- published: 25 Apr 2015
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A gewog, or geog (Dzongkha: རྒེད་འོག་; Wylie: rged-'og; "block") refers to a group of villages in Bhutan. Gewogs form a geographic administrative unit below dzongkhag districts (and dungkhag subdistricts, where they exist), and above thromde municipalities. Bhutan comprises 205 gewogs, which average 230 km² in area. The gewogs in turn are divided into chewogs for elections and thromdes (municipalities) for administration. The Parliament of Bhutan passed legislation in 2002 and 2007 on the status, structure, and leadership of local governments, including gewogs. The most recent legislation by parliament regarding gewogs is the Local Government Act of Bhutan 2009. In July 2011, the government slated 11 gewogs across Bhutan for reorganization, including both mergers and bifurcations, to be debated in dzongkhag local governments. These changes are contemplated to promote ease of travel to gewog capitals and to equitably allocate development resources.
Under the Local Government Act of 2009, each gewog is administered by a Gewog Tshogde (gewog council), subordinate to the Dzongkhag Tshogdu (district council). The Gewog Tshogde is composed of a Gup (headman), Mangmi (deputy), and between five and eight democratically elected Tshogpas from among villages or village groups. All representatives serve five-year terms, unless the local electorate petitions for an election (by a simple majority of the voting population) to vote no confidence in the local government (by at least two-thirds of the voting population). Representatives must be citizens between the ages of 25 and 65, be a resident of their constituency for at least one year, gain certification by the Election Commission, and otherwise qualify under Electoral Law.