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Bhutanese man

Food Security and Agriculture Productivity (FSAPP)

$8 million to raise agricultural output through improved irrigation, water management, farm mechanization, and adoption of agriculture production technology.

Curt Carnemark/World Bank

About the Project

Bhutan is a small landlocked nation, with only 8% of arable land, only 3% of which is under cultivation, mostly by smallholder farmers. Large areas are exposed to monsoons, floods, droughts, landslides, and earthquakes. More than a third of Bhutan’s poor live in rural areas, and almost 70% of the rural population engages in subsistence farming.

In support of the government’s efforts to reduce rural poverty and high levels of malnutrition through climate-smart agriculture productivity enhancements for food and nutrition security and to increase farmers’ access to local and export markets, particularly for key high-value crops, FSAPP increases agricultural productivity and enhances market linkages in rural districts in southwest Bhutan. The project aims to enhance the productivity of food crops, such as rice, maize, potato, vegetables, pulses, and possibly quinoa, citrus, apples, potatoes, and high-value crops, including spices, especially large cardamom, and ginger. Key activities include strengthening producers’ groups; developing irrigation, including on-farm sprinkler and drip systems; providing improved agri-inputs and farm equipment; and supporting home-grown school feeding programs. 

Country

  • Bhutan

Project Status

Active

Funding

Public

Supervising entity

  • World Bank

Call Year

2013

GAFSP Funding Amount

8.00

Results

To date, FSAPP has reached more than 7,523 people, 43% of them women, with the aim of reaching 10,400 throughout implementation; has equipped 887 hectares with new irrigation and drainage services; provided 1,647 people with improved nutrition services and products; supported 97 producer-based organizations; and provided 30 farmer groups with market information. FSAPP has completed its planned four major irrigation schemes and is in the process of constructing the distribution networks for each. The project also has exceeded its target for areas covered with micro-irrigation, reaching 277 acres against an end of project target of 250 acres. In total, the project has provided 1,062 users with new or improved irrigation services against an end of project target of 4,065. Further, FSAPP has exceeded its targets in providing groups with market infrastructure and market information. To date, the 13 major post-harvest facilities constructed or rehabilitated include markets, agro-processing, storage, and quality control facilities, one for each district.