Druk Gyalpo's Relief Kidu

The Druk Gyalpo's Relief Kidu was a royal welfare programme launched in April 2020 by command of His Majesty Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, the fifth Druk Gyalpo, to provide direct income support to Bhutanese citizens whose livelihoods were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. It was administered through the Royal Office of Media in Tashichhodzong and disbursed monthly cash grants to applicants whose primary income had been disrupted by lockdowns and border closures. By the time the programme wound down in 2022 it had disbursed more than Nu 3.6 billion to about 52,000 individuals.

The Relief Kidu sat within the older institution of kidu, the prerogative of the Druk Gyalpo to provide welfare directly to subjects in distress, which has been exercised by the Wangchuck monarchs since the early twentieth century. It was the largest single exercise of kidu in the history of the kingdom and is widely cited as a defining feature of Bhutan's pandemic response.

Background and launch

Bhutan announced its first confirmed COVID-19 case on 6 March 2020 and progressively closed its land borders with India through March, halting the tourism and informal-sector economies on which a significant share of urban employment depended. On 10 April 2020 His Majesty addressed the nation and commanded that a relief kidu be established for Bhutanese citizens whose income had been directly affected by the pandemic. The application process opened on 14 April 2020 via a dedicated portal at royalkidu.bt.^[1]

The first disbursement of Nu 150 million reached 13,006 people in late April 2020. The grants were set at Nu 12,000 per person per month for full-amount recipients and Nu 8,000 per month for partial recipients, with eligibility tied to documented loss of regular income.^[2]

Scope and phases

The programme was renewed in successive phases as the pandemic continued, with each phase requiring re-application and re-verification. By late 2021 the cumulative cash disbursement had passed Nu 3.6 billion, reaching more than 33,000 direct beneficiaries and over 14,000 children. Final figures from the Royal Office of Media reported by Kuensel give a total of 52,644 individuals who received income support across the lifetime of the programme.^[3]

A separate but related Royal Kidu instrument was the Interest Payment Support Kidu, which paid the bank interest on loans held by individuals and businesses affected by the pandemic. From April 2020 to December 2022 this support amounted to a further Nu 14 billion and reached approximately 139,096 loan accounts.^[3]

Administration and the Desuung network

The Royal Office of Media managed eligibility, verification and grant disbursement through partnerships with the Desuung volunteer service and the commercial banks. Desuups - graduates of the De-suung "Guardians of Peace" national-service programme - were deployed for last-mile distribution, including in remote dzongkhags and at ad-hoc quarantine facilities. The bank-account-based payment infrastructure built up during the programme was later cited by the Ministry of Finance and the World Bank as one of the digital-government legacies of the pandemic response.^[4]

Wind-down and assessments

The income-support component of the Relief Kidu was wound down in mid-2022 as Bhutan reopened its borders to international tourists in September 2022. The interest-support component continued through to December 2022 before tapering. The International Social Security Association (ISSA) and the World Bank cited the Bhutanese programme as one of the more comprehensive emergency cash transfers in the South Asia region during the pandemic.^[5]

Independent commentary has also noted limitations. Coverage was tied to documented prior income, which excluded some informal-sector workers and undocumented Bhutanese-Indian cross-border workers from eligibility. The programme was administered as kidu - that is, as a personal welfare grant from the king - rather than as a statutory entitlement, which meant that beneficiaries had no right of appeal and that the parliament played no direct role in approving disbursements.^[6]

References

1. His Majesty The King's Address to the Nation, 12 September 2020 — royalkidu.bt
2. Press Release from the Druk Gyalpo's Relief Kidu, 30 April 2020 — Royal Government of Bhutan
3. Royal Kidu benefited 52,644 individuals and 139,096 loan account holders — Kuensel
4. Investments in GovTech is allowing Bhutan to reap benefits during COVID-19 — World Bank
5. Bhutan: Druk Gyalpo's Relief Kidu extended for three months — ISSA Knowledge Sharing Platform
6. Druk Gyalpo's Relief Kidu to be continued beyond the 3rd phase — The Bhutanese