Dasho Dr. Lotay Tshering (; born 10 May 1969) is a Bhutanese

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

and

surgeon In medicine, a surgeon is a medical doctor who performs surgery. Even though there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon is a licensed physician and received the same medical training as physicians before spec ...

who was the

prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Bhutan Bhutan, officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked country in South Asia, in the Eastern Himalayas between China to the north and northwest and India to the south and southeast. With a population of over 727,145 and a territory of , ...

, in office from 7 November 2018 to 1 November 2023. He was the president of Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa (DNT) since 14 May 2018 until he resigned in 2025. The president of DNT Dasho Dr. Lotay Tshering resigned from the party and politics ending his 11-year political career. Dasho was appointed as the

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of GMC at Dungkar Dzong in Paro on 1 October 2024 following a recommendation from the Board of Directors of the Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC).

Early life and education

Tshering was born on 10 May 1969, in a humble family. He hails from Dalukha village, Mewang Gewog,

Thimphu Thimphu (; ) is the capital and largest city of Bhutan. It is situated in the western central part of Bhutan, and the surrounding valley is one of Bhutan's '' dzongkhags'', the Thimphu District. The ancient capital city of Punakha was replac ...

. He received his early education from Punakha High School and graduated from

Sherubtse College Sherubtse College is the first accredited college in Bhutan, founded in 1966 by a group of Society of Jesus, Jesuits under the leadership of Father William Mackey (Jesuit), William Mackey. The college was affiliated to the University of Delhi b ...

. He graduated from Mymensingh Medical College and received

MBBS A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (; MBBS, also abbreviated as BM BS, MB ChB, MB BCh, or MB BChir) is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education tradi ...

degree in 2001. He completed his post-graduation in

surgery Surgery is a medical specialty that uses manual and instrumental techniques to diagnose or treat pathological conditions (e.g., trauma, disease, injury, malignancy), to alter bodily functions (e.g., malabsorption created by bariatric surgery s ...

and received FCPS degree from

Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons The Bangladesh College of Physicians & Surgeons (BCPS) is a statutory professional membership body in Bangladesh dedicated to improving the practice of medicine and surgery, chiefly through accreditation of doctors by examination. This institutio ...

and MS degree from

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Bangladesh Medical University (BMU; formerly known as Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, commonly known as PG Hospital) is a graduate medical university in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It was established in 1965 as Institute of Postgraduate Medic ...

. In 2007, he studied urology at the

Medical College of Wisconsin The Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) is a private medical school, pharmacy school, and graduate school of sciences in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. The school was established in 1893 and is the largest research center in eastern Wisconsi ...

, the US, under his

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...

fellowship. Upon his return to Bhutan, he was the only practicing trained

urologist Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and ''-logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary system and the reproductive organs. Org ...

in his country. In 2010, he obtained a fellowship in endourology at

Singapore General Hospital Singapore General Hospital (SGH) is an academic health science centre and tertiary referral hospital in Singapore. It is located next to the Bukit Merah and Chinatown districts of the Central Region, close to the Outram Community Hospital (O ...

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

, and Okayama University,

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. He received a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...

degree from

University of Canberra The University of Canberra (UC) is a public university, public research university with its main campus located in Bruce, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The campus is from Belconnen Town Centre, and from Canberra's Civic, Australian ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

in 2014.

Personal life

Lotay Tshering is married to a doctor, Ugyen Dema. The couple has one daughter and one son (Garab Lotey). During his tenure in Mongar Regional Referral Hospital, he adopted one girl and one boy. Tshering speaks several languages, including Dzongkha, Lotshamkha, Bengali and English.

Professional career

Tshering served as a consultant surgeon in JDWNRH and Mongar Regional Referral Hospital, and was also served as a consultant urologist in JDWNRH for 11 years. After the payment of about Nu. 6.2 million to the Royal Civil Service Commission, he resigned from the JDWNRH as a urologist to join politics in 2013.

Political career

Tshering contested the 2013 National Assembly Election but his party was knocked out in the primary round. On 14 May 2018, Tshering received 1,155 votes and was elected as the president of the Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa (DNT) just five months before the Third National Assembly Election. He was elected to the National Assembly of Bhutan as a candidate of DNT from South Thimphu constituency in 2018 Bhutanese National Assembly election. He received 3,662 votes, defeating Kinley Tshering, a candidate of DPT. His party won largest number of seats in the 2018 National Assembly Election, bringing Tshering to premiership and Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa into government for the first time.

Prime minister

On 7 November 2018, he replaced

Tshering Tobgay Tshering Tobgay (; born 19 September 1965) is a Bhutanese politician who is the seventh List of Prime Ministers of Bhutan, prime minister of Bhutan since 2024 and also served in office from 2013 to 2018. Tobgay is the leader of the People's Democr ...

and was sworn in as the third democratically elected

prime minister of Bhutan The prime minister of Bhutan (Lyonchen, ) is the head of government of Bhutan. The prime minister is nominated by the party that wins the most seats in the National Assembly (Gyelyong Tshogdu) and heads the executive cabinet, called the Counci ...

. On 27 December 2018, he arrived in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

for a three-day visit on his first foreign trip after assuming the office. On 13 April 2019, he arrived in

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

on an official visit and subsequently on 24 March 2021, on behalf of His Majesty to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of

's independence.

Cabinet

Tshering announced his 10 cabinet ministers on 3 November 2018.

Awards

*1991: He was awarded the Father William Mackey Gold Medal for academic excellence by

. *2005: He was awarded the Unsung Hero of Compassion Award by

14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (born 6 July 1935; full spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso; ) is the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. He served a ...

. *2017: He was awarded the Royal Order of Bhutan Medal (''Druk Thuksey'') by King

Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck (born 21 February 1980) is the fifth Druk Gyalpo (Dragon King) of Bhutan. His reign began in 2006 after his father Jigme Singye Wangchuck abdicated the throne. A public coronation ceremony was held on 6 November ...

for his "selfless and dedicated service to the Tsawa-Sum (our King, our country and our people)." *2018: Royal Orange Scarf by King

for "his appointment as the Prime Minister". *2020: Lungmar Scarf by King

for "his unwavering effort and contribution in fighting the ongoing pandemic as the Prime Minister".His Majesty confers Lungmar Scarf and Red Scarves
/ref> Tshering is the second person, after former prime minister ''Dasho''

, to be awarded this scarf since the creation of this award by the Third King, who was the King of Bhutan between 1952 and 1972.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tshering, Lotay 1969 births Living people Prime ministers of Bhutan Bhutanese physicians Urologists Mymensingh Medical College alumni Fellows of the Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons Bangladesh Medical University alumni Bhutanese MNAs 2018–2023 People from Thimphu District Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa MNAs Okayama University alumni