Public spaces for children

2026-03-16 - 11:15

Bhutan is making some important long term investments through the Gelephu Mindfulness City, the Diamond Strategy and other reforms and initiatives. The main aim is to build a brighter future for our youth, and the success and completion of many of these long-term ventures will depend on the youth. Therefore, it is critical that we invest in our youth and the first and most important investment is health. Here, it must be said that a major area which is lacking is the lack of adequate public and play spaces for children. The reality today is that the majority of children stay at home hooked to their screens from a young age. While it is well known that screen time is bad this is not just the result of poor discipline, but also the lack of public spaces for children to roam and play in especially in places like Thimphu that have a high youth population. Apart from screen addiction, the other problem is that the physical health of our children is suffering with lifestyle diseases like blood pressure, high cholesterol and others even affecting youth. The result is that we are raising an entire generation of children and youth who are both mentally and physically unfit. This is unprecedented as in the past children would not be cooped up inside but would be playing outside. This is no longer possible in the urban jungles of today. It is important that new public spaces be created keeping children in mind and even existing public spaces should be opened up. For example, it does not make sense that public schools with large playgrounds and play facilities should lock their gates after school hours. It should be open to the youths. It is ironical that one of the rare public places for play for youth in Thimphu is the IMTRAT office that keeps it basketball court open to Bhutanese youth from morning to evening. If nothing is done and soon, then instead of a bright future, Bhutan may have to encounter an explosion of NCDs and adults with limited attention span and social skills in the future. “First we shape the cities — then they shape us.” — Jan Gehl