National News

…𝑩𝒉𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒏’𝒔 𝑾𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝑭𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝑴𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒔 𝑨𝒎𝒊𝒅 𝑮𝒍𝒐𝒃𝒂𝒍 𝑩𝒊𝒐𝒅𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝑪𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒔, 𝑫𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑺𝒖𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔 By Yeshey LhadonThe World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has sounded a dire warning through its Living Planet Report (LPR) 2024, revealing a catastrophic 73 percent decline in the average size of monitored wildlife populations from 1970 to 2020. This sharp decline indicates the growing threats posed by climate change, …

…𝑭𝒐𝒄𝒖𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝑺𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝑯𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝑨𝒅𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝑮𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑴𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑯𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉 𝑵𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒔 By Lhendup WangmoAs Bhutan grapples with the rising challenge of mental health issues, the government has outlined a comprehensive approach to tackling the problem, under the leadership of Health Minister, Lyonpo Tandin Wangchuk. During the 8th Meet the Press, the minister emphasized that mental health …

…𝑵𝒖 8.3 𝑴𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑫𝒊𝒔𝒃𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒔 𝑶𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝑨𝒅𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝑳𝒐𝒂𝒏 𝑨𝒑𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 By Lhendup Wangmo Chencho Tshering, the Chief Planning Officer of the Ministry of Finance, shared that a total of 193 applications for concessional loans have been received from participating financial institutions under the Economic Stimulus Plan (ESP). So far, Nu 8.3 million has been sanctioned, with 12 projects receiving approval. …

…𝑯𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒃𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝒊𝒏 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒛𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑩𝒉𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒏’𝒔 𝒂𝒎𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒈𝒐𝒂𝒍𝒔, 𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒍𝒖𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝑴𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝑪𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒍 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎 By Yeshey Lhadon At the recent Bhutan Innovation Forum, a distinguished panel of experts engaged in a thought-provoking discussion on leadership’s pivotal role in shaping Bhutan’s ongoing transformation. The session brought together four accomplished figures in leadership Keith …

…𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒂𝒏 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒄 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒆𝒏𝒗𝒊𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔 By Yeshey Lhadon As Bhutan navigates the complexities of economic growth and environmental stewardship, a Bhutan Innovation Forum (BIF) spotlighted the critical role of sustainable mining practices in achieving a balance between resource extraction and long-term development. The discussion featured Robert Friedland, Founder of Ivanhoe …

…𝑨𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒉𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝑰𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒖𝒎, 𝑺𝒆𝒓𝒈 𝑩𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒅𝒗𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒅𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔. By Yeshey Lhadon In an age where rapid technological advancements are reshaping our understanding of the world, scientists stand as indispensable pillars of society. Their role transcends mere research; they ensure a continuous flow of knowledge through rigorous inquiry, education, and innovative technology. …

…𝑭𝒐𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒏 𝒉𝒚𝒅𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓, 𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒂𝒓, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒆𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒄𝒆𝒔 By Yeshey Lhadon Bhutan Innovation Forum hosted the panel discussion among the key figures namely Chhewang Rinzin, Managing Director of Druk Green Power Corporation, Mertin Raiser, Vice President for South Asia at the World Bank Group, and Rod Phillips, Vice Chair of Canaccord Genuity, experts delved into Bhutan’s bold plans to transform its …

…𝑳𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝑰𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑬𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝑮𝒍𝒐𝒃𝒂𝒍 𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒔 By Yeshey Lhadon International business leaders, entrepreneurs, and experts gathered to discuss how Bhutan can unlock new business opportunities and foster economic growth at Dungkar Dzong in Paro during Bhutan Innovation Forum. Titled “Identifying New Business Opportunities in Bhutan,” the session was moderated by Tenzin Yonten and featured a panel of distinguished …

…“𝑶𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒔 𝒘𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝑩𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒌-𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒄𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒚. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆𝒇𝒖𝒍 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂 𝒔𝒚𝒎𝒃𝒐𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆’𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒚.” By Kezang Choden The Royal Society for Protection of Nature (RSPN), in collaboration with local hoteliers, conducted roost maintenance in Phobjikha Valley early this week. This annual initiative is aimed at …

…𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗲𝗻𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗕𝗵𝘂𝘁𝗮𝗻’𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝘂𝘁 𝗲𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 By Yeshey Lhadon A recent panel discussion on carbon finance has ignited conversations about Bhutan’s potential to pioneer carbon-linked bonds, a financial instrument that could significantly accelerate the nation’s transition to renewable energy while helping the world reduce carbon emissions. The …