GNH, Forests - Readings

1. PM's keynote address at the Brazil GNH Conference (Cabinet Secretariat)
2. PM's keynote address on "Cultivating Good Water" in Brazil (Cabinet Secretariat)
3. A realisation that we have some way to go in terms of GNH (Kuensel)
4. Protecting the Forests, In Hopes of payback (NYT) 
5. Measuring What Matters (Economist)

Expensive Empty Spaces

I visited a friend in his office last week. Apart from his table and the guest chairs, he had a file rack and a printer. I thought that his office room would be more well utilised if he had two more individuals to share the room with. He is guilty of wasting Government resources. But he isn't the only one. This is common in many of our offices especially in Thimphu.

Whatever the reasons - unused and empty spaces are a waste of space and resources. In addition it costs a a lot of money for their maintenance and upkeep. We would spend close to Nu 5.5 billion which is almost one-fifths of the total budget outlay this year alone on these. Somebody might say that this also covers vehicles and office equipment - but I reply that they are no different. They are either misused or not used optimally.

I see opportunities for our Government to carry out an audit of workspace utilisation and put in measures to ensure that our office buildings (including the equipments) are optimally used.. Start off from the bosses (I hear that some of them have altar rooms). This will give the initiative credibility and positively impact everybody including those who have to accommodate a new colleague or share some resources like the printer.

But for some time, the Government shouldn't give into any proposals of grand designs from new departments or agencies.

Finding sources of growth

As the graphs below show our projected GDP growth for the 10th five year plan is 7.7%. The Government's target is 9% since this growth would enable us to achieve our targeted levels of poverty reduction.

Figure - 4.1 (from the 2009-2010 Budget Report 54)

Chart 4.1 (10th Plan Document Vol 1, Page 61)

So how realistic are the chances that our economy will grow by at least 7.7% in the next four years?

Our economy grew only by 5% in 2008 - an evidence that we are not insulated from any global events and any arguments against liberalisation and our integration with the global trading system doesn't hold water. We have been negotiating with the WTO for sometime now and our markets are opening up to foreign investments. Our ability to grow and derive benefits from globalisation and increased competition will depend on how our Government manages this process in the next few years.

There is a definite need to vitalise our economy by encouraging entrepreneuship and growth of SMEs. We need no measurements to determine that we are not very productive. The Government should drive initiatives to improve our productivity levels and make our products and services competitive within and outside Bhutan. There will be little growth without these improvements. Initiatives like the Enterprise Act and the new economic policy should be delievered with a greater urgency in shorter turnaround times to have any meaningful impact.

Of course - we can always have a peak in our GDP growth like in 2007 (19.7%) every once in a while when we commission a hydroelectric project. But depending on one sector is too risky and 11 too many. It is time that we identify four to six (potential) strengths as an economy and leverage them.  There is a better chance that we can become a world class player in those areas which will ensure us sustainable growth and development.

The Agenda Behind Closed Doors

So what is the agenda behind the doors?

During this session of the NA, the following bills will be discussed and passed -

• The Civil Service Bill 2009 - Revised since the last session of the NA, this bill will provide the legal framework for an independent, apolitical and highly efficient civil service in Bhutan.
  

• The Standards Bill 2009 - Enabling the Government to establish an infrastructure to develop standards for goods and services, and in the long run ensure their quality.

• The  Royal Monetary Authority Bill 2009

• The Tobacco Control Bill 2009
  

• Entitlement and Service Condition Bill for the Holders of Constitutional Offices of Bhutan, 2009
  

• Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2009

Also on the agenda is to ratify the SAARC Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters. Of interest will be the questions to the Prime Minister and the different ministries. Since there are no specific agenda on disasters and various economic reforms (FDI, etc.), I hope these will be adequately covered in the Q&A.

The Anti-Corruption Annual Report will be presented on 2nd December. By the way - we have become more corrupt and are now ranked 49 in the latest edition of the Corruptions Perceptions Index published by the Transparency International.

In addition there will be discussions on the only two questions submitted by the local government.

Our Camera Shy MPs

It insults my common sense and intelligence when one of our MPs say that live TV coverage doesn't allow NA members to concentrate or contribute to the discussion of bills. Such absurdity must be false and it is worse than giving no reasons at all. This reminds me of a quote by Abraham Lincoln - ""Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt."

But if it is true - it seriously brings into question the capabilities of our MPs, and with or without TV, their contributions may not matter. I have always thought our MPs to be fairly well-informed and intelligent.

With very little common sense, one can see the benefits of live coverage -

• The people would be able to follow and understand the discussions on some of the bills.
  
• This is an opportunity to see their elected representatives contribute to the nation through debates and discussions - an integral process in any democracy
• Finally - also an opportunity for the MPs to demonstrate to their constituents that their trust and confidence aren't misplaced.
  

Whatever, such episodes embarrass me and also diminish the respect that I have for our elected representatives.

A selection of my recent readings

 -  Can Capitalism Survive (Ludvig Von Mises Institute)
 - Selling to the Bottom of the Pyramid - A conversation with C.K. Prahalad (Knowledge@Wharton)
 - How do entrepreneurs identify new ideas (Knowledge@Wharton)
 - Power can diminish perception and perspective (Kellogg Insight)
 - Some people find happiness in stress and risk (FT Management Blog)
 - Corporate Social Responsibility and Returns for the company (Random Rantings by Freek Vermeulen)

Rich Pickings and Beyond

Close to 1000 graduates will be writing the civil service examinations soon. In Bhutan, without any doubts, the civil service remains the preferred choice for many talented graduates. Recruitment is not a problem at all for the RCSC. But this is just the first step.

The challenges lie in how their talents and expectations are managed over the years. In the long run, opportunities for career development, professionalism and effective performance management often become more important than a secure routine job. These have an impact on their motivation and performance, and often lead to talent leaving the civil service - a growing problem.

RCSC has measures to address such issues but the real test and success would be to develop a model where no rules and regulations are required to retain talent. The position classification system provides some elements for such a model. What form and shape our civil service assumes in the near future will depend entirely on RCSC's ability to implement it.

Related Reading - 

A conversation starter on motivating people from McKinsey Quarterly

An excellent article on public-service careers in the Economist

and of course some of my past posts

Car Tax Again

We have been on this for more than a year. A proper conclusion in sight.

I guess not - 

Another car tax story today and more dithering from the Government. A clear demonstration of our incapability to get a proper handle on anything. We deserve less experiments and more tangible decisions. 

Related Posts - Of cars and information

Some Readings

From the Economist on our neighbours and promoting entrepreneurship  -

1. Himalayan Histrionics on the border disputes between India and China

2. India and Capital Flows

3. Schumpeter : On promoting entrepreneurship - Israel is the country to emulate.

What the Bhutan Times episode tells us

As new papers were established in the last few years, all of us celebrated the growth of media in Bhutan. And in all the frenzy and excitement, the papers seem to have forgotten that they are a business. With five papers and almost a stagnant readership, the competition for ad revenues and circulation is very intense - and it means tremendous pressure on the management of our media organisations.

I don't know if this contributed to the recent situation at Bhutan Times (BT) but I find it interesting for the following reasons -

1. A glimpse of leadership style of a Bhutanese CEO which is authoritarian. Authoritarian management is very much passé. Except in the military, it rarely works. It stifles creativity, de-motivates people and eventually leads to the failure of an organisation. We are in the 21st century and every manager has to change with the times.

2. BT seems to have failed to identify and manage their most valuable assets - the people who write for the paper. There may have been issues but good managers find ways to engage with them and manage their expectations. As a business, if you are unable to manage your key assets, success will elude you.

3. And the most interesting piece of communication from the CEO of BT - which demonstrates little respect for the stakeholders and little grasp and control of the situation/crisis. It doesn't help in any way.  A harangue like that is unprofessional and can only be tolerated in Bhutan. I definitely wouldn't work for somebody with a similar temperament.

However, in the whole process - the BT brand has been marred badly and I can only wish BT good luck. I remain most glad that I am not a shareholder of this paper.