A glimpse of Tibetan economy

The very name of Tibet is usually associated with mystery and adventure at the global stage. Apart from the Tibetan culture that is greatly influenced by Buddhism, and the booming tourism in Tibet, almost no other aspect of the plateau drew any attention of the world, for example, the economy of Tibet. Well, let’s us try to have a glimpse of it here.

Traditionally, given the very unique topography of the Tibetan plateau, generations of Tibetan people naturally inherited subsistence agriculture. And since the land suitable for agriculture is again very limited, especially in the western part of the Tibet, livestock raising become an important primary occupation in Tibet.

But nowadays positive developments started taking place with better farming techniques and overall improvement in the education level and general awareness of the people.

There are many official numbers indicating exaggerated growth pace in Tibet, especially the annual GDP growth, hailing the region as one of the fastest growing in the country. Many Tibet observers are sceptical about the official interpretation of such speedy growth though, but it is generally believed that the average economic condition of Tibetan have improved much over the years.

A special segment of Tibetan economy that worth mention is the very vibrant tourism industry in the region, which attracts millions of visitors from all over the world that helps to generate billions of yuan per annum for the government since quite many years

As compared to the developed provinces in the mainland China, Tibet’s economy still remains very backward in many aspects. The business is still in the very traditional context with almost no existence of financial market, and there is very low level of entrepreneurships.

While it is a fact that the economy of Tibet is stagnant, there are some Tibetan experts who argue that the economy of Tibet is underdeveloped mainly because of the very spiritual mentality of the Tibetan people, where people are contented with basic needs in life with no big aspiration for material good.