dependence: 8 August 1949 (from India)

_#_Constitution: no written constitution or bill of rights

_#_Legal system: based on Indian law and English common law; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

_#_National holiday: National Day (Ugyen Wangchuck became first
hereditary king), 17 December (1907)

_#_Executive branch: monarch, chairman of the Royal Advisory Council,
Royal Advisory Council (Lodoi Tsokde), chairman of the Council of
Ministers, Council of Ministers (Lhengye Shungtsog)

_#_Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (Tshogdu)

_#_Judicial branch: High Court

_#_Leaders:

Chief of State and Head of Government--King Jigme Singye WANGCHUCK
(since 24 July 1972)

_#_Political parties: no legal parties

_#_Suffrage: each family has one vote in village-level elections

_#_Elections: no national elections

_#_Communists: no overt Communist presence

_#_Other political or pressure groups: Buddhist clergy, Indian
merchant community; ethnic Nepalese organizations leading militant
antigovernment campaign

_#_Member of: AsDB, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IMF,
IOC, ITU, NAM, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO

_#_Diplomatic representation: no formal diplomatic relations, although
informal contact is maintained between the Bhutanese and US Embassies in
New Delhi (India); the Bhutanese mission to the UN in New York has
consular jurisdiction in the US

_#_Flag: divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the
upper triangle is orange and the lower triangle is red; centered along
the dividing line is a large black and white dragon facing away from the
hoist side

_*_Economy
_#_Overview: The economy, one of the world's least developed,
is based on agriculture and forestry, which provide the main livelihood
for 90% of the population and account for about 50% of GDP. Rugged
mountains dominate the terrain and make the building of roads and other
infrastructure difficult and expensive. The economy is closely
aligned with that of India through strong trade and monetary links.
Low wages in industry lead most Bhutanese to stay in agriculture.
Most development projects, such as road construction, rely on Indian
migrant labor. Bhutan's hydropower potential and its attraction for
tourists are its most important natural resources.

_#_GDP: $273 million, per capita $199 (1988) real growth rate 4%
(1989 est.)

_#_Inflation rate (co