National Planning Commission and Policy Research Institute Agree to Explore Areas of Collaboration

On 24 October 2021, National Planning Commission (NPC) and Policy Research Institute (PRI) held an interaction to explore areas of collaboration between the two organisations. To start with, a brief presentation was made on the work, achievements and priorities of PRI by Chairperson Dr Bishnu Raj Upreti. On behalf of the NPC, Dr Basudev Sharma, Joint Secretary, presented research areas that NPC engages in.

In the interaction that followed, possible areas of collaboration were explored with honourable commissioners and an understanding reached to discuss further to develop a concrete mechanism of collaboration. Both organisations have, however, agreed to share the information and resources, including the expertise available both, to avoid the possibility of duplication and overlap in research and ensure quality research in order to generate evidence that leads to actionable policies.

Present at the interaction from National Planning Commission were Honourable Dr Wishwa Nath Poudel, Vice-Chair; Honourable Prof Dr Surendra Labh Karna, Member; Honourable Saloni Pradhan Singh, Member; Honourable Dr Ram Kumar Phuyal, Member; Mr Kewal Prasad Bhandari, Secretary; Mr Bashu Dev Sharma, Joint-Secretary; Dr Diwakar Luitel; Joint-Secretary and other officials responsible for planning and monitoring.

Similarly, Policy Research Institute was represented by Dr Bishnu Raj Upreti, Chairperson; Dr Deepak Kumar Khadka, Head of Research Department, Dr Hari Sharma Neupane, Senior Research Fellow (Political and Social Affairs); Dr Kalpana Khanal, Senior Research Fellow (Economic Affairs, Development and Infrastructure); Mr Laxman Bhattarai, Office Manager; Dr Mukunda Raj Kattel, Head of Information and Knowledge Management Department; and Bimal Chandra Sharma; Library Management Coordinator.