Mr. Hari Prasad Odari

Director - Information And Poverty Alleviation (IPA)

Mr. Hari Prasad Odari joined SAARC Secretariat on 15 April 2024 as Director (Information and Poverty Alleviation).

Mr. Odari is a career diplomat who belongs to Nepal’s Foreign Service. He has served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Nepal and Nepali Missions abroad in various capacities. He was Private Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs from April 2023 to March 2024, and managed the secretariat of the Foreign Minister in that capacity. Prior to that, he was Under Secretary responsible for Europe-Americas affairs in the Ministry from March 2021 to March 2023.

Mr. Odari worked as Counsellor (political) at the Embassy of Nepal in New Delhi from January 2017 to February 2021, which was preceded by his assignment as Desk Officer (India) in the Ministry from February 2014 to January 2017. He also served as Second Secretary in Nepal’s Permanent Mission in Geneva from February 2010 to January 2014. In 2013, he coordinated at the expert level the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) Consultative Group in the World Trade Organization, when the important ‘Bali Package’ was negotiated.

Prior to joining the Foreign Service in 2009, Mr. Odari was a teacher of English.  

He has Master’s Degrees in English and Public Administration, and Bachelor’s Degree in Economics. He attended different courses and trainings in diplomacy and international affairs that include Comprehensive Security Cooperation Course in the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Hawaii (February/March 2022); Course for South Asian diplomats on contemporary political and security issues in ANU Canberra (August/September 2015); Programme on key world trade issues in Indian Institute of Foreign Trade New Delhi (March 2015); and Course on nuclear non-proliferation regimes in Vienna (February 2012).

Mr. Odari is married to Ms. Chandra Prasai and they have a son Agreem.   

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Mr. Bhavesh R. Trivedi

Director- Economic, Trade & Finance (ETF)

Mr. Bhavesh R. Trivedi joined the SAARC Secretariat on 21^st November 2023, as Director (ETF).

Prior to taking up his current role, he served as the Director (International Relations) in the Ministry of Communications, Government of India. In this position, he handled responsibilities concerning multilateral and bilateral relations in the ICT and telecom sectors. He also dealt with matters concerning the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT) and other multilateral international organizations, in addition to overseeing the implementation of ICT development projects in ASEAN, SAARC, and various other regions and countries.

He was deputed to Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) from 2012 – 2019, wherein he worked in the Development Partnership Administration wing of the Ministry, looking after formulation, implementation and monitoring of Grant-in-Aid Development Projects of infrastructure, agriculture, education, ICT and health sectors in Afghanistan, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Besides, he handled matters related to Capacity Building initiatives, Contract Management, scholarship schemes, etc. 

During initial years, he held various positions within the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), pertaining to procurement, material management, state level planning of deployment of telecom services, overseeing ERP implementation, etc.

He possesses a Master of Technology (M.Tech.) degree from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), New Delhi.

Mr. Bhavesh is married to Ms. Shafali and blessed with a son.

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Ms Shahiya Ali Manik

Director, Social Affairs

Shahiya Ali Manik joined the SAARC Secretariat on 2 November 2023, as Director, Social Affairs.

Shahiya started her career in Foreign Service in 2015, working as the Director for Human Rights Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Maldives. She was posted to the Permanent Mission of Maldives to the UN Offices in Geneva in 2019 where she worked as First Secretary coordinating all work related to the Human Rights Council. She has extensive work experience in the field of Human Rights, where she closely monitored and coordinated Maldives human rights priorities at the Human Rights Council Sessions from 2019 to 2021. Shahiya has also served as the First Secretary of Maldives Mission in London in 2018.

 

Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Shahiya has worked as an assistance lecturer at the Civil Service Training Institute of Maldives where she conducted training programmes for Civil Servants, and she also worked at Maldivian Red Crescent as a Programme Field Officer. She completed her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology in 2009 from Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA, and has completed her Master of Arts in Refugee Care from University of Essex, Colchester, UK in 2014.

 

Shahiya is married and blessed with 3 children.  

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Ms. Irosha Cooray

Director, Education Security and Culture

Ms. Irosha Cooray joined the SAARC Secretariat on 01 September 2021 as Director for Education, Security and Culture.

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Mr. Jamal Uddin Ahmed

Director Agriculture, Rural Development and SAARC Development Fund

Mr. Jamal Uddin Ahmed joined the SAARC Secretariat on 06 January 2021.

Mr. Ahmed is a career diplomat. Prior to joining the SAARC Secretariat, he served the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Bangladesh as Director (Americas), Director (Foreign Minister’s Office) and Director (SAARC). He earlier served in the Administration Wing,

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Mr. Tanveer Ahmed

Director Energy, Transportation, Science & Technology

Mr. Tanveer Ahmed assumed charge of his position at SAARC Secretariat on 16 September 2020.

Mr. Tanveer Ahmed is a career diplomat who joined Pakistan Foreign Service in 2006. Prior to his appointment at the Secretariat, he was serving as Counsellor at Embassy of Pakistan, Kuwait.

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