Chiranjivi Baral — Executive Director
Chiranjivi Baral serves as the Executive Director of the Nepal Institute of Development Studies (NIDS). He brings extensive leadership experience from academic and development institutions, with core areas of interest spanning labour migration, education, and self-employment. He holds an M.A., M.Ed., and M.Phil., and has been serving as a Visiting Faculty at Kathmandu University since 2015. Mr. Baral has also contributed significantly to translation and editing in the development sector.
Dr. Ganesh Gurung — Founding Chairperson
Dr. Ganesh Gurung is the founding Chairperson of NIDS and a sociologist by training, holding a PhD. He served as Executive Chairperson of the Policy Research Institute (the Government of Nepal’s think tank), Vice Chairperson of the Social Welfare Council (2003–2004), and Chair of CARAM Asia (2005–2007). He has also served as Task Force Member and Convenor at the Ministry of Labour (2007–2008) and the National Planning Commission (2009), and was formerly Chair of the Nepal National Network of Safe Migration. With research involvement in migration issues since 1990, Dr. Gurung has authored several books and research articles on migration-related themes.
Dr. Jagannath Adhikari — Senior Researcher
Dr. Jagannath Adhikari brings over 26 years of specialized experience across diverse development sectors including agrarian change, natural resource conservation, food security, and labour migration. He holds a PhD in Agrarian Change from the Australian National University, Australia, and an M.Sc. from the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand. Dr. Adhikari has contributed extensively to research publications across a wide range of development issues.
Dr. Yogendra B. Gurung — Social Demographer
Dr. Yogendra B. Gurung works at NIDS as a Social Demographer and has been involved in numerous research initiatives with the institute. He holds a Master’s Degree in Development Studies from the Institute of Social Studies (ISS), The Hague, Netherlands, and a degree in Population Studies from the Central Department of Population Studies, Tribhuvan University. A Professor at the Central Department of Population Studies, Tribhuvan University, Dr. Gurung has contributed to a wide range of national and international publications.
Dr. Jan Sharma — Political Scientist & Researcher
Dr. Jan Sharma holds a PhD in Political Science from Tribhuvan University, with a primary research focus on state and democracy building in Asia. He has contributed research papers to several international and regional political science journals, including the International Political Science Review, and has commented widely on Nepal’s political developments in both national and international media. He is the author of Democracy Without Roots and Nepal Japan Relations: Time for Strategic Partnership.
Professor Dr. Hari Prasad Shrestha — Researcher
Professor Dr. Hari Prasad Shrestha is a retired Professor of Tribhuvan University and a researcher at NIDS. He served as Acting Campus Chief at Public Youth Campus, Faculty of Management. He holds a PhD in Tourism Marketing and an MBA from Tribhuvan University. Dr. Shrestha has served as a central executive board member of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, Treasurer of Nepal Education Supports Nepal (NESA) Japan, and representative for Nepal to Kinderhilfe Nepal e.V., Germany. He was awarded the Mahendra Vidya Bhushan in 1999.
Associate Professor Dr. Padma Prasad Khatiwada — Researcher
Dr. Padma Prasad Khatiwada is an Associate Professor and researcher at NIDS, holding a PhD in Humanities and Social Sciences from Tribhuvan University. He is a core committee member of the South Asia Alliance for Poverty Education (SAAPE), General Secretary of the Human Rights Alliance, and an Executive Member of NIDS. He has served as a trainer for Ministry of Health and Population officials on population health issues related to migration, and is an editor of the Nepal Population Journal. A lifetime member of the Nepal English Language Teachers’ Association (NELTA), Dr. Khatiwada has been involved in published and unpublished research on migration, demography, health, and sociology for over two decades.
Mr. Mahendra Kr. Bantawa — Researcher & Data Management Expert
Mr. Mahendra Kr. Bantawa is affiliated with NIDS as a Researcher and Data Management Expert. He brings over 15 years of experience in research, data analysis, report writing, and data management across migration, socio-economic, and development sectors. An Assistant Professor of Population Studies at Tribhuvan University, he holds an M.A. in Demography and Political Science, an M.Ed. in Curriculum and Evaluation, and LL.B. and LL.M. degrees from Nepal Law Campus, Tribhuvan University, and is currently an M.Phil. candidate pursuing a PhD. Mr. Bantawa was a Research Fellow of SOSIN-2018 (Local Governance: Inclusive Perspectives) and a JDR-3 Scholar under USAID 2022 (Reintegration Approaches and Practices of Victims of Human Trafficking in Nepal).
Mr. Mahendra Subedi — Researcher, Labour Migration
Mr. Mahendra Subedi is a researcher at NIDS specialising in labour migration. His work at the institute encompasses research on legal, safe, secured, and dignified labour migration, as well as media studies and the Right to Information (RTI). He holds an M.A. in English Literature and a B.Ed. in English, and has worked as a media practitioner for over a decade. Mr. Subedi has authored numerous articles and book reviews on labour migration, remittance, and related issues.
Ms. Durga Gurung — Senior Programme Coordinator
Ms. Durga Gurung holds a Master’s degree in Public Health and brings extensive experience from her tenure with the Ministry of Health, Nepal. At NIDS, she serves as Senior Programme Coordinator, overseeing the coordination of various programmes with a focus on safe international migration and health-related projects.