BHUTAN

The land of Sustainable & Happiness

"Gross National Happiness (GNH) is more important than GDP.
Poverty must be eliminated through equitable and sustainable
growth" (Lyonpo Yeshey Zimba minister of works & human
settlement in the Kingdom of Bhutan)

Cultural richness

Vision Introduction
A green, Eco-friendly, sustainable, inclusive A small kingdom deep in the Eastern
and a high value tourism destination Himalayas with a population of about 790,000
(Bhutan Tourism Monitor, 2019) has made the promise to stay carbon neutrol
for all the time at the 2009 United Nations’
Copenhagen Summit and Bhutan kept its word
(Advita, 2022)
Bhutan requires at least 60% of its land to be
forested, about 70% of the country will be
covered in woodlands, which means Bhutan’s
70% is a net carbon sink to absorb carbon
dioxide (Advita, 2022).
It is undeveloped & has a rich forest cover,
hence most individuals work in agriculture/
forestry then release less than 2.5 million tons
of CO2 annually (Advita, 2022). (Adopted from Alamy, 2023)
(Adopted from Singh, 2018)

Bhutan’s Hydropower project

Induced Impact
Resource Efficiency

Became carbon-negative by
exporting majority of renewable
electricity from its hydroelectric (Adopted from Bhutan Tourism Monitor, 2019)
plants, harnessing energy to
India, utilising energy from the Induced Impact
fast flowing Himalayan rivers
(Advita, 2022) Indirect Impact
Direct Impact
(Adopted from Advita, 2022)

The 4 Pillars of Gross National

Happiness (Social Equility)

Environmental
Conservation
A significant contributor to the rise of
GNH
Providing essential services such as
energy & water
Having the potential to directly heal
individuals who arise pleasure from
vibrand colors and light, unpolluted
breezes, and the tranquilly of natural
sounds (GNH Centre Bhutan, 2022).
(Adopted fromBhutan Tourism Monitor, 2019)
Forest cover (Singh, 2018)
Fresh water withdrawals (Singh, 2018) Seasonality
Glacier (~10%) providing vital The peak tourist seasons are spring &
source of renewable water fall, as seen by monthly arrivals trends
(Bhutan Tourism Monitor, 2019)
(Adopted from gnhcentrebhutan, 2023)

Visitor Arrivals Growth Trends

Bhutan has been recorded arrivals for
last 7 years,while growth slowly in
2017 and 2018. In 2019, there were
315,599 incoming visitors, which
growth 15.14% from 2018. Number of
visitors exceeded 200,000 in 2016
(Bhutan Tourism Monitor, 2019)

MINIMUM DAILY PACKAGE RATE (MDPR)

For all leisure tourist paying minimum an (Adopted fromBhutan Tourism Monitor, 2019)
all inclusive package tour to Bhutan . The
all-inclusive service package included
accommodation, meals, guides, and Conclusion
ground transport throughout Bhutan) & Bhutan is not carbon neutral but carbon
Sustainable Development Fee (SDF) are negative, which absorbs more greenhouse
also included (Bhutan Tourism Monitor,
2019) gasses than it releases (Advita, 2022)
(Adopted fromBhutan Tourism Monitor, 2019)
 Reference page:
Alamy (2023). Bhutan Map hi-res stock photography and images, Alamy. Available at:
https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo/bhutan-map.html?sortBy=relevant (Accessed: 19 October 2023).
GNH Centre Bhutan (2022) Category: What is GNH?, GNH Centre Bhutan – A GNH organization in Bhutan.
Available at: https://www.gnhcentrebhutan.org/the-4-pillars-of-gnh/ (Accessed: 19 October 2023).
bhutan.un.org. (2023). Sustainable Development Goals | United Nations in Bhutan. [online] Available at:
https://bhutan.un.org/en/sdgs#:~:text=As%20a%20holistic%20and%20responsible [Accessed 19 Oct. 2023].
Bhutan Tourism Monitor. (2019). Available at:
https://www.tourism.gov.bt/uploads/attachment_files/tcb_TNiOKGow_BTM%202019.pdf.
Advita (2022). Bhutan: A Country That Gives More Than It Takes. [online] The Sustainability Project. Available
at: https://thesustainabilityproject.life/blog/2022/08/05/bhutan-carbon-
neutral/#:~:text=The%20Constitution%20of%20Bhutan%20mandates [Accessed 20 Oct. 2023].
Sharma, G. (2023) Bhutan cuts daily tourist fee by half to lure more visitors, Reuters. Available at:
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/bhutan-cuts-daily-tourist-fee-by-half-lure-more-visitors-2023-08-
26/#:~:text=Isolated%20for%20generations%2C%20Bhutan%20opened,the%20sanctity%20of%20its%20pe
aks. (Accessed: 21 October 2023).
Singh, P. (2018) Environmental sustainability: India vs. Bhutan, Renewable Energy and Environmental
Sustainability in India. Available at: https://www.iamrenew.com/knowledge-hub-sustainability/environmental-
sustainability-india-vs-bhutan/ (Accessed: 26 October 2023).