Policy Poverty: Will it still stand a sacrosanct rubric?

Bhutan has survived between the two global economic giants. Despite being a landlocked economy with access to the market in the south, our economy has been performing much better than some of the countries in the Latin America. While the economic growth has remained at 5-7 % over some years, the World Bank has, at one pointin time, projected the growth at 11%, one of the highest in South Asia.

 

By this token, it is fair to believe that our economic development and related policies are good enough to foster greater growth in the coming years, especially, with the 21^st century economic roadmap at the helm of all policies that would direct our actions and thoughts for greater and holistic growth.

 

However, our policies also are faced with a kind of poverty that could bind our economic development intent and growth. The policy poverty may have been born from the complete disconnect between drafter, implementer, regulator, and those who are guided by the policies.

 

For instance, the agriculture and marketing policy is drafted by well-educated policy makers well guided by a set of specialists who holds doctoral degree in agriculture and related fields. The policy debated in the forum where the Minister of Agriculture and Forests alone defends the other members of the forum. In the course of drafting the policy, these officials visit Japan, Korea, and Switzerland to see the best practices. Officials from the Dzongkhags are sent to Nepal, Philippines and India to see how the policy is being implemented effectively. On fact check, we find these cohorts of officials never adopted a kitchen garden. Our farmers are taken to Wengkhar, Bumthang and Paro to let them see what the fellow farmers in these places are growing despite knowing there is nothing different from what they already know.

 

Finally, the poor farmers, who have to put their hands into the soil, who have to grow resistant to all kinds of weathers of four seasons and who have to face the brunt of all deficiencies. And whenever the market runs low on agriculture produces, everyone blames the agrarian society for risking their lives and food security. Everyone is happy to make farmers the punching bag without realizing that growing food in the field is completely different from growing the same food in the computer screen. And yet, we talk about food sovereignty over food security.

 

Will the 21^st century economic roadmap bring a paradigm shift to mindset reversion? Can Bhutan find a better means to foster greater change to how we do things? Where do we begin? In the computer or in the kitchen garden? Would this policy poverty trap undo the Agenda 21?

 

This article is earlier published in the Sunday Issue of The Journalist.

Disclaimer: All views expressed are my personal opinion and do not represent views of any entity associated with me.