Swarnim Wagle
Dr. Swarnim Wagle | |
|---|---|
डा. स्वर्णिम वाग्ले | |
 | |
| Member of Parliament, Pratinidhi Sabha | |
| Assumed office 28 April 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Ram Chandra Poudel |
| Constituency | Tanahun 1 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | |
| Political party | Rastriya Swatantra Party |
| Other political affiliations | Nepali Congress (left 2023) |
| Alma mater | Budhanilkantha School London School of Economics Harvard University Australian National University |
| Occupation | Politician, Economist |
Dr. Swarnim Wagle (Nepali: डा.स्वर्णिम वाग्ले) is a prominent South Asian economist and a member of Nepal's Federal Parliament since April 2023, having been elected in a by-election from the seat of Tanahun 1 vacated when the incumbent became the third President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal.[1] He is currently the vice-chair of the Rastriya Swatantra Party.
Political career
[edit]Nepali Congress
[edit]Wagle was associated with the Nepali Congress for several decades. Coming from a family background aligned with the party’s liberal democratic ideology, he contributed to the formulation of the party’s economic policies and was one of the members involved in drafting its election manifesto.[2] Wagle’s intellectual and ideological orientation has long reflected liberal democratic values promoted by the Nepali Congress. He has also been a vocal supporter of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Nepal Compact, emphasizing its importance in Nepal’s long-term infrastructure and energy connectivity.[3]
During his tenure with the party, Wagle was recommended by the Nepali Congress for appointment to the National Planning Commission (NPC). He later served as vice-chair of the Commission from August 2017 to February 2018, and was a member of the Commission for two terms, from May 2014 to November 2015, and September 2016 to August 2017.[4][5] He played a key policy role in reconstruction efforts following the 2015 Nepal earthquakes that claimed about 9000 lives.[6] Between 2020 and 2022, during the Covid-19 pandemic, he was the Chief Economic Advisor at the United Nations Development Program Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific in New York, covering 36 countries.[7]
During the 2022 general elections, senior leader Gagan Thapa had reportedly lobbied for Wagle’s candidacy from Chitwan, though the effort was unsuccessful.[8] Later, after the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) offered him a ticket for the Tanahun–1 by-election, he left the Nepali Congress to contest under the RSP banner.
Rastriya Swatantra Party
[edit]In March 2023, Wagle formally joined the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and was nominated as its candidate for the Tanahun–1 by-election. Wagle secured a landslide victory, defeating the Nepali Congress candidate by a margin of nearly 15,000 votes, and receiving 55 percent of the total votes cast.[9]
Following his victory, Wagle quickly rose within the party’s leadership ranks. In November 2023, he was elevated to the position of vice-chair of the Rastriya Swatantra Party.[10]
In early 2024, during the party’s central meeting in Jaleshwar, Wagle was entrusted with leading the formulation of the party’s long-term economic and development policy framework. His role centered on shaping evidence-based policy positions to strengthen the RSP’s ideological and governance agenda.[11]
However, reports later surfaced of internal differences between Wagle and party general secretary Mukul Dhakal over organizational management and strategic priorities. The disagreement, though short-lived, attracted media attention as it reflected emerging debates within the RSP over leadership roles and policy direction.[12]
Electoral history
[edit]| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swarnim Wagle | Rastriya Swatantra Party | 34,919 | 54.57 | |
| Govinda Bhattarai | Nepali Congress | 20,122 | 31.45 | |
| Sarbendra Khanal | CPN (UML) | 8,488 | 13.27 | |
| Others | 456 | 0.71 | ||
| Total | 63,985 | 100.00 | ||
| Majority | 14,797 | |||
| Rastriya Swatantra Party gain | ||||
| Source: ECN[13] | ||||
Personal life
[edit]In October 2019, Wagle was appointed chair of the Institute for Integrated Development Studies (IIDS), a South Asian policy think tank established in Kathmandu in 1979. Outside Nepal, he has worked as an economic policy specialist in international organizations like United Nations Development Program and the World Bank intermittently between 1997 and 2022. As Chief Economic Advisor of the UNDP Asia-Pacific (2020-2022), he co-edited "The Great Upheaval" published by Cambridge University Press,[14] and led high-profile policy advisory missions to crisis-hit countries like Sri Lanka.[15][16] He holds high academic degrees from the London School of Economics, Harvard University and the Australian National University.[17][18] He is married and has one son.
References
[edit]- ^ "Swarnim Wagle elected from Tanahun-1". kathmandupost.com. Retrieved 2023-04-26.
- ^ "Economist Wagle's long association with Congress". Kathmandu Post. 27 March 2023. Retrieved 2023-04-26.
- ^ "Wagle backs MCC as key to Nepal's energy connectivity". My Republica. Retrieved 2024-02-12.
- ^ "Swarnim Wagle appointed Vice Chairman of NPC". The Himalayan Times. 2017-08-03. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ National Planning Commission, National Planning Commission
- ^ "Nepal Earthquake Summit: GOVERNMENT RESPONSE KEYNOTE ADDRESS". YouTube. 19 February 2016.
- ^ "Our team | United Nations Development Program". 7 July 2021.
- ^ "Inside story: Gagan Thapa's failed bid to field Wagle from Chitwan". Nepal Live Today. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
- ^ Republica. "RSP's Dr Swarnim Wagle wins by-election in Tanahun-1 with a wide margin". My Republica. Retrieved 2023-04-26.
- ^ "Dr Swarnim Wagle appointed Vice-president of Rastriya Swatantra Party".
- ^ "RSP holds policy retreat in Jaleshwar". Kathmandu Post. Retrieved 2024-01-11.
- ^ "Differences emerge between RSP leaders Swarnim Wagle and Mukul Dhakal". Nepal Live Today. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
- ^ "प्रतिनिधि सभा सदस्य उपनिर्वाचनमा उम्मेदवारहरुको सुची". Election Commission of Nepal.
- ^ Waglé, Swarnim; Wignaraja, Kanni, eds. (2022). The Great Upheaval. Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/9781009224314. ISBN 978-1-009-22431-4.
- ^ "As economic crisis deepens, Nepali economist invited to speak at Sri Lanka's parliament".
- ^ UNDP Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific. "The Sovereign Debt Crisis in Sri Lanka: Causes, Policy Response and Prospects" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2023-03-07.
- ^ "Swarnim Waglé, PhD". swarnimwagle.com.np. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
- ^ Wagle, Swarnim (2010-11-04). "Swarnim Wagle". World Bank Blogs. Retrieved 2017-08-03.