Ottawa – The fourth Ottawa Research Conference, organised by the Canada-Nepal Forum for Research, has concluded in Ottawa.

Inaugurating the two-day conference (August 16 and 17) held at the University of Ottawa, Nepal’s Ambassador to Canada, Bharat Raj Paudyal, said that Canada is a reliable friend of Nepal.

He highlighted that Nepal annually imports goods worth nearly 7 billion rupees from Canada while exporting around 1 billion rupees’ worth, adding that there is significant potential to increase Nepal’s exports to Canada. “The Nepali diaspora must play a greater role in this,” he said. Ambassador Paudyal also shared that Nepal has requested the Canadian government to establish an embassy in Nepal. “We are making efforts from our side,” he added.

At the conference, retired professor Basu Sharma from the University of New Brunswick presented a paper on “Challenges of Federalism in Nepal.” He explained that while implementing federalism in Nepal is challenging due to the country’s 131 languages and 123 ethnic communities, Nepal adopted the federal system to balance unity and diversity. He noted that issues such as high administrative costs, lack of efficiency, and weaknesses in revenue collection have surfaced after the country embraced federalism. However, he pointed out that data over the past decade shows growth in per capita income, the Human Development Index, poverty reduction, and literacy. He also suggested that Nepal should implement a concept similar to Singapore’s “Nepal Inc.”

The two-day conference featured 27 research presentations covering public health, science and technology, artificial intelligence, forestry, environment, energy, climate change, management, and more. More than 100 participants, including professors and PhD scholars from Nepal, the UK, Switzerland, and Canada, took part.

Associate Professor Dr. Dinesh Gajurel of the University of New Brunswick stated that every dollar sent by a Nepali abroad contributes almost double to Nepal’s economy. He stressed that remittance funds should not only be spent on consumption but also invested in productive sectors for long-term benefits.

Other research presenters included Associate Professor Sanjina Dang Subedi of Carleton University, Assistant Professor Dr. Anup Basnet of Western University, Dr. Shivhari Gautam of Laval University, Dr. Homnath Gharti of Queen’s University, Dipak Bishwakarma of the University of Waterloo, Upasana Acharya of the same university, Dr. Bhanubhakta Acharya of the University of Ottawa, economist Dr. Ram C. Acharya, geologist Santaman Rai, Birendra Sapkota of Natural Resources Canada, and journalist Bhagirath Yogi.

Similarly, student and scholar presenters included Kusum Sharma, Ishika Tripathi, Idika Paudel, Shelina Paudel, Aastha Sah, Abha Ranjitkar, Subesh Kumar Shrestha (University of Ottawa), PhD candidate Mahnish Jung Thapa (University of Ottawa), Britika Paudel (Carleton University), Sadhana Banjade (Memorial University of Newfoundland), and researchers Bibek Bhandari and Bibek Subedi (Laval University), among others.

New executive committee of CANFOR formed 

The two-day Ottawa research conference also elected a new executive committee of the Canada-Nepal Forum for Research (CANFOR), with Dr. Bhanubhakta Acharya, a faculty member at the University of Ottawa, as its Chair.

Dr. Dinesh Gajurel (University of New Brunswick) has been elected as Vice-Chair, while Dr. Shivhari Gautam (Laval University), Dr. Anup Basnet (Western University), Dr. Homnath Gharti (Queen’s University), and Subash Paudel have been elected as members of the Board of Directors. Similarly, Kusum Sharma has been elected as Secretary, Ambika Paudel as Treasurer, and Saugat Shrestha as Technology Officer. Likewise, Dipendra Kunwar has been nominated as Student Liaison Officer.

The newly elected Chair, Dr. Acharya, expressed his gratitude to the Embassy of Nepal, the University of Ottawa, local organisations, and all sponsors for supporting the successful completion of the conference. He stated that the main objectives of organising the conference was to identify areas of expertise of researchers in the diaspora, facilitate networking between young researchers and subject experts, enhance the quality of research, and inspire students to engage in innovative research topics.

The Forum, established in 2019 at the initiative of economist Dr. Ram Acharya, Dr. Bhanubhakta Acharya, and others, has so far organised four international conferences. “In the coming years, our goal is to collaborate with research institutions and experts in North America and Europe and to organize conferences in other provinces and cities of Canada as well,” said  newly elected Chair, Dr. Acharya.