Bhutan and Gross National Happiness
New Divisional Head Chris Lee from Glamorgan Business School, recently visited Bhutan for the first time to develop the possibility of delivering the MSc Strategic Procurement Management in conjunction with the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply.
The visit included meetings with the Royal Institute of Management (Bhutan), the Royal University of Bhutan, the Minister of Labour at the Royal Government of Bhutan and the Project Monitoring and Evaluation Committee (PMEC), to scope the potential and feasibility of the delivery of a master’s programme in procurement to the Bhutan public sector from 2012/13 onwards.
Chris also dicussed the possibility of other partnership activities, such as student and staff exchanges and joint research activities, capacity and capability development of master’s programmes at Royal Institute of Management, he said:
“In many ways Bhutan is similiar to Wales, they share the dragon emblem with the Welsh which they call ‘druk’ and they have their own language as well as being able to speak fluent English. The countryside is also very similar to the landscapes in Wales, it’s a very mountainous country with lots of farms, and the Bhutanese even celebrate a historical festival that is similiar to the annual Welsh Eisteddfod.”
The staple industry in Bhutan is the public sector, and the Royal Government is the main employer and therefore the key contributor to the social and economic welfare of the Kingdom. There are small private retail outlets and small businesses, but no large multi-national organisations as in the UK, Lee further adds:
“The culture and ideology of Bhutan is underpinned by the traditional measure and quest for GNH – i.e. Gross National Happiness, although the country appears to struggle economically and socially. The Royal Government of Bhutan views Government procurement as the main catalyst for the future economic and social development of Bhutan, most especially through a sustainable small to medium enterprise sector. Procurement and supply chain activities, plus international partnerships with private and public sector organisations and academic institutions (such as the University of Glamorgan) is essential for the Government to deliver its aspiration for transformational change in Bhutan, but without conflicting with “Gross National Happiness”.”
For more information about Glamorgan Business School’s postgraduate programmes please visit: postgraduate study.