Briefing: South Asia and Nepal Development Update, April 2024

Barsha Man Pun is the Finance Minister of Nepal and a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Center. He served as the Minister of Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation in March 2018-December2021 under the Oli-led cabinet. He also previously served as Minister of Finance (August 2011-March 2013) and Minister of Peace and Reconstruction (2011).

Dr. Yubaraj Khatiwada is a noted Nepali economist. He is the former Minister of Finance and the Minister of Information, Communications, and Technology. He was also the member of National Assembly and Nepal’s ambassador to the United States. He also held the post of Vice-Chairperson at the National Planning Commission twice. From 2010-2015, he served as the fifteenth governor of Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). He has also worked as the senior economist in the regional centre of UNDP for Asia and the Pacific for the United Nations. He has a PhD in Monetary Economics from Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi.

Dr. Ram Prasad Ghimire is the Revenue Secretary at the Ministry of Finance. Prior to this, he worked as the Secretary in the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority and in the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. He has also served as Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Finance and Province Secretary in the Ministry of Social Development, Gandaki Province. Mr Ghimire has a PhD from The Australian National University (2007). He also holds two Master’s degrees, one in Public Administration, Development Administration from TU (1996) as well as Masters of Development Studies, Public Policy and Management from International Institute of Social Studies of Erasmus University Rotterdam (2003).

Franziska Ohnsorge is the World Bank Chief Economist for South Asia. In this role, she is responsible for leading the research program on key economic issues in South Asia to inform the policy debate and World Bank lending. Before starting this position, she was the Manager at the Development Economics Vice Presidency where she spearheaded the flagship Global Economic Prospects report. Prior to joining the World Bank, Franziska Ohnsorge worked in the Office of the Chief Economist of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and at the International Monetary Fund. Her research has been featured in peer-reviewed journals as well as policy publications and has covered a wide range of topics in international macroeconomics and finance, including debt and financial crises, inflation, and monetary policy, as well as growth and informal labor markets. Her work has been widely cited, including in the Economist, the Wall Street Journal, and the Financial Times. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto.

Faris Hadad-Zervos is the World Bank Country Director for Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. Prior to this, he served as the World Bank Country Manager for Nepal, Country Manager for Malaysia and the Head of the Global Knowledge and Research Hub in Kuala Lumpur. Mr. Hadad-Zervos, a US national, joined the World Bank in 1996 with the Private Sector Development Department. He served as Manager of the Technical Cooperation Program with the Gulf Cooperation Countries (2000-2003), Head of Mission for Iraq (2003-2005), Operations Manager for the West Bank and Gaza (2005-2008), Acting Director for Fragile States in the Operations Department (2010-2011) and Country Manager for Bolivia (2012-2015). In 2008, Hadad-Zervos took a leave of absence from the World Bank to serve as the Deputy Head of the Quartet Office for the Middle East Peace Process, based in Jerusalem. Hadad-Zervos holds a Master’s Degree in Economics from George Mason University, and a Master’s Degree in Finance from George Washington University.

H.E. Danielle Meuwly joined the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) in 2015 and was appointed as Deputy Head of Mission in Bishkek. In 2019, she was appointed as Head of Cooperation for the South Caucasus, based in Tbilisi. She has also held the position of Deputy Director of State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and has worked as a personal advisor in 2010 to Joseph Deiss, then President of the UN General Assembly in New York. Ms. Meuwly has also served as a Permanent Delegation to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Paris as a delegate to the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), a committee of which she assumed the vice-presidency. She also worked in the office of the Executive Director for Switzerland at the World Bank in Washington DC as Principal Advisor. Originally from Fribourg, Switzerland, Ms. Meuwly holds a doctorate in economics from the University of Fribourg and a degree in advanced European studies from the College of Europe.

Abdoul Mijiyawa is currently the World Bank’s Senior Country Economist for Nepal. He recently served as Senior Economist in the office of the EFI Regional Director for Western and Central Africa (AFW), based in Washington DC, where he advised and supported the Regional Director on strategic operation matters across 22 AFW countries. Prior to that, Abdoul held several field-based Country Economist positions, notably in Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, and Guinea, where he closely worked with governments on development policy operations and analytical works. Before joining the World Bank, he worked as an economist for the African Center for Economic Transformation. Abdoul extensively published in economic journals such as World Development, World Economy, International Economics, Economics of Governance, and Journal of International Development. His publications cover various topics, including economic growth, public debt, economic transformation and productivity, FDI drivers and its effect on exports, as well as institutional economics. He received a Ph.D. in economics from CERDI, University of Auvergne (France), where he also taught.

Professor Bhargab Dhital currently serves as the Rector of Tribhuvan University. He also assumes the responsibility of Dean at the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science. He has 30 years of teaching experience.Professor Dhital has extensive experience in administration as a young campus chief and Director of the Directorate of Research and Publication. His publications include journal articles, a book on Livestock production, and a number of general pieces in various magazines. He has also served as Editor in Chief of The Journal of Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science. Beyond academics, Prof. Dhital has also an exposure experience as a member of the Board of Director at Agriculture Development Bank Ltd. for two terms. Professor Dhital is passionate about learning about new breeds of animals and birds.

Prof. Dr. Shiva Lal Bhusal is the former Vice-chancellor and Rector of Tribhuvan University. He has almost three decades of teaching and research experience in working in academic and research in different universities and academic and research institutions. As a development economist, he has also served different in different government and non-government agencies in various capacities. He has a PhD Degree in Economics from Tribhuvan University.

Dr. Resham Thapa is the Head of Central Dept. of Economics,Tribhuvan University. Holding a PhD in International Development Economics from the University of Hull, UK, he teaches modules centred on and around quantitative development economics. His recently completed works are (a) the Impact of COVID-19 on the Nepalese Economy with PRI Nepal, (b) the Impact of the Ukraine-Russia War on the Nepalese Economy in partnership with IFPRI, and (c) Palika-level HDI calculation for Gandaki province in collaboration with the Gandaki Province Planning Commission. Currently, he is working on (a) Labour economics (Gender, Occupation, and Education level wage discrimination dynamics in Nepal), (b) Fiscal federalism (Local government effectiveness, resource curse, and fiscal discipline), and (c) Effectiveness of conservation areas (Poverty, Empowerment, and Forest regeneration). He is a member of the Economics Subject Committee, which oversees the economics curriculum university-wide.

Pramila Acharya Rijal Founder and the President of the South Asian Women Development Forum (SAWDF) is a Gender and Women Entrepreneurial Expert. Over the past two decades, she has been promoting and advocating for women's economic empowerment in Nepal and South Asia. She is the past President of Federation of Women Entrepreneurs Associations of Nepal (FWEAN), Charter President of Zonta club, Kathmandu, Past Chairperson of SAARC Chamber Women Entrepreneurs Council. She is the Board member of the Industry, Commerce, Promotion Dialogue Council headed by the Prime Minister of Nepal. Under her leadership, the first Women Entrepreneurs Green Industrial Park (WEGrIP) in Nepal and second in South Asia under a Public- Private Partnership model is being established in Province 3.  Ms. Rijal has been conferred by the Rt. Honorable President of Nepal, with the “Prabal Jana Sewa Shree” Medal - one of the highest civilian awards of Nepal.

Binaya Banjara is the Vice-President of Society of Economic Journalists- Nepal (SEJON). He currently serves as the Executive Editor at arthapath.com, an online based news media. He has a decade-long experience of journalism, especially in the sector of business and economic reporting. Banjara has completed a master's degree in mass communication and journalism.