National News

Karma Dorji, Thimphu Bhutan is set to implement a single-rate Goods and Services Tax (GST) from 2026, marking a significant fiscal reform. This development has generated a mixture of apprehension and optimism across the country. On one hand, the simplification of the tax regime could enhance efficiency, reduce administrative burdens, and potentially broaden the tax base. On the other hand, …

…𝒂 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒐𝒅𝒆𝒍𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝑩𝒉𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒙𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 By Tashi Tshewang Bhutan Fashion Week 2025 is set to open on October 27 in Thimphu, bringing together 54 models along with some of the country’s most promising designers, artists, and fashion creators for a week-long celebration of textile heritage and contemporary style. The national event, …

…𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒚’𝒔 𝒔𝒌𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒅𝒗𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒆𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒌𝒆𝒚 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒔 By Sonam Choden Bhutan, like much of South Asia, stands at a turning point. The World Bank’s latest South Asia Development Update: Jobs, AI, and Trade warns that artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a distant concept; it is already reshaping how people work, creating …

…𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒍, 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒍, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒐𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒃𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒄 𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 By Kinzang Lhamo Women’s participation in the labour force remains strikingly low at 55.8 percent compared with 74.2 percent among men, according to the Labour Force Survey (LFS) 2025, reflecting deep-rooted structural and cultural barriers that continue to limit women’s economic inclusion. Despite a generally high national …

…𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒚 𝒆𝒏𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒚𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒎𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒔-𝒃𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 By Sonam Choden Bhutan is enhancing its flood forecasting capabilities and strengthening regional resilience through major infrastructure and operational improvements, building on decades of collaboration with India under the Joint Expert Team (JET) framework. This long-standing partnership has created a robust platform for hydro-meteorological data sharing, flood forecasting, and …

…𝑩𝒉𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒊𝒕𝒔 𝑵𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝑫𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑰𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑬𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒖𝒎 𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒊𝒏, 𝒂𝒅𝒗𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒕𝒔 𝒗𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒅𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒚 By Kezang Choden Bhutan has successfully integrated its National Digital Identity (NDI) platform with the Ethereum blockchain, marking a significant milestone in the country’s pursuit of digital sovereignty. The move reflects bhutan’s commitment to adopting decentralized, …

…𝒓𝒂𝒑𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒔𝒚𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒐𝒈𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒂𝒃𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒖𝒎𝒂, 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒈𝒎𝒂, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕 By Lhendup WangmoSurvivors of rape and psychological abuse continue to endure invisible wounds long after their physical pain subsides. Many live with recurring trauma, depression, and fear, often battling the silence of society that chooses to judge rather than support. While legal systems …

…𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒆𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒍 𝒈𝒂𝒑𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒄𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒊𝒄 𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔 By Kinzang LhamoDespite overall stability in employment, the country continues to face challenges in creating sufficient opportunities for young jobseekers. The Third Quarter 2025 Labour Force Survey shows youth unemployment at 17.8 percent, more than five times the national rate of 3.2 percent. While overall employment appears stable, persistently …

…𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒕𝒔 𝒔𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒍𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔 By Leki Chungdon A temporary man-made bridge has been constructed in Denchukha, Samtse Dzongkhag, restoring a vital transport link for the local community. The new structure is expected to ease the movement of people, goods, and essential services that had been disrupted in …

While local fields remain uncultivated, data on agricultural imports reveal a stark reality: the nation’s reliance on external markets for staple cereals, edible oils, dairy products, and livestock-based foods continues to grow. Rice, maize, edible oils, milk and cream, cheese, and meat collectively constitute the bulk of imported agricultural commodities, sourced overwhelmingly from a single neighboring country. This heavy dependence …