The Bhutanese Leading the way.
Coinciding with the 114th National Day, His Majesty The King conferred Druk Thuksey (Heart Son of Bhutan) medals to UN Bhutan.
Druk Thuksey was given to UN Bhutan for assisting the country in meeting national development needs and enhancing the socio-economic circumstances of Bhutanese people.
It was conferred to the United Nations Office in Bhutan in recognition of its exceptional service to the Nation as an important partner in Bhutan’s socio-economic development.
This year, Bhutan and the United Nations celebrated the 50th Anniversary of Bhutan’s membership as the 128th member of the United Nations Organization – a historic event in Bhutan’s journey as a modern nation-state.
The Office of the United Nations in Bhutan with 128 personnel across its 31 Agencies has worked with the Royal Government to take forward Bhutan’s development goals. It has played an important role in supporting Bhutan’s response to the most pressing challenges of our time – the COVID-19 pandemic, and climate change.
In both these areas, Bhutan has emerged as a beacon of hope in the region and the world. Just as the battle against the pandemic cannot be won in isolation, the threats of climate change also requires states to come together through international cooperation. Sharing of resources and expertise between the member states of the UN is needed now more than ever.
Bhutan’s Royal Government joined the United Nations as the 128th member on September 21, 1971. In early 1974, the United Nations Office in Bhutan was established.
Resident Coordinator of UN Bhutan, Gerald Daly said that the award acknowledges that they have done a fantastic job over the last 50 years, but it also prompts them to consider what further they can do in the future.
“I believe we have been inspired to raise our game at the United Nations; we have 31 UN agencies, and we can do a good job, but now we must do even better; the world is full of challenges and opportunities, and I’d like us to attempt to figure out smarter methods to bring those possibilities back to a fantastic nation like Bhutan, where the government and His Majesty, does so much inspiring work. We, the UN, just need to figure out smarter ways to guarantee that LDC graduation is a huge success,” he said.
He added, “We also launched UN Park about two months ago, so these are excellent symbols of the amount of confidence that exists between His Majesty, the Royal Government of Bhutan, and the United Nations. As a result, we feel that this degree of trust will motivate us to improve our performance. The United Nations is thankful to Bhutan’s Royal government and people for their dedication to UN peacekeeping; it is a two-way relationship.”
