Introduction:

The Kingdom of Bhutan is a landlocked and mountainous country in the Eastern Himalayan region bordered by India in the south and the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China in the north and northwest. It has a total land area of 38,394 square kilometers with projected population of 716,424 in year 2002 . (Area and population figure cited from the Statistical Year Book of Bhutan, 2002)

Bhutan is predominantly an agrarian country with 79% of the population still living in the rural areas and subsisting on an integrated livelihood system based on agricultural farming, livestock rearing and use of forest products - collectively known as the Renewable Natural Resource (RNR) sector. The RNR sector is the largest contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the country. It accounted for 32.7% of the total GDP in 2003. (RNR Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture, 2003)

Geographic coordinates: 27 30 N, 90 30 E

Map references: Asia

Land boundaries:
Total about: 1,075 km
border countries: China 470 km, India 605 km

Climate: varies; tropical in southern plains; cool winters and hot summers in central valleys; severe winters and cool summers in Himalayas

Terrain: mostly mountainous with some fertile valleys and savanna

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Drangme Chhu 97 m, highest point: Kula Kangri 7,553 m. This great range of latitudinal zones and varied climatic conditions makes it possible to have the most diverse flora and fauna. Bhutan has been marked as one of the ten global "hot spots" on Earth by the World Wildlife Fund.

Natural resources: timber, hydropower, gypsum, calcium carbide, talc etc

Land use:
arable land: 3%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 6%
forests and woodland: 72%
other: 26% (needs to be updated.)

Irrigated land: 340 sq. km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: violent storms coming down from the Himalayas are the source of the country's name which translates as Land of the Thunder Dragon; frequent landslides during the rainy season, flash floods due to haevy rains etc.

Environment - current issues: soil erosion; limited access to potable water
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Nuclear Test Ban signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Geography - note: landlocked; strategic location between China and India; controls several key Himalayan mountain passes