Contact information:

Sector Leader SHCC:
Ms Srijana Rana
SNV Bhutan
Khanglung
T: +975 (0)4 535135
F: +975 (0)4 535107
Email

Small-holder Cash Crops (SHCC)

Agriculture is Bhutan’s main economic activity; it contributes 24.7% to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and some 69% of the population depends on it for their livelihood. The majority of these people are classified as subsistence farmers. The average size of landholdings is small and soil fertility is a major challenge; both of which are due to prevailing natural factors. The terrain is amongst the most mountainous in the world, making the slopes too steep for agricultural pursuits and the annual high levels of rainfall treacherous.

Agricultural markets are weakly developed and the sector is characterised by non- monetised systems.

The Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB) is presently in the process of finalising its horticulture development plan. Horticulture has been identified as the sub-sector most able to rapidly contribute to increasing the cash incomes of poor farmers. In addition to this, the organic concept has also been accorded high priority and a National Organic Programme (NOP) was established inside the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) in 2006.

Our objective:
The SNV Smallholder Cash Crops sector in Bhutan focuses its work on developing fruits and vegetables, including organic produce.

These have been selected because of their high potential to provide immediate cash income to poverty-stricken subsistence farmers and backyard growers. The overarching objective of the sector is to increase income and employment opportunities for smallholder farmers.

Our services
SNV provides technical support and capacity building services to our partners.
Our services include:

Creating an enabling environment for businesses that facilitates pro-poor economic growth
Applying of value chain development tools and approaches for sub sector development
Forming and strengthening of producer and marketing groups
Organising and developing of multi-stakeholder platforms
Auditing gender and social inclusion
Providing leadership training
Supporting Business Development Services (BDS)
Providing long-term, sector specific technical assistance in agriculture, marketing, business and enterprise development
Creating business-to-business linkages and networks with a specific focus on private sector development.

Our added value to our clients:

Expertise, knowledge and experience in value chain development (leading to increased competitiveness, sales and income for the rural farmers)
A network of cross-sector expertise in related fields of development, agriculture and pro-poor business
Expertise and knowledge in working with and developing private sector organisations
Networking and coordination of regional and international stakeholders
Experience and knowledge in developing business services markets.

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Enhanced community livelihood through ownership of rural infrastructure

Essential to enhancing rural community livelihoods is the provision of rural infrastructure. “Reaching the un-reached” – through the provision of roads – remains a primary aim of the Royal Government of Bhutan. Farm roads provide access to basic services and provide communities with better opportunities for participation in education, health, entrepreneurship, and market access.

For the past 1.5 years SNV Bhutan, together with the AMEPP (Agriculture Marketing Enterprise Promotion Programme) Project unit at Khangma (eastern Bhutan) has been working towards this aim. The AMEPP project is a $US19 million initiative funded by IFAD, the Royal Government of Bhutan, SNV, and the communities of the six eastern Dzongkhags.

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