Media
The Diplomat: Local Elections: The Coming Test for Nepal’s Constitution
The Diplomat quotes The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in Nepal George Varughese: “These elections are historic because they have the real potential to reduce political marginalization for the first time in Nepal and to return government to all of its people,” said Dr. George Varughese, the Nepal Country Repr [...]
Agence France-Presse: Debt traps threaten Nepal quake victims
Agence France-Presse (AFP) quotes The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in Nepal George Varughese: “There is a movement towards what we call a debt trap because people who have not been able to get on with their livelihood, with rebuilding homes or with income generation, have borrowed against future earnings,” [...]
Commemorating the Life of Former Nepali Minister Madhav Ghimire
Madhav Ghimire Madhav Ghimire was a man of substance and grace, and we must remember him by celebrating a life devoted to Nepal. About 20 years ago, while researching the impact of foreign aid on local collective action in Nepal, a trusted friend suggested I meet a civil servant who could be relied upon to be balance [...]
A Pyrrhic Victory and Ominous Sign for Politics in Nepal
Last week, Nepal elected Pushpa Kamal Dahal (aka Prachanda, the “fearsome one”) as the country’s 24th prime minister in 25 years. The former rebel chief and chairman of the CPN-Maoist Center (MC) was sworn in to govern for a whopping nine months. Following his turn, Nepali Congress leader Sher Bahadur Deuba is already [...]
Deutsche Welle: Nepal elects former Maoist chief as prime minister
Deutsche Welle features insights from The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in Nepal George Varughese on the country’s new prime minister: But George Varughese, Nepal country representative for The Asia Foundation, believes the country’s prospects for stability will improve with Dahal in power. “His pragmatism [...]
APPS Policy Forum: Just Govern!
The APPS Policy Forum (an initiative of the Asia and the Pacific Policy Society) publishes a piece by The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative George Varughese: As the anniversary of 2015 Nepal earthquakes approaches, it is worth reflecting on the state of governance in Nepal. The status of relief for quake survivo [...]