Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Bhutan
Bhutan: Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly was -1.35 Percentage change in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Bhutan, 1981–2024
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
Bhutan recorded -1.35 Percentage change for exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 14.4% on the previous year and down 65.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Bhutan peaked at 2.63 Percentage change in 2003 and was at its lowest, -3.73 Percentage change, in 1999.
Bhutan ranks 96th of 193 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Bhutan, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | -1.86 Percentage change | — |
| 1982 | -0.5994 Percentage change | -67.8% |
| 1983 | -0.9459 Percentage change | +57.8% |
| 1984 | -0.2517 Percentage change | -73.4% |
| 1985 | 0.771 Percentage change | -406.3% |
| 1986 | -0.9705 Percentage change | -225.9% |
| 1987 | -1.05 Percentage change | +8.0% |
| 1988 | -1.95 Percentage change | +86.3% |
| 1989 | -0.1736 Percentage change | -91.1% |
| 1990 | 0.3384 Percentage change | -294.8% |
| 1991 | 0.4083 Percentage change | +20.7% |
| 1992 | -0.1411 Percentage change | -134.6% |
| 1993 | 1.48 Percentage change | -1151.9% |
| 1994 | 1.12 Percentage change | -24.7% |
| 1995 | 0.3584 Percentage change | -67.9% |
| 1996 | 1.34 Percentage change | +273.2% |
| 1997 | 0.4485 Percentage change | -66.5% |
| 1998 | 0.2105 Percentage change | -53.1% |
| 1999 | -3.73 Percentage change | -1870.3% |
| 2000 | -0.3288 Percentage change | -91.2% |
| 2001 | -0.3735 Percentage change | +13.6% |
| 2002 | 0.3935 Percentage change | -205.3% |
| 2003 | 2.63 Percentage change | +569.4% |
| 2004 | 0.9348 Percentage change | -64.5% |
| 2005 | 0.0036 Percentage change | -99.6% |
| 2006 | -0.7078 Percentage change | -19801.1% |
| 2007 | 0.3691 Percentage change | -152.1% |
| 2008 | 0.48 Percentage change | +30.1% |
| 2009 | 0.7156 Percentage change | +49.1% |
| 2010 | 1.07 Percentage change | +50.1% |
| 2011 | 0.5195 Percentage change | -51.6% |
| 2012 | -1.12 Percentage change | -314.8% |
| 2013 | -1.52 Percentage change | +36.6% |
| 2014 | -0.8205 Percentage change | -46.2% |
| 2015 | -0.1629 Percentage change | -80.2% |
| 2016 | -0.3579 Percentage change | +119.8% |
| 2017 | -0.5098 Percentage change | +42.4% |
| 2018 | 0.0547 Percentage change | -110.7% |
| 2019 | 0.7336 Percentage change | +1241.8% |
| 2020 | -0.7227 Percentage change | -198.5% |
| 2021 | -0.9517 Percentage change | +31.7% |
| 2022 | -0.4025 Percentage change | -57.7% |
| 2023 | -1.58 Percentage change | +292.8% |
| 2024 | -1.35 Percentage change | -14.4% |
Bhutan compared with similar countries
- Bhutan's -1.35 Percentage change is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is -4.17 Percentage change, 32% of the median. (41 countries reporting)
- Bhutan's -1.35 Percentage change is above the median for South Asia, which is -1.35 Percentage change, 1.0× the median. (5 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Bhutan changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | -19801.1% | 0.0036 Percentage change | -0.7078 Percentage change |
| 1999 | -1870.3% | 0.2105 Percentage change | -3.73 Percentage change |
| 2019 | +1241.8% | 0.0547 Percentage change | 0.7336 Percentage change |
| 1993 | +1151.9% | -0.1411 Percentage change | 1.48 Percentage change |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | -0.7812 Percentage change | -1.95 Percentage change | 0.771 Percentage change | 9 |
| 1990s | 0.1836 Percentage change | -3.73 Percentage change | 1.48 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.412 Percentage change | -0.7078 Percentage change | 2.63 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -0.2109 Percentage change | -1.52 Percentage change | 1.07 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -1 Percentage change | -1.58 Percentage change | -0.4025 Percentage change | 5 |
Countries ranked near Bhutan
More environment data for Bhutan
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 0.2782 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 0.5977 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.257 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 2.08 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.487 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate -5.53 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Bhutan?
- Exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Bhutan was -1.35 Percentage change in 2024, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Bhutan?
- The highest recorded value was 2.63 Percentage change in 2003.
- What is the lowest exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Bhutan?
- The lowest recorded value was -3.73 Percentage change in 1999.
- How does Bhutan rank for exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly?
- Bhutan ranks 96th out of 193 countries with data for 2024.
- Is exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in Bhutan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 65.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Bhutan data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The dataset provides annual anomalies in land and cropland soil moisture content of the top soil layer compared to the reference period 1981-2010. Exposure indicators to drought have been prepared by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Please see the working paper for a more complete description of the methods. The datasets span the period 1981-2022 and is the result of the use of a variety of geospatial data sources, including the ERA5-Land averaged monthly data of volumetric soil moisture and ESA CCI land cover data. Average anomalies have been calculated for both land and cropland exposure to drought. The dataset has a global coverage on a national level; on the sub-national TL2 level (i.e. large subnational regions) results are reported for all OECD countries as well as for Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia and South Africa. A number of aggregates are included: Euro area, European Union, Advanced economies, Emerging market economies, G7, G20, OECD, OECD Europe, OECD Asia Oceania, OECD Americas and the LAC region. Data source(s): Copernicus Climate Change Initiative land cover data and Copernicus Climate Data Store monthly soil moisture data (ERA5). Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org Database documentation