Bhutan's royal couple announce birth of baby prince

PARO (Bhutan) — The first child of Bhutan's King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Queen Jetsun Pema was delivered safely yesterday (Feb 5), it was announced in a post on the queen's Facebook page today.

"Our happiness knows no bounds, as we announce the Royal Birth of His Royal Highness The Gyalsey on 5th February 2016," said the post.

"Our Prince, the first Royal Child of His Majesty King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Her Majesty Queen Jetsun Pema, was delivered safely at the Lingkana Palace, Thimphu. His Majesty was at Her Majesty's side during the time of the delivery. Following the Royal Birth, His Royal Highness was first presented to His Majesty the Fourth Druk Gyalpo (King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck's father)."

Both the queen and her son are in perfect health, according to the post. 

"We join the people of Bhutan in our heartfelt prayers for the wellbeing of Her Majesty and His Royal Highness, and in the expression of our joy on this momentous occasion," it added. 

Known as the "last Shangri-La", Bhutan, home to just 750,000 people, famously shuns conventional measures of economic well-being, instead compiling a Gross National Happiness index.

The hugely popular fifth Druk Gyalpo, or Dragon King, studied in Britain and the United States and was officially crowned king in 2008 after his father abdicated two years earlier.

He married Queen Pema in 2011 in an elaborate fairytale wedding ceremony that was the biggest media event in Bhutanese history.

A majority Buddhist nation, Bhutan had no roads or currency until the 1960s, and only began admitting foreign tourists in 1974 — but has since developed rapidly. AFP/CHANNEL NEWSASIA