Bhutan poverty assessment 2014

While Bhutan has made remarkable gains in reducing extreme poverty, sections of its population remain vulnerable to falling back into poverty, says the Bhutan Poverty Assessment Report. The Bhutan Poverty Assessment Report 2014 which was released by the National Statistics Bureau in collaboration with the World Bank at Thimphu provides an account of the poverty outcomes observed under the country’s 10th Five-Year Plan (2008-2013). In just over five years, from 2007-2012, the number of poor in Bhutan reduced by almost half - from 23 per cent in 2007 to 12 per cent in 2012. However for every two families that escaped poverty, one fell into poverty. The report asks for this trend to be addressed through a range of policy and economic measures in order to sustain the country’s significant achievements in poverty reduction over the longer term.