Civil servants undertaking short-term training outside the country will now have to undergo a compulsory six-month post-training service before resigning. This is according to the revised Bhutan Civil Service Rules and Regulations 2023. According to the Royal Civil Service Commission, this revision comes as a new clause in the rule considering the high attrition and to promote positive behaviour and ensure return on investment.
According to the Bhutan Civil Service Rules and Regulations 2023, a short-term training is a Human Resource Development programme of six months and below. This includes in-class training, a certificate or a diploma course, attachment, internship, study tour, inspection, workshop, and international representation among others.
Before the inception of new rules, except for the long-term training, there were no such obligations whereby a civil servant had to serve the office for a set duration after short-term training.
Similarly, there are 29 other key changes made in the rules.
The changes include opening select executive positions to civil servants in specialist category and non-civil servants to compete for the position, providing career progression for senior supervisory category beyond SS1 subject to meeting the criteria, and enhancing the retirement age for all position categories.
Changes also comprise extending the tenure of Government Secretaries beyond five years based on performance, introducing a new requirement of minimum performance rating of “Good” or “Meeting Expectation” to be eligible to pursue long-term studies and payment of retirement benefits at one position level lower for staff who voluntarily resign without serving minimum duration of six months after being promoted.
According to the RCSC, they have involved over 4,000 civil servants in a series of meetings held in April and May while revising the rules.
Furthermore, starting in October this year, civil servants were given the opportunity to provide their feedback on the BCSR through the RCSC website.
Samten Dolkar
Edited by Tshering Zam
