Biography
Ambassador’s Biography

HE Kailash Raj Pokharel is a professional person having a wide range of working experiences in international affairs, economic diplomacy, foreign aid, trade, investment working in various institutions such as the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Industry and Commerce in Nepal as well as in international prominent institutions such as the World Bank in Washington DC, the United Nations in East Timor and UNIDO in Tokyo.

His 40-year long career started in the Government of Nepal in 1987 as an Officer in the Ministry of Industry where he involved in industrial and investment promotion activities. Nearly 25 years, he worked in the Ministry of Finance of Nepal in various capacities in the Budget, Revenue and Foreign Aid areas. He contributed to reforming the budgetary systems of the government, introducing the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) in the government system for the first time and formulating the national budget particularly in infrastructure and education sectors. For nearly a decade, he worked as an Under Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, serving as leading aid coordinator and negotiator with various international donors. He also spearheaded the Nepal Performance Portfolio Review (NPPR) as National Coordinator, an apex monitoring and reform platform for foreign aided projects.

His international exposures began as an Investment Promotion Official in United Nations Industry Development Organization (UNIDO) in Tokyo, Japan in 1992. In 2000, he served over 2 years in the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) working on building civil administrative services from the ground up in a newly formed nation. He then worked as an Advisor to The Executive Director in The World Bank Board of Directors, in Washington, DC, USA during 2004-2006 period. From 2015 onwards to 2019, he served as Economic Counsellor in the Embassy of Nepal, Washington DC, USA where he worked on promoting bilateral economic cooperation with the United States and involved in various programs related to aid, trade, and tourism.

He received a normal retirement as senior official from civil service of Nepal in September 2020 and appointed as an Ambassador in June 2022.

In his long career, he has travelled to over 46 countries covering all the continents. He has also published numerous articles in leading print and online newspapers in Nepal.

Mr. Pokharel is graduated in Economics with gold medal. He secured his master’s degree in public administration from Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu. He is also a Law graduate.

He is married with Basudha Nepal, a banker and has a son Ankit Pokharel and Daughter-in-Law Merina Regmi, both medical doctor.