Why do we have a skewed labour market in Bhutan?

Bhutan has a very skewed labour market. Many people want to be civil servants and few people want to join the private sector. A skilled carpenter in a remote village earns a more decent living than a graduate of vocational training institutes and more and more college graduates remain unemployed. Civil service is a dream job for most of our youths and many semi-skilled VTI graduates languish in pre-employment camps set by our government. Why is this so? Perhaps, the ditorial below from Kuensel throws some light on this phenomenon.


The foreign trip racket

1 February, 2010 - For many Bhutanese, the number of foreign trips made in a year defines a good job. The opportunity to travel out of the country is an important factor in choosing a career and the civil service is the most desired place to work because it guarantees overseas trips.

As a developing country and with many development partners, Bhutanese officials are frequently on the move, either to attend seminars, workshops, or on study tour and for training. There is nothing wrong in officials going abroad. As late developers, Bhutanese need exposure through study tours to learn from the other’s experiences. Whether it is academic studies, practical training or professional exposure, they are a process of learning.
The problem is not so much the travel but the value and if relevant people are getting the opportunity.

There is no denying some disgruntled civil servants say that government officials travel abroad in place of relevant staff and that it is common practice across the bureaucracy. The underlying concern is that it is often the wrong people making the wrong trips for the wrong reasons.

It is an open secret and a third world mindset that we are often overwhelmed by the wrong attractions of training opportunities. The priority of education and training is forgotten when an opportunity arises. Nobody asks what they can learn from the training. The first reaction is always where is the training and who is funding it.

Again, there is nothing wrong in an official making a little extra money from the trips, but the danger is when officials, especially at decision-making levels, start grabbing plum opportunities. Why do senior officials need to pursue a master’s degree when they have already reached a late stage in their career?

Foreign trips had been an issue in the past and it will always be one. Still, since we talk of equity and, more importantly, greater transparency, it should be more systematic and streamlined. Trainings or study tours should not be decided by monetary benefits, but based on who benefits. Because opportunities are not shared, we have government officials in the dzongkhags feeling neglected, while their colleagues in central government appear to grab the best training opportunities. That is why are finding it hard to send officials to work outside Thimphu.

It is true that, given the circumstances in which we live and work, exposure trips are opportunities where a television set or a digital camera can come as a side benefit that would otherwise be out of reach. But foreign trips, with all the perks, should be given to relevant people and more responsible decisions should be taken in this regard.