Gross National Happiness rests on four broad areas and nine domains

Background

The World Health Organization validation of Bhutan for eliminating dog-transmitted human rabies has drawn fresh attention to how the country measures its own progress. Gross National Happiness was coined by Bhutan's Fourth King, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, in the 1970s. It treats the well-being of people, and not output alone, as the test of development. Four broad areas carry the idea: environmental conservation, cultural preservation, sustainable socio-economic development and good governance. From these it is worked out into nine domains. The domains cover living standards, health, education, community vitality, psychological wellbeing, time use, cultural diversity and resilience, ecological diversity and resilience, and good governance. The GNH Index is a composite measure drawing on 33 indicators spread across those nine domains. It is computed with the Alkire-Foster method, a multidimensional way of combining many measures into one.