Assessing Socio-Economic Impacts of Agricultural Subsidies: A Case Study from Bhutan

Sonam Wangyel Wang, Belay Manjur, Jeong-Gyu Kim and Woo-Kyun Lee
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Sonam Wangyel Wang: Ojeong Eco-Resilience Institute (OJERI), Division of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
Belay Manjur: Division of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
Jeong-Gyu Kim: Ojeong Eco-Resilience Institute (OJERI), Division of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
Woo-Kyun Lee: Division of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 12, 1-12

Abstract: As an agrarian nation, Bhutan’s agricultural policies prioritize agricultural subsidies to boost agricultural production, rural incomes, improve food security, and reduce income poverty, especially among the rural poor. However, the effectiveness and efficiency of such policy interventions remains unknown. Based on semi-structured interviews with heads of households from six blocks representing two districts, expert consultation with agricultural policymakers and extension agents, we attempted to evaluate the socio-economic impacts of agricultural subsidy programs including co-payments. The study found that while over 90% of the households received at least one form of subsidy, except for agricultural machineries and piglets, the non-poor population has greater access to the subsidies compared to the poor. For instance, only 35% of the poor received seed and sapling subsidies compared to 52% seeds and 39% sapling subsidies received by the non-poor population. Furthermore, none of the poor received Jersey cow or biogas subsidies due to their inability to co-pay. Additionally, the agriculture machinery subsidy was found to be counterproductive to the lower income groups (Keywords: agriculture; subsidy; Bhutan; farm machinery; co-payments; poverty (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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