Asian Development Bank and Bangladesh: Fact Sheet

Abstract

Updated yearly, this ADB Fact Sheet provides social and economic indicators on Bhutan as well as concise information on ADB's operations in the country and contact information.Bhutan joined the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in 1982. It has since received $256.06 million in loans and $46.9 million in technical assistance. Today, ADB is Bhutan’s largest multilateral development partner. Bhutan’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth has averaged more than 7% per year for the past 7 years, raising per capita GDP to about $2,000. Bhutan is on track to achieve all of the Millennium Development Goals. It has made steady progress in the fight against poverty, with the number of people living below the poverty line down from 36.3% in 2000 to 23.2% in 2007. The economic base remains narrow, with hydropower accounting for almost 12% of GDP and 45% of national revenue. The Government of Bhutan aims to diversify the economic base by enabling greater private sector participation in development—a central pillar of its growth, employment generation, and poverty reduction strategy. Bhutan has embarked on a far-reaching development strategy aimed at boosting what it calls Gross National Happiness—a holistic concept combining material well-being with an individual’s spiritual, emotional, and cultural development. The new economic development policy (2010) aims to generate employment, diversify Bhutan’s economic base, promote entrepreneurship and economic growth in line with the continued emphasis on Gross National Happiness.