Bhutan’s Prime Minister assures that the government will reduce data costs by 50 percent
Last Updated on February 10, 2025 6:15 am
Reiterating the election campaign pledge, the Prime Minister said that the government will slash mobile charges by 50 percent at the meet-the-press session yesterday.
Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay assured that the price reduction will be carefully implemented to avoid affecting telecom operators or compromising service quality.
A technical committee, chaired by the Ministry of Finance, including Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, and Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Employment, was established on October 8, 2024, to oversee the initiative. The committee also includes experts from telecom companies.
The Prime Minister explained that the committee is reviewing proposals from the GovTech Agency, Bhutan InfoComm and Media Authority (BICMA), and all telecom and internet service providers to ensure the 50 percent cost reduction is feasible without harming industry revenues or service standards.
GovTech’s deputy executive engineer, Cheki Dorji, said consultations are ongoing at various levels, focusing on short-term, mid-term, and long-term strategies to reduce internet costs.
In the short term, the goal is to cut mobile data charges by 50 percent. “However, this reduction is being carefully evaluated to ensure it does not impact service quality or the revenue of telecom operators.”
The mid-term strategy involves consolidating the country’s international internet bandwidth to reduce costs at the source. “If we purchase internet in larger volumes, we can negotiate for lower prices,” Cheki Dorji added.
For the long term, the government plans to expand investments in national telecommunications and fibre infrastructure. This investment is intended to provide affordable, cheaper and high-speed internet services directly to households. By expanding home internet access, the plan aims to decongest mobile networks.
On July 13, 2024, Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay met with telecom and internet service providers, and urged them to reduce the cost of internet, mobile, and broadband services by 50 percent.
The Prime Minister issued an executive order, directing GovTech, BICMA, and all the telecom and internet service providers to submit concrete strategies to achieve 50 percent reduction in internet service costs.
The Prime Minister also revealed plans to negotiate with Indian telecom giants to lower internet costs at the source. “Since we purchase internet from India, there’s a possibility that we can reduce costs through direct negotiations with major Indian telecom companies,” he said, adding that he intends to discuss the matter with the Government of India.
Bhutan currently has two telecom companies—Bhutan Telecom and Tashicell—and 20 internet service providers, serving around 790,000 mobile subscribers and 21,000 internet leased line users.