Bhutan Today, the first daily newspaper in Bhutan, was launched Thursday as an eight-page morning newspaper. It is part of the small Himalayan country's plan to create a free press, and will be delivered across the country's mostly remote regions on horseback and on foot, Reuters reported.

It may take up to a week to reach different parts of the country, as the country's roads are largely undeveloped. Bhutan Today's cover price is about 10 cents, or five ngultrum.

Bhutan has a population of about 700,000, and the newspaper has a print run of 18,000 copies, but expects initial readership to be only about 12,000. The country's literacy rate is about 60 percent, Reuters reported.

Until now, the only privately owned newspapers in the country were the weekly Bhutan Observer and bi-weekly Bhutan Times. Advertising revenue is highly competitive, as there are almost no private advertisers in the country, with advertisements coming from the government only, according to Reuters.

Tenzin Dorji, managing director of Bhutan Today, told Reuters he is confident the newspaper will grow its advertising, especially because it is the country's first daily.