<原著・資料・エッセー>ブータンの国民総幸福(GNH)と経済成長路線の「部分的つながり」 --脱成長論に対する「重要な示唆」を探る--

Abstract

The term "degrowth" has been attracting attention in development circles, owing to the increasing concern about the existing growth-oriented international economic order, which is seen to have caused widening inequalities and ecological havocs. A larger number of scholars have thereby been proposing to downscale production and consumption, to decrease rates of economic growth, and to promulgate green and caring community-based economies. This paper will problematize this call for the abandonment of growth as a social objective, with reference to Bhutan's Gross National Happiness (GNH) that seeks to strike a balance between the pursuit of economic growth and that of non-economistic goals (including environmental conservation, and social and spiritual contentment). This stance of GNH emanates from the country's Buddhism-based belief in a moderate "middle path", downplaying a single-minded approach that is liable to lapse into extremes. This approach helps to bring to light the drawback of ongoing degrowth debates that fail to heed various advantages entailed in the pursuit of economic growth. This paper will also explore ways to ameliorate this weakness of degrowth debates, by elucidating how economic growth can play a role in promoting green and caring community-based economies. It is imperative to develop local and regional markets where people depending on community-based economies can sell their products and purchase daily necessities that are unavailable in their own localities. Moreover, community-based economies can benefit from the growth of larger urban-based industries, which help to create wealth to be diverted for programs in support of community-based livelihoods. This paper will conclude by proposing to seek to establish "partial connections" between these positive aspects of economic growth, and ongoing degrowth debates.