Nepal's Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Balendra "Balen" Shah, recommended ambassadors for 13 countries on Friday, filling key diplomatic posts including India, China, the United States and the United Kingdom that had sat vacant dating back to last October when the interim Sushila Karki government recalled envoys from major postings including China, the US, the UK, Russia and Japan. Friday's recommendations restore leadership to most though not all of those empty seats.
The 13 nominees were selected from more than 4,400 applications and recommendations the Foreign Ministry received after opening the process in May, according to Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal. Below is a brief introduction of all 13.
1.Dr. Nischal Nath Pandey (India) : Director of the Centre for South Asian Studies, a Kathmandu-based foreign policy think tank. He previously served eight years as executive director of the Institute of Foreign Affairs under Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He holds an LLB and a PhD in Political Science from Tribhuvan University, and has long advised the government on foreign policy, tourism and civil aviation matters.
2.Dr. Kalyan Raj Sharma (China): Sharma has 20+ years in academia, institutional leadership and Nepal-China engagement, and holds a PhD in Economics from Fudan University. He chairs the Fudan University Alumni Association of Nepal, the Nepal-China Friendship Forum and the Council of Sinologists-Nepal, and is a visiting scholar at Kathmandu University School of Management. He is also managing director of a tourism company, sits on investment and energy company boards, and has received the Nepal Bhusan honor (2016) and the Silk Road Friendship Award (2021).
3.Chiran Jung Thapa (United States): Thapa is a security policy and diplomacy specialist with 20+ years of experience, holding a master's from Columbia's SIPA and a bachelor's from SUNY Geneseo. He has advised Nepal's Ministry of Defence, National Security Council, Army and Police, and developed the Army's first civil-military relations course. Since 2017 he has been Oxfam's Regional Security Adviser for Asia. He is also a known defense analyst who speaks on India-Nepal and US-Nepal relations at forums such as the Chanakya Defence Dialogue.
4.Gaurav Shumsher JB Rana (United Kingdom): A former Chief of Army Staff of the Nepali Army. His background is military leadership rather than traditional diplomacy or academia, which sets him apart from most others on this list. His appointment to a country with a long, historic defense relationship with Nepal through the Gurkha regiments may reflect that military-to-military dimension.
5.Jigyan Kumar Thapa (Japan): Thapa holds a master's in International Relations and Law from Yokohama National University and has worked since 2009 as an international cooperation and public policy specialist at the Kanagawa International Foundation. He has coordinated high-level Nepal-Japan bilateral engagements since 2005, including the business dialogue during the Nepali President's 2026 visit to Japan. He has led the Non-Resident Nepali Association Japan as general secretary, teaches at several Japanese universities, and is fluent in Japanese (JLPT Level 1)
6.Suresh Kumar Karna (Israel): Karna was Chief Information and Marketing Officer of Kumari Bank (2003-2015), where he launched Kumari Mobile Cash, described as Nepal's first mobile wallet, and later Chief Operating Officer of Nepal Bank Limited (2015-2019), leading its core banking migration. He has chaired the Japan-backed Kumo Labs since 2024, is a two-term president of the Computer Association of Nepal Federation, helped draft Nepal's first National IT Policy, and holds an MBA from Beijing Normal University.
7.Prapti Sherchan (Spain): Sherchan has been an Operations Officer for Gender Solutions and Impact at the IFC (World Bank Group) since 2015, leading its India Gender Country Program and co-leading Asia efforts on women's insurance, which reportedly reached 1.3 million+ women. She has led multi-country research across South Asia and ASEAN, chairs the US board of Women Lead Nepal.
8.Sharu Joshi (Germany):Joshi helped shape Nepal's labour migration framework, including the Foreign Employment Act 2007 and Policy 2012, and spent a decade with UN Women (2002-2018), including as Regional Programme Manager and Labour Diplomacy Lead for South Asia. Since 2018 she has worked as an independent policy consultant with UN Women and the World Bank, serves on the Nepal Policy Institute's Executive Board, and has published 60+ articles on labour migration and gender.
9.Dr. Padmakshi Rana (Oman): Rana has 15+ years of experience in development and entrepreneurship across Nepal, Asia and Europe. Since 2022 she has been executive director and co-founder of Impact Hub Kathmandu, building partnerships with UK Aid/FCDO, the EU, UNDP, UNICEF and the World Bank. She holds a PhD and MPhil from Cambridge and an MBA from Webster University Thailand, and previously held research and teaching roles at Cambridge and co-founded the Singapore-based consultancy The Inceptery.
10.Chudamani Kharel (Malaysia) : An education and public-administration professional. He has also held leadership positions within Nepal's sports administration, an unusual dual background for a diplomatic appointment. His nomination to Malaysia comes at a notably sensitive time, given the ongoing Nepal-Malaysia labour recruitment dispute over migrant worker agencies.
11.Prof. Dr. Sangam Shrestha (South Korea) : A water-security specialist and professor at the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand. His academic focus brings a technical, climate-and-resources angle rather than a traditional political or diplomatic background. South Korea is a significant labour-migration destination for Nepali workers, making his appointment relevant to that ongoing relationship.
12.Dr. Manchala Jha (Sri Lanka) : A governance and public-policy specialist. She served as a commissioner of Nepal's Truth and Reconciliation Commission from 2015 to 2019, giving her direct experience in post-conflict institutional work. This background is somewhat distinct from the other nominees, most of whom come from academic, security, or administrative fields rather than transitional-justice work.
13.Giri Bahadur Sunar (Saudi Arabia) :A social scientist and development specialist. His work has focused on social inclusion, gender equality, and climate adaptation. Saudi Arabia is one of Nepal's largest labour-migration destinations, so his development and social-policy background may be seen as relevant to the welfare concerns of the large Nepali migrant worker population there.
