to the king’s decree: “Do not allow people into the courtroom who can make black white and white black.”

The King of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, the youngest monarch in the world (born 1980), is very popular at home and abroad. Throughout Asia, and not only in it, there are clubs for fans of the young monarch, from India to Indonesia, brochures and posters dedicated to him are sold everywhere, and several societies of girls in love with him operate on the Internet. The royal wedding raised Bhutan's happiness index by several points.

His Majesty is fighting for the health of his subjects - Bhutan has become the only country in the world where smoking is prohibited throughout its territory.

And the streets are very clean. Compared to neighboring countries - simply ideal cleanliness! Garbage is collected separately here! Food waste is collected in green containers, plastic, glass and metal in blue. As I already said, they are very concerned about the environment here, so garbage is recycled and not scattered on the side of the roads, as in Nepal or India.

Bhutan is an agricultural country. For more than 80% of the population, agriculture and forestry are the main source of income. There are practically no large industrial enterprises in the kingdom. There are several wood processing and food industry enterprises

The first penetration of globalization is the Coca-Cola bottling plant. The main export products are organic rice, fruits and electricity generated by hydroelectric power plants.

Perhaps this is a country with an amazing culture for us, an incomprehensible rhythm of life and truly happiness. It is known to be in the dark.

The Kingdom of Bhutan is a small state, lost in the Himalayas between India and China, one of the most rarely visited countries in South Asia. In 2016, only 209 thousand visitors visited here. The uniqueness of nature and exotic culture evoke in visitors the feeling of discoverers of these lands.

It's not easy to get here. There is only one airport, Paro, where takeoff and landing is considered one of the most difficult. Therefore, only a dozen pilots are licensed to fly here.

To reach even more remote corners of the country, such as the Laya Valley, located at an altitude of 4000 meters, you need to take a Royal Air Service helicopter.

The Kingdom’s policy is aimed at ensuring that one day of a tourist’s stay here brings at least 200 US dollars, which includes the cost of accommodation, food, transportation, guides, etc. The number of tourists is also limited by the availability of a small number of hotel rooms. All funds go towards preserving the nature of this unique place.

One of the country's iconic attractions is the Tiger's Nest Monastery, which can only be reached by climbing for two hours, but is worth every step to see it.

In another monastery, Punakha Dzong, there is a monk who has been meditating for 400 years, but only King Jigme and the abbot of the monastery can see him.

It is also one of the most sparsely populated countries in the region (second only to the Maldives). It is home to only 743 thousand inhabitants who speak 25 different languages. For a long time, the state adhered to a policy of complete cultural and economic isolation, which made it possible to fully preserve its independence and identity. All citizens are required to wear folk uniforms. It is forbidden to kill animals, and therefore almost all Bhutanese are vegetarians. And all the vegetables and fruits here are environmentally friendly, since the import of chemicals is prohibited.

History of the country

Stone tools, weapons, elephants and stone structures indicate that these places were inhabited two millennia BC. In the ancient chronicles of Tibet and Bhutan, the first state formation is referred to as Lhomon (“Southern Darkness”) and Monyul (“Dark Land,” a reference to the Monpa, the name of the indigenous people of Bhutan). Little is known about the country's early history, as a fire in 1827 in the ancient capital of Punakha destroyed most records.

Until the early 17th century, the state consisted of small warring principalities, when they were united by a warlord and Lama Ngawang Namgyel (Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyel), who fled here from religious persecution in Tibet. He also built a network of impregnable dzongs (fortresses) to protect against Tibetan troops.

The first Europeans to visit here were the Portuguese Jesuits Stefan Cacella and João Cabral. Arriving here in 1627, they presented the ruler Ngawang Namgyal with a gun, a telescope and offered their services to wage war with Tibet, but he rejected it. After staying at Chagri Monastery for eight months, Katsela wrote an account of his journey - the only remaining testimony about the great Ngawang Namgyal.

Ministry of Happiness

The official religion of the country is Tantric Buddhism, so the main goal of the government, enshrined in the national Constitution, is the happiness of its citizens. The country is also unique in that only here there is a Ministry of Happiness, and efficiency is measured not by the Gross National Product, but by the Gross National Happiness. In the latest survey, 45% of residents said they were very happy, 51% were happy, and only 3% were not very happy.

Butane- the only country in the world where there is Ministry of Happiness, and Tantric Buddhism was proclaimed the official religion. According to a population survey, only 3% of residents are not very happy, all the rest are quite satisfied with their lives. As the example of this country shows, poverty does not always mean unhappiness, and the presence of modern goods is not the only path to prosperity.

Bhutan's population is small - about 700 thousand people. The country is located in the Himalayas; according to one version, the toponym Bhutan sounds like “high mountains” in Sanskrit. Geographically, Bhutan is located between India and China.

For many years, Bhutan was an absolutely closed country, and only in 1971, after joining the UN, did the first foreign journalists come here. Tourism gradually began to develop; to this day, everyone entering the country pays a fairly high fee, and these fees constitute a significant part of government revenue.

Television and the Internet appeared in Bhutan only in 2002, the Internet even later. The external isolation of the country has had a beneficial effect on the preservation of national traditions. Thus, in Bhutan equality is observed and in some areas women have even greater rights than men. For example, the right to land always remains with the mother of the clan. The main occupation in Bhutan is farming; both men and women work in the agricultural sector. Families also do housework together.

Religion occupies a special place in the life of the Bhutanese; many boys from the age of six study in monasteries; the harshest conditions are for those who go to monasteries located high in the mountains. There, away from the bustle of the world, young men devote themselves to spiritual practices. From time to time, each monk goes into hermitage, the period of solitude is a multiple of three - three days, weeks, months or even a year. Both men and women can join monasteries, but the number of nuns is much smaller.

The “Europeanization” of Bhutan began to take place gradually after Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk became king. He was educated at Oxford and has progressive views on the path of development the country should take.

Bhutan is the only state in the world whose official religion, “spiritual heritage,” is declared to be Tantric Buddhism. Therefore, the government declares that its main goal is the desire for the happiness of each of its citizens; this is enshrined in Article 9 of the Constitution. On August 24, 2008, the state “Gross National Happiness Commission” was created, headed by the Prime Minister. The question “Are you happy?” asked during population censuses. In the last census in 2005, 45.2% of the population answered this question “very happy”, 51.6% “happy”, and only 3.3% “not very happy”.

Interestingly, the generally accepted concept of gross domestic product has been replaced in Bhutan by a more relevant indicator - “gross national happiness”. This is the only state in the world in which there is a Ministry of Happiness, thus placing happiness at the forefront of national policy.

It is forbidden to kill animals here, and therefore almost everyone is vegetarian. The import of chemical fertilizers is prohibited here, and everything that grows on this land is itself environmentally friendly. Another interesting feature of this state is that forests in Bhutan are not cut down, but rather planted. It is not enough to say that this is a country of Buddhism, it is a country of purity and enlightenment. The country is still very little studied, and vast territories in the south and central part are completely undeveloped by people and represent huge reserves with amazing flora and fauna. Bhutan has preserved all this for very simple reasons - hunting is prohibited and deforestation is practically not carried out. The kingdom is fully self-sufficient in food and clothing. At the same time, almost the entire population wears national clothes - kho.

About Bhutan visa

The visa is issued only to organized tourists traveling in accordance with programs developed by Bhutanese tour operators accredited by the Department of Tourism of Bhutan, or to persons traveling to Bhutan at the invitation of government organizations. The Kingdom of Bhutan does not provide visas for individual travelers. All visas are processed through the Bhutan Tourism Corporation (BTCL). Traveling around the country beyond the scope of the program developed by the host party, or without the accompaniment of a guide, is prohibited.

The visa fee is $20 and will be collected in US dollars directly at the Bhutan airport.

Tourists are prohibited from accessing the area of large monasteries and the territory of most nature reserves. Rock climbing is also prohibited in Bhutan.