Rural Finance Sector Development Program (ADB-53307-001)

Regions
  • South Asia
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Countries
  • Bhutan
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Financial Institutions
  • Asian Development Bank (ADB)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Approved
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
C
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Voting Date
Dec 11, 2020
Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.
Borrower
Government of Bhutan
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Finance
  • Technical Cooperation
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Advisory Services, Loan
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Investment Amount (USD)
$ 21.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Loan Amount (USD)
$ 20.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Grant Amount (USD)
$ 1.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Bank Documents
Other Related Projects
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ ADB website

Updated in EWS Jul 4, 2024

Disclosed by Bank Jun 30, 2020

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Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

According to the bank's website, "The program will support BDBL to transform into a viable and efficient financial intermediary focusing on rural CSIs. The program will also support BDBL to expand non-collateral based financing to rural CSIs as well as business development support and financial literacy training with gender inclusive outreach targets. The program has three outputs: Output 1: BDBL restructured and strengthened; Output 2: Non-collateral based rural cottage and small industry financing expanded; and Output 3: Business development support and financial literacy training extended to rural cottage and small industries."

The Rural Finance Sector Development Program aims to promote the access to finance of rural cottage and small industries (CSIs) in Bhutan. It supports the restructuring of Bhutan
Development Bank (BDB) to significantly enhance its rural CSI finance outreach. It will also support BDB to expand non-collateral-based financing to rural CSIs as well as business
development support and financial literacy training with gender-inclusive targets. The program will take a sector development program modality. The program is aligned with the Asian Development Bank country partnership strategy for Bhutan, 2019–2023, which is committed to diversifying the finance sector and promoting financial inclusion.

 

Early Warning System Project Analysis
For a project with severe or irreversible impacts to local community and natural resources, the Early Warning System Team may conduct a thorough analysis regarding its potential impacts to human and environmental rights.

The ADB categorized the project E&S risks as follows:

Environment - FI;
Involuntary Resettlement - FI-C;
Indigenous Peoples - FI-C.
Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.
Financial Intermediary
A financial intermediary is a bank or financial institution that receives funds from a development bank. A financial intermediary then lends these funds to their clients (private actors) in the form of loans, bonds, guarantees and equity shares. Financial intermediaries include insurance, pension and equity funds. The direct financial relationship is between the development bank and the financial intermediary.
Private Actors Description
A Private Actor is a non-governmental body or entity that is the borrower or client of a development project, which can include corporations, private equity and banks. This describes the private actors and their roles in relation to the project, when private actor information is disclosed or has been further researched.

As stated on the company's website, Bhutan Development Bank Limited (BDB) was incorporated by the Royal Charter, in January 1988, with assistance of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to function as a development finance institution (DFI). BDB is registered as a company under the Companies Act (2000 and licensed under the Financial Institutions Act 1992).BDB now functions as a domestic development bank with cheque facilities after obtaining its banking license in March,2010.


Contact Information
This section aims to support the local communities and local CSO to get to know which stakeholders are involved in a project with their roles and responsibilities. If available, there may be a complaint office for the respective bank which operates independently to receive and determine violations in policy and practice. Independent Accountability Mechanisms receive and respond to complaints. Most Independent Accountability Mechanisms offer two functions for addressing complaints: dispute resolution and compliance review.

Responsible ADB Officer:

Ozaki, Mayumi
Gunawardhena, Manohari

Executing Agencies - Ministry of Finance:

Department of Macroeconomic Affairs
Tashichho Dzong, Post Box No. 117

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF ADB

The Accountability Mechanism is an independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by an Asian Development Bank-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the Accountability Mechanism, they may investigate to assess whether the Asian Development Bank is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. You can learn more about the Accountability Mechanism and how to file a complaint at: http://www.adb.org/site/accountability-mechanism/main

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How it works