The European Union has in the past supported sustainable tourism in Bhutan with a grant from its SWITCH Asia program.

In the current context, through a multi-country project aimed at promoting sustainable consumption and production, a project implemented by Fairtrade, involving the Bhutan Chamber of Commerce Industry (BCCI) was commenced in 2018. BCCI has initiated discussions with various Small and Medium Enterprises to explore the development of sustainable value chains and add sustainable products to the existing trade in agri-products happening between Bhutan and India.

In mid-2020, two new projects of a total value of approximately € 3.4 million will be implemented in support of the tourism sector and promoting sustainable production and consumption. The implementing partners of these two initiatives are Association of Bhutanese Tour Operators and the German organisation Gruppe zur Förderung der Angepassten Technologie (GRAT). These two projects, expected to commence in 2020, will be vital in promoting the local economy and tourism, and will be instrumental in supporting the country to address COVID 19 challenges to the sector.

In 2017, work in support of sustainable agriculture, forestry and climate change began for a period of 54 months with specific objectives to steer the program:

• Provide fiscal space and improve the financial capability of the Government of Bhutan for enabling the Ministry of Agriculture and Forests to improve the Renewable Natural Resources sector policy reforms in the priority areas as defined in the 11th and 12th Five Year Plans.
• Support innovative actions undertaken by the Government of Bhutan to enhance resilience to climate change.

Some of the key achievements in the sector of Sustainable Agriculture, Forestry and Climate Change include:

• Self-sufficiency with respect to Egg and Milk production was achieved, contributing to improved nutritional outcomes of people.
• Ca 2110 hectares were afforested and reforested in 2018 and approximately 232,808 hectares of forest area was brought under sustainable management, contributing to climate change mitigation.
• Ca 5,363 km of farm roads have been built, enabling farmers to access markets.
• Ca 2996.5 km of irrigation channels were constructed or renovated, ensuring small holder farmers have access to irrigation.
• 99 Farmers Groups and Cooperatives were registered, creating 584 employment opportunities.

Support to the aforementioned sector is a pillar of the EU support to Bhutan. During the period 2017-22, approximately € 21.5 million will be disbursed in support of Sustainable Agriculture, Forestry and Climate Change. In response to the needs arising due to pandemic Covid-19, € 4.5 million was released in March 2020 to support the Sustainable Agriculture, Forestry and Climate Change sector. Another release of € 4 million is expected in the latter part of 2020.

The support to Rural Livelihoods and Climate Change Adaptation in the Himalaya initiative aimed to assist vulnerable mountain communities in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) to mitigate and adapt to climate change. The five-year regional programme which also targeted Bhutan among other countries, started in 2013, with the goal of using natural resources in a more sustainable way thereby protecting the environment.

Other Areas:

Migrating EU Expertise(MIEUX): Under the MIEUX programme-aimed at enhancing capacities of public authorities of partner countries to better manage migration and mobility- the EU through its Member States is providing technical expertise in border management and document security to the Department of Immigration, Bhutan.

Asi@ Connect: The EU co-funded multi-country Asi@ Connect project provides a dedicated, regional high capacity and high quality Internet network, Trans-Eurasia Information Network(TEIN), for research and education communities across Asia and Europe. It leverages e-infrastructure developed for public service. The project currently assists in connecting all 9 colleges under the Royal University of Bhutan including the office Office of Vice Chancellor and 10 hospitals located around the country and provides eduroam service (a secure, world-wide roaming access service developed for the international research and education community allowing students, researchers and staff from participating institutions to obtain Internet connectivity across campus and when visiting other participating institutions by simply opening their laptop)

South Asia Regional Training and Technical Assistance Centre (SARTTAC): SARTTAC's goal is to help its member countries including Bhutan, strengthen their institutional and human capacity to design and implement macroeconomic and financial policies that promote growth and reduce poverty. The EU contributes with €10 million to this collaborative venture between the IMF and member countries.

South Asia Food and Nutrition Security Initiative (SAFANSI): The EU contributed with €13 million to the multi-country SAFANSI programme that was created to advance the food and nutrition agenda and foster intersectoral action in the countries of the South Asia region. Bhutan benefitted from this regional programme, through two projects of which one aimed at improving dietary diversity and care practices of pregnant and nursing women in remote rural areas. The second initiative was to support knowledge sharing and capacity building of Bhutan's Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, and learn from community based, market-driven approaches in Nepal and Pakistan.

The European Union-South Asia Capacity Building for Disaster Risk Management Programme (EU-SAR DRM Programme): The five-year multi-country programme, launched in 2015 with a budget of €10 million, aims at building weather and climate-related disasters resilience in South Asia. This is done by strengthening disaster risk management and hydro-meteorological (hydromet) service capacity. It focuses on enhancing capacity among regional bodies, national agencies, and other counterparts in member states of the South Asia Association for Regional Cooperation(SAARC). The programme supports projects in the region.

INTER PARES

Bhutan also benefits from the recently launched INTER PARES programme of the EU aiming to strengthen the capacities of Parliaments in partner countries. The multi-country programme is being implemented by the International Institute of Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) with the expertise of EU Member state parliaments. The support will focus mainly on enhancing legislative and oversight capacities of the Parliament of Bhutan, establishing and strengthening institutional linkages with other parliaments and implementing e-parliament initiatives in Bhutan. The programme will lay emphasis on both elected Members of Parliaments(MPs), particularly in their capacity as members of parliamentary committees, and on the staff of parliaments' secretariats. Currently, three EU Member State Parliaments i.e Hungary, Denmark and Greece have partnered with the project in support of the National Assembly and the National Council of Bhutan

Multi-annual Indicative Programme (MIP) 2014-2020, Bhutan

Thematic and regional programmes