THIMPHU (Bhutan): Bhutanese election officials counted votes on Tuesday after polls dominated by serious economic challenges that call into question the Himalayan kingdom’s longstanding policy of prioritising “Gross National Happiness” over growth.
Both parties contesting the vote are committed to a constitutionally enshrined philosophy of a government that measures its success by the “happiness and well-being of the people”.
Some voters had to trek for days to cast their ballots in the landlocked mountain nation of about 800,000 people, similar in area to Switzerland.
Provisional results for individual constituencies are expected to begin to be released late Tuesday but, with many remote polling stations, full official results will be announced on Wednesday.
Foremost in the minds of many are the struggles facing the kingdom’s younger generation, with chronic youth unemployment and a brain drain.
“Taking part in elections is about securing a better future for us,” said 22-year-old student Ugyen Tshering, after voting in the chilly mountain air in the capital Thimphu, with Buddhist prayer flags fluttering in the background.
Bhutan’s youth unemployment rate stands at 29 percent, according to the World Bank, while economic growth has sputtered along at an average of 1.7 percent over the past five years.
“Job opportunities in Bhutan are scarce and the new government should focus on solving this, so young people don’t leave abroad for greener pastures,” Tshering added.
Young citizens searching for better financial and educational opportunities abroad have left in record numbers since the last elections, with Australia as their top destination.
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