Bhutan’s initiatives in sustainable agriculture and environmental conservation provide valuable lessons for neighbouring countries facing similar challenges. Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), a specialised UN agency, said this at an event to observe the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation, SSC. SSC is a cooperation among developing countries and serves as a key strategy for sharing technical expertise and experiences.
South-South Cooperation involves partnerships, knowledge sharing, and collaborative efforts among Global South or developing countries to tackle common challenges like poverty, inequality, climate change, and sustainable development.
The FAO representative for Bhutan and Nepal said that SSC is a valuable approach for achieving sustainable development.
Ken Shimizu, FAO Representative for Bhutan & Nepal said “South-South Cooperation is an approach and a methodology to promote exchange of technical expertise, and best practices between Bhutan and also other countries in the region to strengthen capacities of various stakeholders.”
He added that SSC aligns with Bhutan’s Gross National Happiness model, with Bhutan implementing innovative solutions like sustainable agriculture and environmental conservation.
The FAO, in partnership with the Government of Bhutan under the UN’s Sustainable Development Partnership Framework, is focused on enhancing food security and resilience to climate change through climate-smart agriculture.
According to the FAO representative, several SSC initiatives facilitate knowledge exchange between Bhutan and regional member countries, including the One Country One Priority Initiative, which promotes unique agricultural products by providing platforms for technical expertise exchange.
“In the case of Bhutan, the government has chosen quinoa as the priority commodity, which they are trying to also offer promotion. Bhutan is also providing information to other countries on what efforts they are making to promote quinoa. And then, at the same time, they are also learning about how other countries are promoting special agriculture products in their countries.”
Another key initiative is the Digital Agricultural Village, which enhances farming efficiency through digital agriculture and technology, while the Green Cities Initiative promotes greenhouse farming in rural areas nearby towns.
Ken Shimizu, FAO Representative for Bhutan & Nepal said “So, through all these initiatives, there is an exchange of information, technical expertise, and policy advice. This is an example of how we are promoting this South-South Cooperation approach.”
Through SSC, FAO has partnered with about 100 countries, supporting the mutual exchange of knowledge, technology, and good practices among nations in the Global South.
Devika Pradhan
Edited by Sherub Dorji
