Lhatu joined as the Executive Director of the Gross National Happiness Centre Bhutan (GNHCB) in April 2024, bringing with him a wealth of extensive experience across various fields and his strong commitment to advancing Bhutan’s development philosophy of Gross National Happiness (GNH). Before this role, Lhatu served two terms as a Member of Parliament (2008-2013 and 2018-2023), during which he chaired the Good Governance Committee, the Foreign Relations Committee, and the Poverty Reduction Committee, and contributed significantly to various other parliamentary functions. His tenure in Parliament brought about significant infrastructural development in his constituency and nationwide, including improvements in roads, schools, communications, electricity, and health facilities. He has been a strong advocate for the well-being and happiness of the people and for promoting good governance. He has also travelled internationally giving talks on Bhutan and GNH.
Outside of Parliament, Lhatu has a diverse background, having worked in the government for many years, where he served in various capacities including as Head of the Marketing Department at Bhutan Agro Industries and Head of Customer Services in Telecommunications. He then spent over seven years with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Bhutan as Operations Manager, overseeing key country operations, including financial management, human resources, procurement, logistics, and UN common services.
Lhatu also has several years of private sector experience as the Director of Community and Corporate Relations for Mountain Hazelnuts, Bhutan’s first 100% Foreign Direct Investment company. In this role, he traveled extensively across the country, advocating for the plantation of hazelnut trees to generate long-term income for people and promote and support environmental conservation and cultural values. He often combined these efforts with talks on GNH to the public.
Throughout his career, Lhatu has led high-performing teams, contributing to substantial organizational growth and earning numerous awards for outstanding performance. He excels at inspiring and motivating teams to achieve key developmental objectives, fostering a collaborative and positive atmosphere that has garnered widespread appreciation.
Lhatu is deeply passionate about advancing the philosophy of Gross National Happiness, Bhutan's overarching development model, as promulgated by His Majesty the Fourth King of Bhutan. He is known for his simplicity, empathy, and astute leadership, and is committed to promoting ego-less public service governance. Lhatu aims to advance this unique GNH development model both within Bhutan and on the international stage, striving to bring positive changes at all levels.