Shishir Khanal, elected from Kathmandu Constituency No. 6 in the recently concluded House of Representatives election, has been given the responsibility of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He has been appointed Foreign Minister in the government led by Balendra (Balen) Shah.
The responsibility of managing the country’s external relations and diplomacy has fallen upon Khanal, an influential leader of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP).
This is the second time Khanal has become a minister. Previously, on Magh 3, 2079 BS, he was appointed Minister of Education, Science and Technology for the first time in the government led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’.
Due to the political situation arising after the loss of post by RSP Chairman and then Deputy Prime Minister Rabi Lamichhane over the citizenship issue, the RSP also withdrew from the government on Magh 22. For this reason, Khanal was removed from office just 19 days after taking charge. After a gap of nearly two years, he has returned to Singha Durbar as a minister again.
Khanal, a central secretariat member and head of the international department of the RSP, has been given the responsibility of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. An official from the RSP informed that the decision to assign him the responsibility was made after considering his expertise and grip on international relations, following discussions between Chairman Rabi Lamichhane and Prime Minister Balen Shah.
Khanal holds a Master’s degree in Public Policy from the prestigious ‘University of Wisconsin–Madison’ in the United States, and a Bachelor’s degree in International Political Economy from Brooklyn College.
With his international-level study and policy-making experience, he is expected to modernize, balance, and make Nepal’s foreign policy more effective. His main challenge and opportunity will be to further strengthen economic diplomacy, tourism promotion, and relations with neighboring countries.
The newly appointed Minister Khanal aims to improve the efficiency of Nepal’s diplomatic missions, strengthen Nepal’s presence in international forums, and play an active role in bringing in foreign aid and investment.
