Dec 19, 2017 bhutan is a challenging environment in which to develop commercial agriculture. Currently less than 10 % of the agricultural area of bhutan is in oa production. Bhutan is largely an agrarian economy with 79 percent of its population engaged in agriculture and livestock farming. Bhutans economy is based on agriculture, forestry, tourism and the sale of hydroelectric power to india. The yield gap is the main driver for a strong decline in agricultural output. Supporting the development of national food and nutrition security index. The 100% organic agriculture policy in bhutan a gift or a curse. For agriculture, a recent trend of farmer suicide in india is a matter of concern for bhutanese farmers.
Development of clean energy by harnessing hydropower and renewable energy sources. The agricultural sector, which employs about 69% of the total population, is the most vulnerable to the changing climate. The most significant impact of climate change in bhutan is the formation of supraglacial lakes due to the accelerated. Majority of bhutanese farmers are small and marginal. It only requires updating with the help of new data that are constantly retrieved from publishers databases and other sources. Challenges facing agriculture october 7, 2017 0 comments in editorial by kuensel1 agriculture, the main sector that provides livelihood to more than half the population of this country, is witnessing a curious change today. Bhutanese agriculture is characterized by traditional farming practices with low or no external inputs and dependent mainly on renewable natural resources.
The most significant impact of climate change in bhutan is the formation of supraglacial lakes due to the accelerated retreat of glaciers with increasing temperatures. Bhutans development is highly dependent on climatesensitive sectors such as agriculture, hydropower, and forestry. Bhutan s economy is based on agriculture, forestry, tourism and the sale of hydroelectric power to india. Bhutan is closely tied to india in both geography and trade. Three principal climatic regions can be distinguished. The promotion of high yielding varieties, enhancing the technical. Bhutan has achieved universal own ership of mobile phones and access to electricity.
Increasing agribusiness growth in bhutan english abstract. Bhutan represents typical mountain agriculture farming systems with unique challenges. Fp supporting climate resilience and transformational. Despite efforts to encourage sustainable economic growth at the national level, the impacts of climate change, driven partly by the global greenhouse gas emissions, will continue to affect bhutan. Agriculture statistics 2017 ministry of agriculture and forests. Agriculture in bhutan has a dominant role in the economy of the country.
Bhutan and the wto a study on the impact of agriculture and agriculture related issues in wto agreements on the bhutanese agriculture sector. Bhutanof interconnections between agriculture, ecology and energy that need to be recognized and managed as a system. Water scarcity will unfavourably affect crop production due to loss of soil fertility by soil erosion, outbreak of pestsdiseases and increased damages to crops by wildlife. We analysed the assumptions of the bhutanese government cited above from an. Bhhuttaann iinn p urrssuiitt vooff ssuussttaaiinnaabbll. Despite this, agriculture remains the primary source of livelihood for the majority of the population. The college is located in lobesa, punakha district, in central west bhutan. Bhutan, a small country located in the himalayan mountains between china and india, has announced its plan to become the first country to use entirely organic agricultural methods. Agriculture in bhutan has a dominant role in the bhutan s economy. Bhutan bets organic agriculture is the road to happiness. The analysis relies primarily on enterprise survey conducted in 2015, supplemented by extensive. The climate changes with elevation, producing striking meteorologic contrasts, and differing exposures to sunlight and moistureladen winds result in complex local variations. The country has a total geographical area of 38,394 square kilometers with a population of 745,600 people. Supporting climate resilience and transformational change.
Bhutan is a challenging environment in which to develop commercial agriculture. First adaptation of quinoa in the bhutanese mountain. Over 95% of the earning women in the country work in the agricultural sector. A joint study by the international center for tropical agriculture ciat and the ministry of agriculture and forestry moaf, funded by the united nations environment programme unep, was undertaken to assess the impacts of climate change on five key crops i. Pdf bhutanese farmers have traditionally practised integrated subsistence farming, producing crops and livestock and utilising forest products. The agriculture production systems under environmental constraints are typical of smallscale agricultural subsistence systems related to family farming in the himalayan mountains with very low level of mechanization, numerous abiotic stresses influenced by climate and other socio. Bhutans economy is dependent on the agriculture, livestock and.
Fp supporting climate resilience and transformational change. Challenges to productive and sustainable agriculture in bhutan. The salt bhutan wants to be the first country in the world to convert to a 100 percent agricultural system. Bhhuttaann iinn p urrssuiitt vooff ssuussttaaiinnaabbll ee. Organic agriculture is a method of growing crops that uses no chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides. Bhutans framework for integrated water resource management iwrm adopts coordination as its core management principle. Although bhutan was the first to country worldwide to declare its intention to move towards fully organic and agroecological agriculture, the little state of sikkim indeed should be regarded as the champion. The aim is to slowly ban the sale of pesticide and herbicide, and rely on manure and crop waste for fertiliser. Despite this, agriculture remains the primary source of livelihood for the majority of the population approximately 80% of the population of bhutan are involved in. Agriculture, forests and biodiversity resources as assets for economic development in a manner that enhances their value including through organic production practices whilst promoting their. Bhutan is a small mountainous country located in the southern slopes of eastern himalayas.
Land use in bhutan 5 3 spurred by trade agreements with india and bangladesh, bhutan has been shifting to crops more suited to its comparative advantage. The share of the agricultural sector in gdp declined from approximately 55% in 1985 to 33% in 2003. We operate under a country agreement with the royal government of bhutan rgob, ensuring that all activities align with the countrys national development priorities. Its conducive policy framework for developing organic farming shows how. Jan 21, 2018 sustainable agriculture in bhutan is an important factor for socioeconomic development and growth. Climate change and potential impacts on agriculture in bhutan. With production shifting fast to highvalue crops, the gdp for agriculture.
In 20, bhutans minister of agriculture and forests also pledged to ensure that the country became the first completely organic country. Today, farming is mostly seen as a part of a lifestyle of the past. Climatesmart agriculture in bhutan climate change knowledge. Agriculture statistics 2017 ministry of agriculture and. Bhutans climate is perhaps more diverse than that of any other similarly sized area in the world. Bhutan agriculture the agricultural sector provided 38. Mar 12, 2014 bhutan agriculture the agricultural sector provided 38. The strengths of oa were i good alignment of the principles of oa with bhutans development philosophy, ii strong policy and political. From peasants to entrepreneurial farmers tashi dendup1 1 department of. Agrarian practices consist largely of subsistence farming and animal husbandry. The perception of agriculture in bhutan, especially among the youth, needs to change drastically. The government of bhutan, a poor rugged mountainous kingdom in the himalayas, aims to convert the whole agricultural area to organic agriculture oa by 2020 in an effort to provoke a substantial increase of productivity and farmers income while preserving the environment.
Despite bhutans low dependency on conventional inputs, we find significant welfare losses, particularly for nonagricultural households. This document presents funding proposal supporting climate resilience and transformational change in the agriculture sector in bhutan, as approved by the board of the green climate fund at b. Therefore, commercial agriculture is critical to increase productivity, which will help create jobs and access to more and better food. This framework provides a vision of the increasingly important role organic farming will play in the future development of agriculture in bhutan. The objectives of the sector are enhancing food and nutrition security, rural income generation and creation of employment opportunity in the dzongkhag. The agriculture production systems under environmental constraints are typical of smallscale agricultural subsistence systems related to family farming in the himalayan mountains with very low level of mechanization, numerous abiotic stresses influenced by climate and other socioeconomic constraints. The 100% organic agriculture policy in bhutan a gift or a. Nutrient replenishment and structural improvement of agricultural land depends on the flow of biomass from the forest through direct application of compost manure or livestock manure. Agriculture is the main source livelihood for 69% of the. Climate change and potential impacts on agriculture in. Agriculture in the country also includes cultivation of maize and wheat and other minor cereal crops. Bhutans unique measure of economic, social, and spiritual development, showed further improvements in 2015.
The college of natural resources, royal university of bhutan cnr rub is a college offering courses on natural resources management, that include agriculture, animal science, environment and climate, food science and technology, forest science, organic agriculture and sustainable development. The buddhist state has also made commitments to protect its biodiversity, including the. Agrarian culture and lifestyle dominate bhutan, where many politicians are also farmers, and most farmers already utilize organic growing methods. Harnessing spatial opportunities in agriculture for economic transformation english abstract. The agriculture sector of bumthang dzongkhag administration comprises of six staff which includes dao, adao and four gewog extension officials. In 2012, over 14,000 indian farmers took their lives, and in the district most affected, nearly 4000 farmers. Increasing agribusiness growth in bhutan english the. The 100% organic agriculture policy in bhutan global trade. The 1997 gdp consisted of a total production of 18. A study was conducted to investigate the prospects of organic agriculture oa in bhutan from the experts perspective, particularly the swot strength, weakness, opportunity, and threat aspect. The country has demonstrated its commitment to sustainability in many of its policies and practices, and now bhutan is a world leader in organic farming practices. Its main findings were presented at a meeting in the conference hall of the ministry of agriculture and forestry moaf of the royal government of bhutan, held in thimpu on may 18, 2011. The policy note assesses bhutans agribusiness sector and recommends steps the royal government of bhutan rgob might consider to increase the sectors growth. Bhutan remained closed to the outside world till the 1960s and its economy was largely.
The most common impacts of climate change to agriculture in bhutan is predicted to be water insufficiency both in terms of rain and irrigation water. Rnr journal of bhutan 2006 pdf download rnr journal of bhutan 2007 pdf download rnr journal of bhutan 2008 pdf download rnr journal of bhutan 2009 pdf download rnr journal of bhutan 2010 pdf download rnr journal of bhutan 2011 pdf download rnr journal of bhutan 2012 pdf download. Despite bhutan s low dependency on conventional inputs, we find significant welfare losses, particularly for non agricultural households. As such agriculture is an important source of employment and part of daily life for the bhutanese people. Home to over 735,000 people, the kingdom of bhutan has achieved rapid economic growth and poverty reduction, despite the constraints of being a small, landlocked, and mountainous country.
Approximately 80% of the population of bhutan are involved in agriculture. Jul 31, 2012 bhutan bets organic agriculture is the road to happiness. It is not understood that commercial agriculture offers a professional career, requiring finance skills and management, organisation of logistics and marketing. The overall unemployment rate fell from an already low 2. In 20, bhutan s minister of agriculture and forests also pledged to ensure that the country became the first completely organic country. Bhutan is a small landlocked country located in the ecologically fragile himalayan ranges with a population of less than 700,000.
Department of agriculture, ministry of agriculture and forest, bhutan powered by enfold wordpress theme. A typical bhutanese farm economy is characterized by functional interdependence between agriculture and forest, livestock and agriculture, and forest and livestock. Bhutan agriculture, information about agriculture in bhutan. A small farmer in bhutan subsists on farming by growing crops ranging from rice, wheat, maize, buckwheat. The promotion of high yielding varieties, enhancing the technical capacity of farmers, market led. The country has limited areas for agriculture, and its geography and road conditions make logistics and market access costly. Multiple cropping in bhutanese agriculture present status. Policy objectives ministry of agriculture and forests.
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