VOA新闻杂志2023--Bhutanese Youth Look to Australia for a Better Life

Bhutanese Youth Look to Australia for a Better Life

Young people are leaving Bhutan as Australia has reopened its borders to international students after the pandemic. Young people from Bhutan are seeking opportunities outside the country as more are becoming unhappy with the South Asian kingdom's economy.

The number of students arriving in Australia from Bhutan has increased sharply¹. Over 12,000 arrived during the 11 months ending in May. That number represents about 1.5 percent of the small South Asian country's population. The country has a youth unemployment rate above 25 percent.

Most of the recent arrivals have settled in Perth, Western Australia. They are taking classes in fields like childcare, hospitality², and accounting³.

Tashi Kipchu is 25 years old. He is one of many who came to Australia last year in search of better opportunities.

"Right after COVID, everything died," said Kipchu, who studied marketing⁴ at the University of Western Australia. He said he did not see any opportunities at home.

Bhutanese students did not start going to Australia until 2017. The number sharply increased after Australia reopened its borders in 2022. Australian government data shows that the number of Bhutanese students asking for visas increased by five times in the financial year ending in June.

The increase of student arrivals has made Australia home to one of the largest Bhutanese communities outside of South Asia.

Bhutanese students represent just a small part of Australia's 600,000 international student population. But the increase of students comes as the $27 billion education industry in Australia tries to make up lost ground from the decrease during the pandemic. Students from China, for example, are returning at a slower rate than Australian officials had hoped.

Phil Honeywood is Chief Executive⁵ Officer at International Education Association of Australia. He said Australian universities want to diversify⁶. Honeywood said they got the message from the former and current government that they should not depend too much on China, India, and Nepal.

Sonam Tobgay is Bhutan's ambassador⁷ to Australia. He said students want to go to Australia for a less costly⁸ education and visas that permit students' dependents to work for unlimited⁹ hours.

Bhutan's mostly closed economy is dependent on hydropower and tourism. Its economy has more recently been hurt by high energy costs and limited trade.

Government reforms have added to the number of working professionals leaving.

Found between India and China, Bhutan reopened its borders last September. But higher taxes on tourism have slowed the country's recovery. Youth unemployment hit 28 percent last year.

Bhutan might be most famous for its Gross¹⁰ National Happiness index. It is a measure of citizens' happiness rather than the country's wealth.

Kipchu trained as a chemical engineer in Bhutan. But he saw a business opportunity soon after arriving in Perth and started an education consultancy to help students from Bhutan. Now, his company employs 40 to 50 people in his home country.

"I came to Australia to study but somehow this country gave me an opportunity," said Kipchu. He predicted that the increase of people moving to Australia would continue.

"The job opportunities and the flexibility¹¹ for students to work here makes it more attractive."

Words in This Story

hospitality –n. (business) the term to describe the industry of providing hotels, restaurants and places of interest for travelers

opportunity – n. an amount of time or a situation in which something can be don

diversify – v. to change (something) so that it has more different kinds of people or things

tourism – n. the activity of traveling to a place for pleasure

consultancy – n. a company that gives professional advice to other companies for a fee

flexibility – adj. able to change or to do different things

attractive – adj. having a feature or quality that people like

1 sharply   

adj.锐利地，急速；adv.严厉地，鲜明地

参考例句：

• The plane dived sharply and rose again.飞机猛然俯冲而后又拉了起来。
• Demand for personal computers has risen sharply.对个人电脑的需求急剧增长。

2 hospitality   

n.好客，殷勤；adj.（气候等）宜人，适宜

参考例句：

• He welcomed you to enjoy his hospitality.他欢迎你去做客。
• Thank you for your kind hospitality.谢谢你的盛情款待。

3 accounting   

n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。

4 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

5 executive   

adj.执行的，行政的；n.执行者，行政官，经理

参考例句：

• A good executive usually gets on well with people.一个好的高级管理人员通常与人们相处得很好。
• He is a man of great executive ability.他是个具有极高管理能力的人。

6 diversify   

v.（使）不同，（使）变得多样化

参考例句：

• Our company is trying to diversify.我们公司正力图往多样化方面发展。
• Hills and woods diversify the landscape.山陵和树木点缀景色。

7 ambassador   

n.大使，特使，（派驻国际组织的）代表

参考例句：

• He took up office as an ambassador for ten years continuously.他连任十年大使。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

8 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

9 unlimited   

adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的

参考例句：

• They flew over the unlimited reaches of the Arctic.他们飞过了茫茫无边的北极上空。
• There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris.在技术方面自以为是会很危险。

10 gross   

adj.全部的，粗俗的，肥胖的；vt.获得...总收入

参考例句：

• The gross weight of the box of chocolates is 500 grams.那盒巧克力的全部重量是500克。
• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。

11 flexibility   

n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性

参考例句：

• Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
• The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。