Experiences of Managing the COVID-19 Pandemic in Bhutan During the Early Stages

Policy Interventions and Collaborative Governance Networks

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic proved to be a global wicked problem that impacted all facets of society. Governments were overstretched and strained in dealing with the pandemic. Even as collaborations among the multiple state and non-state stakeholders expanded, the protracted nature of the pandemic required a “formalized” set up of these collaborative governance networks. As countries struggled to deal with the changing nature of the pandemic, only a handful of countries were, initially, able to deal with the problem with some success. Bhutan, a small developing country, was successful in containing and managing the pandemic. Through an in-depth analysis of Bhutan’s experience in its COVID-19 management, particularly during the initial stages of the pandemic, this study highlights the importance of the formalization of the collaborations. It also demonstrates the importance of the role of a top-down nature of leadership in coordinating the multiple collaborative governance networks that have been formed to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.