The Loden Foundation, in partnership with Boiling Point and Society Switzerland Bhutan, is pleased to call for business proposals from aspiring and existing Bhutanese entrepreneurs. The programme shall support a wide range of entrepreneurial ventures that are innovative, viable, and capable of scaling up. The proposals should be aligned with the national priorities of creating employment, substituting imports, and improving the resilience of the Bhutanese economy.

Standard Selection Process: An independent panel of national and international expert judges will evaluate the business proposals and the applicants. Shortlisted applications will then be called for an interview in September 2022 at the Loden office in Thimphu or conducted virtually. In case of changes in timing, Loden communications will give prior notice on the website.

Standard Loan Scheme and Repayment Procedure: Selected applicants will be offered interest and collateral-free loans up to Nu.1.5 million, repayable within four years. The loan will be disbursed within two months after the final results are announced and upon fulfilling all necessary prerequisites. The selected applicants will be asked to sign a loan agreement with the Loden Foundation and present a guarantor. The loan is disbursed in two tranches. The second tranche of the loan shall be made upon verification of the proper use of money received in the first tranche and with a favorable recommendation from the project monitoring team from Loden.

Mentoring Support: Mentoring support shall be provided to the selected entrepreneurs to support the progress of the business and provide guidance in necessary areas related to business. Once the business is operational, the entrepreneurs shall submit a detailed bi-annual written report to the Loden office. The entrepreneurs usually are given a grace period of up to six months and are required to pay back the entire loan amount within a four-year period.

What are business ideas eligible to apply?
The Loden Entrepreneurship Programme (LEP) exists to help young Bhutanese men and women with the vision, drive, and idea to set up or scale up economically beneficial, socially responsible, culturally sensitive, and environment-friendly businesses.

A selection committee will evaluate the proposal based on the following priority criteria:

1. Financial viability (able to repay the loan)
2. Cultural, social and ecological sensitivity (e.g. not a slaughterhouse, fishery, logging, bar, etc)
3. Clear and realistic
4. A business idea with social impacts such as employment generation, community benefits, and many more.
5. Geographic suitability or regional balance (advantageous to be based outside Thimphu)
6. Non-duplication of LEP-funded projects or projects (should not be something that is already in the market and where there is no requirement for such projects)
7. Entrepreneurial drive and motivation (good business is not sufficient; we need real entrepreneurs)
8. Personal commitment (teamwork and personal investment are a plus)
9. Skills (understanding competition and critical business indicators)

Application Process:
There are TWO application processes, and please choose any ONE of the following:

Process A: Applicants must submit the business proposal template developed by Loden Foundation, which is available (HERE). If you are following process A, you do not have to submit the documents listed in process B because those documents need to be attached in the same template.

Process B: Applicants who are submitting their own business proposal must submit the following documents:

1. Business proposal (not exceeding 15 pages) GUIDELINE
2. Curriculum Vitae (CV)
3. Personal statement explaining why you are interested in the chosen business
4. Duly filled Business Plan Submission form available HERE
5. Latest CIB report of the applicant. If you are married, you also need to submit your spouse’s CIB report from the Credit Information Bureau of Bhutan. For further details, you may visit HERE
6. CID copy

NOTE 1: We also encourage you to submit supporting documents (if applicable) such as lease approvals for land, proforma invoices of machinery & equipment, and appropriate recommendation letters proving proficiency or recognition.

NOTE 2: If you are a returning applicant applying the same idea, you must explicitly mention what is new in your business plan. You must also indicate if you have received or applied for funding for the same business from other funding sources.

Interested applicants must submit the complete set of documents via email in a single PDF file to ‘application@loden.org‘

Applications submitted after 5 PM, 13th September 2022, will not be considered. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for the interview rounds. For further information, contact Mr. Lhakpa, Programme Officer, at the office phone at 77195599 or email at lhakpa@loden.org during office hours.

Click Frequently Asked Questions for additional information.