Eighth International Conference
on
Information Technology For Development

Dr. Rudra Raj Pandey

Conference Chair

Dr. Rudra Raj Pandey is a pioneer in the software outsourcing industry in Nepal. He is currently the Executive Chairman of Deerwalk Inc., USA with a subsidiary in Nepal. Prior to that, he was the Chief Operating Officer of Verisk Health created from the acquisition of D2Hawkeye Inc. by Verisk Analytics.

Dr. Pandey was a founding partner and the Chief Technology Officer of D2Hawkeye Inc. which has one of the largest outsourcing firms in Nepal.

He also has significant IT experience in the financial services industry.

Mr. Hitesh Karki

Conference Director

Hitesh Karki is the Chief Academic Officer of Deerwalk Institute of Technology.

He has almost over two decades of work experience in different software companies of Nepal.

He completed his bachelors in Computer Science from Pune University, India and is currently doing his PhD in Use of Technology in public schools of Nepal from Kathmandu University, School of Management and is also a visiting faculty of the same.

Er. Surendra Nath Adhikari

Conference on-site Coordinator

Surendra Nath Adhikari comes with a wealth of experience in management, process, and training, working for D2Hawkeye for several years as head of training and process. He played a key role in making D2Hawkeye the first CMMI certified software company in Nepal.

Prior to his work at D2Hawkeye, Surendra worked as a senior engineer and researcher for the Department of Irrigation, Nepal.

He also has teaching experience as a Civil Engineering lecturer at the Institute of Engineering, Pulchowk.

He holds a B.E. in Civil Engineering from Pulchowk, IOE and a M.Sc. in Hydraulic Engineering from Holland.

Er. Ritu Raj Lamsal

Conference Review Coordinator

Ritu Raj Lamsal, M.Tech, FIE holds Master of Technology in VLSI Design.

He has been in academia for more than a decade. Prior to his career in academics, he has served as a broadcast Engineer for satellite Television and also worked under Thaicom Teleport and DTH center Bangkok.

He has published Research papers in international and national journals, conferences and symposiums. His areas of Interest Includes VLSI and ASIC design, Microprocessors and Controllers, Computer networks and Architectures, Embedded systems, Wireless and cellular communications.

Mr. Bijay Kumar Shrestha

Program Officer, Undergraduate Program, Deerwalk Institute of Technology

Bijaya Kumar Shrestha, is the Undergraduate Program Officer of Deerwalk Institute of Technology.

He completed his MTech in Information Technology from Kathmandu University and MSc in Information Technology from H.N.B. Garhwal University. During his MTech at Kathmandu University, he was awarded, Erasmus Mundus Scholarship and studied in Politecnico Di Torino as Exchange Student. He is currently doing his MPhil in development studies from Kathmandu University, School of Education.

He draws his interest in Education Technology.

Dr. Sunil Chaudhary

HoD, Computer Science, Deerwalk Institute of Technology, Nepal.

Dr. Sunil Chaudhary is Head of the Department of Computer Science at the Deerwalk Institute of Technology, Kathmandu, Nepal. He received his Ph.D. degree on cybersecurity in 2016 and an M.Sc. in Software Development in 2012 from the University of Tampere, Finland. He completed a BEng in Computer Engineering in 2007 from Pulchowk Campus, Nepal. His research focuses on usable privacy and security, online identity, cyber trust, IoT security, and cybersecurity education and awareness. He has published several peer-reviewed journal and conference papers in the field of cybersecurity. 

Ms. Samjhana Pokhrel

Placement & Administrative Officer, Undergraduate Program, Deerwalk Institute of Technology

Samjhana Pokhrel, is placement and administrative officer at Deerwalk Institute of Technology since 2015 and has been part of Deerwalk Group ever since. She also leads Deerwalk Compware’s operations in the role of Senior Operation Manager. She has almost 3 years of work experience.

She holds a degree of Bachelor in Information Management, BIM from College of Applied Business, Tribhuvan University. She is currently pursuing her Masters in English, Pokhara University.

Er. Bhas Raj Pathak

Sr. Lecturer, Deerwalk Institute of Technology, Nepal.

Er. Bhas Raj Pathak is Sr. Lecturer at Deerwalk Institute of Technology. He teaches Network related subjects. He completed his Masters in Digital Communication and Networking from REVA University, India. He has published several papers in peer reviewed journals and conferences.In the past, he worked for Nepal Telecom as a Support Engineer under Eserv Global. He is equally active in social work, and has helped in setting up several computer labs in the various parts of Kathmandu and Bhaktapur districts of Nepal for the project "Computer Training in Rural Nepal (CTRN)". 

Dr. Manik Madhikermi

Visiting Researcher, Aalto University, School of Science

Manik Madhikermi is visiting researcher in Aalto University, School of Science. 

He has 3 years experience as Sr.Software Engineer and 5+ years of experience in academia as a doctoral researcher.

He has completed his Doctoral of Science (Technology) from Aalto University, Finland in the area of data driven decision making. His research interest includes Machine learning, Predictive maintenance, Internet of Things, Data Interoperability, Data driven decision-making, Business Intelligence and System of Systems

Dr. Rudra Pandey

Conference Chair

Dr. Rudra Pandey is a pioneer in the software outsourcing industry in Nepal. He is currently the Executive Chairman of Deerwalk Inc., USA with a subsidiary in Nepal. Prior to that, he was the Chief Operating Officer of Verisk Health created from the acquisition of D2Hawkeye Inc. by Verisk Analytics.

Dr. Pandey was a founding partner and the Chief Technology Officer of D2Hawkeye Inc. which has one of the largest outsourcing firms in Nepal.

He also has significant IT experience in the financial services industry.

Prof. Dr. Mohammad Aslam Uqaili

Mehran University of Engineering and Technology

Prof. Dr. Mohammad Aslam Uqaili is vice chancellor of Mehran University of Engineering & Technology, Jamshoro, Pakistan.

He is an engineer, academician, economist, and development professional. He has earned bachelors, masters and doctoral degrees in electrical engineering. He has supervised various doctoral and masters students. Prof Uqaili has written more than 145 chapters in international books, research papers in national and international research journals, and presented research papers at national and international conferences.

Dr. Uqaili has also edited several international books.

Prof. Dr. Bhawani Shankar Chowdhry

Dean Faculty of Electronics and Computer Engineering at Mehran University of Engineering Technology & Conference Co-Chair

Prof. Dr. Bhawani Shankar Chowdhry is the Dean of Faculty of Electrical Electronics and Computer Engineering at Mehran University of Engineering & Technology, Jamshoro.

He did his Ph.D. from renowned School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton, UK in 1990. He has teaching and research experience of more than 30 years. He has the honour of being one of the editor of several books “Wireless Networks, Information Processing and Systems”, CCIS 20, “Emerging Trends and Applications in Information Communication Technologies”, CCIS 281, “Wireless Sensor Networks for Developing Countries”, CCIS 366, “Communication Technologies, Information Security and Sustainable Development”, CCIS 414, published by Springer Verlag, Germany.

He has also been serving as a Guest Editor for “Wireless Personal Communications” which is Springer International Journal. He has produced more than 13 PhDs and supervised more than 50 MPhil/Masters Thesis in the area of ICT. His list of research publication crosses to over 60 in national and international journals, IEEE and ACM proceedings.

He is a member of various professional bodies including Chairman IEEE Karachi Section, Region10 Asia/Pacific, Fellow IEP, Fellow IEEEP, Senior Member, IEEE Inc. (USA), SM ACM Inc. (USA). He is lead person at MUET of several EU funded Erasmus Mundus Program including “Mobility for Life”, “strong ties”, “INTACT”, and “LEADERS”.

He has organized several International Conferences including “IMTIC08”, “IMTIC12”, “IMTIC13”, “IMTIC15”, “WSN4DC13”, “IEEE SCONEST”, “IEEE PSGWC13”, and track chair in “Global Wireless Summit (GWS 2014), and Chief Organizer and Co-Chair GCWOC’16, GCWOC’17 in Malaga Spain.

Prof.Dr. Dil Muhammad Akbar Hussain

Aalborg University, Denmark.

Dr. Dil Muhammad Akbar Hussain is a professor of Electronics Engineering & Computer Science at the Department of Energy Technology, Aalborg University Denmark.

Professor Akbar has a Master degree in Digital Electronics from Govt. College University, Lahore Pakistan and a PhD degree in Control Engineering from the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, University of Sussex United Kingdom. Aalborg University has Two Satellite Campuses, one in Copenhagen (Aalborg University Copenhagen) and the other in Esbjerg (Aalborg University Esbjerg).

Professor Akbar started his career as a Lab demonstrator/TA at the University of Sussex. After finishing his PhD degree in 1992, he served in the Industry as a Scientific Officer and continued his academic career as a visiting scholar for a number of educational institutions. In 1996 he joined National University of Science & Technology Pakistan (NUST) as an Associate Professor; NUST is one of the top few universities in Pakistan. In 1999 he joined an International Company Lineo Inc, Canada as Manager Compiler Group, where he headed the group for developing Compiler Tool Chain and Porting of Operating Systems for the BLACKfin processor. The processor development was a joint venture by Intel and Analog Devices. In 2002 Lineo Inc., was taken over by another company, so he joined Aalborg University Denmark as an Assistant Professor.

Professor Akbar has a multi-disciplined career and he continued his legacy and making progress in many areas of his interests in both teaching and research. He has contributed in the stochastic estimation of control area especially, in the Multiple Target Tracking and Interactive Multiple Model (IMM) research, Ball & Beam Control Problem, Robotics, Levitation Control. He has contributed in developing Algorithms for Fingerprint Matching, Computer Vision and Face Recognition. He has been supervising Pattern Recognition, Formal Languages and Distributed Processing projects for several years.

He has reviewed many books on Management, Computer Science.

Prof. Dr. Javier Poncela

University of Malaga (UMA), Spain.

Prof. Dr. Javier Poncelais an Associate professor at E.T.S.I Telecommunication, University of Malaga (UMA), campus de teatinos, Spain. He is also coordinator of Master Program at Telecommunication Institute of Malaga, Spain. He joined UMA in 1995 and has been working there for 19 years.

Dr Poncela received the M.sc. degree in telecommunication engineering from Universidad de Malaga e Polytechnic University of Madrid, Spain in 1994 and the Ph.D. degree from the University of Malaga, Spain. He worked in Alcatel Spacio before joining the University of Malaga at the communication Engineering Department. He has actively collaborated with multinational companies (Nokia, AT4wireless) on formal modeling and system testing in Bluetooth, UNTS and satellite systems. His actual research interests include methodologies for efficient development of complex communication systems, analysis of end-to-end QoS over heterogeneous networks and systems and models for the evaluation of QoE.

His Journal and Conference publications, keynote speaker sessions cross the score of more than 50. He is also one the guest editor of International Springer Impact factor Journal on Wireless Personal Communication.

Prof. Dr. Mohammed Yakoob Siyal

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.

Prof. Dr. Mohammed Yakoob Siyal received his B.E (1985) degree from Mehran University in Electronic Engineering, M.Sc (1988) and PhD (1991) degrees in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST), England and an MBA (2000) from Surrey European Management School (SEMS), Surrey University, England in IT.

Before joining Nanyang Technological University Singapore in early 1993, DR Siyal was with the University of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, England, where he provided consultancy and technical support to all the Universities in England under EUROCHIP scheme. Currently he is a tenured Associate Professor in Information Engineering, at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.

Dr. Siyal has published extensively in computer vision, e-security, e-commerce, medical image processing and real-time systems areas both in International conferences and International journals and has over 100 referred publications. He was awarded “Literati Club Award for Excellence 2003”, by Emerald, UK for his research and best teacher of Year 3 in year 2004 in the EEE School for his teaching.

He is a Chartered Engineer in England, member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, UK and senior member of IEEE, USA. He is listed in the 15th edition of Marquis Who’s Who in the world.

Prof. Dr. Bhagwan Das

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Prof. Dr. Bhagwan Das is working as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Electronic Engineering, Quaid-e-Awam University of Engineering, Science and Technology, Nawabshah and expertise in Electronics and Communication and Engineering. He has been several patents to his name, eight copyrights and more than ten international awards along with more than 40 publication in international journals and conferences.

He has presented and shared his innovation in the different events organized in differnt parts of the world.

Dr. Gokul Bhandari

Conference Supervisor

Dr. Gokul Bhandari is Associate Professor of Information Systems at Odette School of Business, University of Windsor. He received his PhD from McMaster University, Canada.

As a Fulbright scholar, he completed his graduate study at the University of Minnesota in 1999. He worked in the software industry for almost a decade before deciding to join the academia.

He considers himself a researcher with multidisciplinary interests and has published several peer-reviewed journal articles and conference papers in diverse fields such as economics, finance, software engineering, and information systems.

Surendra Nath Adhikari

Conference on-site Coordinator

Surendra Nath Adhikaricomes with a wealth of experience in management, process, and training, working for D2Hawkeye for several years as head of training and process. He played a key role in making D2Hawkeye the first CMMI certified software company in Nepal.

Prior to his work at D2Hawkeye, Surendra worked as a senior engineer and researcher for the Department of Irrigation, Nepal.

He also has teaching experience as a Civil Engineering lecturer at the Institute of Engineering, Pulchowk.

He holds a B.E. in Civil Engineering from Pulchowk, IOE and a M.Sc. in Hydraulic Engineering from Holland.

Hitesh Karki

Conference Director

Hitesh Karki is the Chief Academic Officer of Deerwalk Institute of Technology.

He has almost over two decades of work experience in different software companies of Nepal.

He completed his bachelors in Computer Science from Pune University, India and is currently doing his PhD in Use of Technology in public schools of Nepal from Kathmandu University, School of Management and is also a visiting faculty of the same.

Ritu Raj Lamsal

Head, Electronics Department, Deerwalk Institute of Technology

Ritu Raj Lamsal, M.Tech, FIE holds Master of Technology in VLSI Design.

He has been in academia for more than a decade. Prior to his career in academics, he has served as a broadcast Engineer for satellite Television and also worked under Thaicom Teleport and DTH center Bangkok.

He has published Research papers in international and national journals, conferences and symposiums. His areas of Interest Includes VLSI and ASIC design, Microprocessors and Controllers, Computer networks and Architectures, Embedded systems, Wireless and cellular communications.

Dr. Sunil Chaudhary

HoD, Computer Science, Deerwalk Institute of Technology, Nepal.

Dr. Sunil Chaudhary is Head of the Department of Computer Science at the Deerwalk Institute of Technology, Kathmandu, Nepal. He received his Ph.D. degree on cybersecurity in 2016 and an M.Sc. in Software Development in 2012 from the University of Tampere, Finland. He completed a BEng in Computer Engineering in 2007 from Pulchowk Campus, Nepal. His research focuses on usable privacy and security, online identity, cyber trust, IoT security, and cybersecurity education and awareness. He has published several peer-reviewed journal and conference papers in the field of cybersecurity. 

Bijaya Kumar Shrestha

Program Officer, Undergraduate Program, Deerwalk Institute of Technology

Bijaya Kumar Shrestha, is the Undergraduate Program Officer of Deerwalk Institute of Technology.

He completed his MTech in Information Technology from Kathmandu University and MSc in Information Technology from H.N.B. Garhwal University. During his MTech at Kathmandu University, he was awarded, Erasmus Mundus Scholarship and studied in Politecnico Di Torino as Exchange Student. He is currently doing his MPhil in development studies from Kathmandu University, School of Education.

He draws his interest in Education Technology.

Samjhana Pokhrel

Placement & Administrative Officer, Undergraduate Program, Deerwalk Institute of Technology

Samjhana Pokhrel, is placement and administrative officer at Deerwalk Institute of Technology since 2015 and has been part of Deerwalk Group ever since. She also leads Deerwalk Compware’s operations in the role of Senior Operation Manager. She has almost 3 years of work experience.

She holds a degree of Bachelor in Information Management, BIM from College of Applied Business, Tribhuvan University. She is currently pursuing her Masters in English, Pokhara University.

Dr. Sanduk Ruit

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Sanduk Ruit is an award-winning Nepali eye surgeon who has developed a sutureless form of cataract surgery, a technique allowing safe, high-volume, low-budget operations. Dr. Ruit completed a three-year ophthalmology residency at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi, India. Over the last three decades, he has successfully treated thousands of people across the developing countries and has taught his technique to other eye surgeons.

Dr. Sanduk Ruit’s mission is to bring eyesight to anyone who needs it, regardless of his or her ability to pay with pre- and post-operative care that rivals highest health care throughout the world. He and his team found the Tilganga Eye Center now known as “Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology” in 1994. Tilganga treats 2500 patients a week and surgery fees are waived for the needy. For those unable to reach the center, or who live in otherwise isolated rural areas, Dr. Ruit and his team set up mobile eye camps, often utilizing tents, classrooms, and even animal stables to serve as makeshift operating rooms.

Dr. Ruit has received many awards in recognition of his work. He has been awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 2006 and Thailand’s Prince Mahidol Award in 2007. He was appointed an Honorary Officer of the Order of Australia on 2008. In 2010, He received one of Nepal’s greatest honors- the Ujjwol Kritimaya Rashtra Deep Award for his medical contributions to the country. On 17 December 2015, he was appointed Member of the National Order of Merit, Gold Bhutan.

Hitesh Karki

Conference Director

Hitesh Karki is the Chief Academic Officer of Deerwalk Institute of Technology.

He has almost over two decades of work experience in different software companies of Nepal.

He completed his bachelors in Computer Science from Pune University, India and is currently doing his PhD in Use of Technology in public schools of Nepal from Kathmandu University, School of Management and is also a visiting faculty of the same.

Surendra Nath Adhikari

Conference on-site Coordinator

Surendra Nath Adhikaricomes with a wealth of experience in management, process, and training, working for D2Hawkeye for several years as head of training and process. He played a key role in making D2Hawkeye the first CMMI certified software company in Nepal.

Prior to his work at D2Hawkeye, Surendra worked as a senior engineer and researcher for the Department of Irrigation, Nepal.

He also has teaching experience as a Civil Engineering lecturer at the Institute of Engineering, Pulchowk.

He holds a B.E. in Civil Engineering from Pulchowk, IOE and a M.Sc. in Hydraulic Engineering from Holland.

Dr. Rudra Pandey

Conference Chair

Dr. Rudra Pandey is a pioneer in the software outsourcing industry in Nepal. He is currently the Executive Chairman of Deerwalk Inc., USA with a subsidiary in Nepal. Prior to that, he was the Chief Operating Officer of Verisk Health created from the acquisition of D2Hawkeye Inc. by Verisk Analytics.

Dr. Pandey was a founding partner and the Chief Technology Officer of D2Hawkeye Inc. which has one of the largest outsourcing firms in Nepal.

He also has significant IT experience in the financial services industry.

Dr. Gokul Bhandari

Conference Supervisor

Dr. Gokul Bhandari is Associate Professor of Information Systems at Odette School of Business, University of Windsor. He received his PhD from McMaster University, Canada.

As a Fulbright scholar, he completed his graduate study at the University of Minnesota in 1999. He worked in the software industry for almost a decade before deciding to join the academia.

He considers himself a researcher with multidisciplinary interests and has published several peer-reviewed journal articles and conference papers in diverse fields such as economics, finance, software engineering, and information systems.

Ritu Raj Lamsal

Conference Review Coordinator

Ritu Raj Lamsal, M.Tech, FIE holds Master of Technology in VLSI Design.

He has been in academia for more than a decade. Prior to his career in academics, he has served as a broadcast Engineer for satellite Television and also worked under Thaicom Teleport and DTH center Bangkok.

He has published Research papers in international and national journals, conferences and symposiums. His areas of Interest Includes VLSI and ASIC design, Microprocessors and Controllers, Computer networks and Architectures, Embedded systems, Wireless and cellular communications.

Dr. Gokul Bhandari

Conference Chair

Dr. Gokul Bhandari is Associate Professor of Information Systems at Odette School of Business, University of Windsor. He received his PhD from McMaster University, Canada. As a Fulbright scholar, he completed his graduate study at the University of Minnesota in 1999. He worked in the software industry for almost a decade before deciding to join the academia. He considers himself a researcher with multidisciplinary interests and has published several peer-reviewed journal articles and conference papers in diverse fields such as economics, finance, software engineering, and information systems.

Surendra Nath Adhikari

Conference on-site Coordinator

Surendra comes with a wealth of experience in management, process and training, working for D2Hawkeye for several years as head of training and process. He played a key role in making D2Hawkeye the first CMMI certified corporation in Nepal. Prior to his work at D2Hawkeye, Surendra worked as a senior engineer and researcher for the Department of Irrigation, Nepal. He also has direct teaching experience as a Civil Engineering lecturer at the Institute of Engineering, Pulchowk. Surendra holds a B.E. in Civil Engineering from Pulchowk, IOE and a M.Sc. in Hydraulic Engineering from Holland.

Dr. Mahabir Pun

Keynote Speaker

Mahabir Pun returned to his village “Nangi”, a remotely located village in the foothills of the Himalayas in the western Nepal, after graduating from University of Nebraska.

His goal was to set up a school and use it as a ‘launchpad’ to bring about educational and economic changes in the society. He believes that no rural development programs and nature conservation activities will be able to reach its goal unless local people take the lead. The mountain environment and villages belong to the villagers who constitute over 80% of Nepal’s population.

Mahabir Pun has worked most of the time on connectivity and leveraging it to achieve social, educational and economic growth. His pioneering works on the wireless internet , education and income-generating work have got national and international recognitions.

He has expanded the network and services that started from connecting his village to over 175 remote villages in 15 districts of Nepal. Today, those villages are using the Internet for e-learning, e-healthcare, local e-commerce, community discussions, money transfers and weather monitoring.

Mahabir Pun was elected Ashoka Fellow in 2002 by Ashoka Foundation, USA, which is the global association of the world’s leading social entrepreneurs. The foundation recognizes people from around the globe, who have “innovative solutions to social problems and the potential to change patterns across society”.

Mahabir Pun was given Overall Social Innovations Award for 2004 by the Global Ideas Bank (aka the Institute for Social Inventions) based in the UK.

The Ramon Magsaysay Foundation of the Philippines awarded our Team Leader, Mahabir Pun Ramon Magsaysay Award 2007 for Community Leadership.

University of Nebraska, USA invited Mahabir Pun for winter commencement speech and awarded Honorary Degree, Doctor of Humane Letters in December 2007 for his outstanding work for his country, Nepal.

Dr. Gokul Bhandari

Conference Chair

Dr. Gokul Bhandari is an Associate Professor of Information Systems at Odette School of Business, University of Windsor. He received his Ph.D. from McMaster University, Canada.

As a Fulbright scholar, he completed his graduate study at the University of Minnesota in 1999. He worked in the software industry for almost a decade before deciding to join the academia. He considers himself a researcher with multidisciplinary interests and has published several peer-reviewed journal articles and conference papers in diverse fields such as economics, finance, software engineering, and information systems.

Dr. Bhagwan Koirala

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Bhagawan Koirala MD, FACC is a cardiothoracic surgeon, professor and Social worker. With over 10 years of experience of cardiac surgery, He is best known for pioneering Open-heart surgery in Nepal, and for starting an operational cardiac care for the public. Currently, he is leading Cardiac Surgery at newly established Manmohan Cardiothoracic, Vascular & Transplant Center. He was also leading Cardiac Surgery at Shahid Gangalal National Heart Center as Executive Director. He is also actively involved with a charity venture for child heart patients in Nepal, called “Bal Dhadkan”.[20] Dr. Koirala holds post graduate degree from Kharkov Medical Institute, Ukraine He has performed over 10,000 heart operations, personally or directly supervised, from 2001 to 2012. Being one of the senior-most surgeon and capable administrator, he was appointed the Director of T.U. Teaching Hospital (TUTH in November 2012.

Anna Peachey

Keynote Speaker

Anna Peachey has spent 15 years as a research-practitioner with an academic focus on complex issues around state of the art innovation in higher education, drawing on her research to inform the delivery of a quality student experience. She won The Open University Teaching Award in 2005 for work using technology to support distance learning, and in 2008 one of Anna’s projects was shortlisted for The Times Education Award for Outstanding Innovation in ICT. She has been Editor-in-Chief for an academic book series and edited three full books, contributed chapters to twelve others and been an expert speaker at over 30 conferences worldwide. In her current role as Deputy Director (Academic) of International Development at The Open University UK (www.open.ac.uk/ido) she provides leadership and academic support for the development and delivery of projects that draw on OU expertise to achieve outcomes for beneficiaries in low and middle income countries. IDO delivers flexible, adaptable and scalable programmes in partnership with governments, NGOs, funding institutions and local partners, addressing areas such as frontline health, teacher education and higher education system strengthening.

Dr. Aseem Bhattarai

Speaker

Dr. Aseem Bhattarai is actively working in Telemedicine since 2010. He is currently working with Telemedicine in Kalikot and Dhading Districts of Nepal. He started volunteering with HTP in the area of telehealth in early 2010 and founded HTP Telehealth Innovation Foundation in fall, 2010. Professionally, he is working as a Medical Biochemist in the University Hospital Laboratory and is an Assistant Professor of Biochemistry in the Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University. Mr. Bhattarai holds M.D from IOM in Medical Biochemistry. Before that, he graduated from IOM. He has worked as an in-house medical officer in Emergency and ICU of Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital.

Dr. Bidya Nath Koirala

Speaker

Dr. Bidya Nath Koirala holds Ph. D. from University of Alberta,Canada in International and Inter-Cultural education. He has experience of working as Coordinator, Professor in Tribhuwan University. Earlier, he has been associated as Research Monitoring expert, Deputy Research Officer. He has been actively involved in International seminar and workshops. As part of this, has been part of more than 15 Seminars and workshops some of them being Asia Pacific Quality Network Conference and Annual General Meeting: Higher Education Quality Assurances in a changing World: Envisioning the Future of AsiaPacific. Hanoi, Vietnam March 7-8, 2014,Meeting of the members of University Grants Commission and equivalent bodies of SAARC Region April, 19-20, 2012 in Thimpu, Bhutan. With regular participation in academic and research works, he has been involved in multiple Planning and evaluation programs. He has his several books and articles published in education, development. He has also been involved in advisory position as Member, University Grants Commission in 2012 for 4 years, Advisor, SAARC Teachers’ Federation, Kathmandu, Consultant, National Dalit Confederation, Kathmandu ,Member, Planning, Management and Non-formal Education/Faculty of Education, Member, Open Learning Education Program.

Dr. Isha Dhungana Shrestha

Speaker

Dr. Isha Dhungana Shrestha is a Consultant Neurologist and is associated with various hospitals in Kathmandu such as Norvic International Hospital, B and B Hospital and Kathmandu Neuro Center as a Senior Consultant Neurologist. She had received various National and International awards for academic and research excellence. She had participated and presented in many National as well as International conferences and have published more than a dozen papers as a first author or co-author in various esteemed National and International scientific journals. Dr. Shrestha holds a Postgraduate degree (M.D, PhD) from Department of Clinical Neuroscience and Therapeutics, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, Japan and Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) from Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University.

Dr. Lava Deo Awasthi

Speaker

Born in the Far Western Region of Nepal, Lava Deo Awasthi completed school education from his home district, Baitadi in 1975. He earned an MA in English Literature in 1983 from Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu and did another MA in Applied Linguistics and TESOL in 1989 from Leicester University, UK. He earned his PhD in Language Policy in 2004 from the Danish University of Education, Copenhagen. Dr Awasthi has gained experience,working in different organizations in various professional and administrative capacities. He has headed the Higher Education and Educational Administration Division of the Ministry of Education and was the Head of the Planning Division at the Ministry of Education. At present, Dr Awasthi is the Director General of the Department of Education. In addition, Dr Awasthi is a visiting faculty at Tribhuvan University and Kathmandu University associated with post-graduate and PhD programmes. He has authored a number of books and articles in language, power and pedagogy, education policy, oriental cosmologies, indigenous knowledge systems, diversity and ethnicity. Dr Awasthi is heavily engaged in educational research, development and innovation.

Lava Kafle

Speaker

Lava Kafle is Solutions Architect in deerwalk.com where he is responsible for providing solutions to most of the problems in healthcare, insurance and create enterprise level solutions to clients around the world. Prior to joining Deerwalk, he had worked in VeriskIT, a subsidiary of VeriskHealth previously known as D2hawkeye. He had also worked as a lecturer for three years, after completing Bachelor of Engineering in Computer from Kathmandu University.

Dr. Pradeep Vaidya

Speaker

Dr. Pradeep Vaidya is the Professor and immediate past Head of Department in Department of Surgery of Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital. He is also the Director of Department of Information Technology of Institute of Medicine, Maharjgunj. He is also academically active and has many national and international publications and is also the Chief Editor of Journal of Institute of Medicine and a member of Institutional Review Board of Institute of Medicine. He also plays an active role in social service and is one of the founder members of Hospice Nepal, a palliative care center and a board member of Nepal Ambulance Service. He is also a Regional expert/trainer of a disaster risk management courses and Palliative care.

Dr. Pramod Dhakal

Speaker

Dr. Pramod Dhakal is the Chairperson of NRNA Open University Task Force that is leading the diaspora efforts in the establishment and operation of an Open University in Nepal and Member of the Open University Infrastructure Development Board, Government of Nepal. He is also the founder, advisor and former Executive Director of Canada Forum for Nepal and Member-Secretary of the Open University of Nepal Initiative Steering Committee that spearheaded the initiative to the point that the Government of Nepal formally established the Development Board for the purpose. Dr Pramod Dhakal became the Member-Secretary of the Open University of Nepal Initiative Steering Committee following the signing of “Resolution Agreement 2010′′ for partnership and collaboration between the Government of Nepal and Non-Resident Nepali Association (NRNA) on October 7, 2010 and since then he is spearheading the mission to establish a world class Open University in Nepal. He was an International Coordination Council Member of NRNA (2009-2013), International Affairs Coordinator of NRN-Canada (2008-2011), the Executive Director of Canada Foundation for Nepal (2006-11), Research Associate at Carleton University, Canada (2008-11) and Senior Scientist at EION Inc (2001-11). He received a Bachelor of Engineering degree from Indian Institute of Technology and M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Saskatchewan, Canada, all in Electrical Engineering. He carries varied experiences from the industry and academia through his successfully executed roles as a high school teacher, faculty member of a university, senior engineer, software developer, system analyst, software architect, senior consultant, senior scientist, head of a university department, and a manager of engineering research and development. His career has mostly evolved around teaching, software, telecommunication systems, and engineering research. In these roles, he has carried out exclusive research and development endeavors for organizations known to lead the world in the field of research and innovation, including IBM, Nortel, British Aerospace, Canadian Space Agency, and EION. After being entrenched in computing and electrical and telecommunications engineering for more than two decades, where he made a number of patented and proprietary scientific inventions and professional contributions in creative spaces, he has emerged into broader social scene in the recent years. Subsequently, his research interests have shifted to application of telecommunication technology for the educational transformation of developing countries. Also known are his social engagements through well received expressions in his writings on socio-economic issues that frequent in the news media. He has increasing interests in cognition, thoughts, and philosophical domains. Currently he has embarked a few major projects dedicated to Nepal’s educational transformation in view of bringing the light of education among rural, remote and marginalized people of Nepal. He has assumed the leadership role in establishing Open University of Nepal (www.openu.cffn.ca) by networking with Nepali Diaspora and collaborating with friends of Nepal, governments, international organizations, and world- class educational institutions. In Open University of Nepal, he envisions a futuristic university, a university in pursuit of academic excellence and innovation in the age of information and technology. He speaks of Open University of Nepal as a catalyst for making Nepal a producer of advanced knowledge and skills useful to both Nepal and the world.

Rabi Karmacharya

Speaker

Rabi Karmacharya was born and raised in Kathmandu, Nepal. He studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he received B.Sc. and M.Eng. degrees in electrical engineering and computer science. Upon graduation, he worked in Silicon Valley as a design engineer for three years before returning to Nepal with the vision of applying technological innovation for economic development. Rabi initially started the software company Himalayan Techies to train and provide employment for young, educated Nepalis. After leading the company successfully for seven years, he realized that improving the educational system was key for providing youth with skills necessary for gainful employment. He strongly felt that technological innovation could help fill in many of the gaps and transform the educational landscape in resource-poor settings. He left the software company and established Open Learning Exchange Nepal (OLE Nepal) in 2007 to devote himself fully to this goal. He recognized the potential of applying technological tools to not only change education access and delivery, but also to capitalize on the natural curiosity of children and to instill and nurture the joy of learning through discovery. With his rich experience and sound knowledge in technology and education, Rabi has been providing consultation services to Ministry of Education, the World Bank and the ADB in the use of ICT in education. In 2010, Rabi was selected as Asia Society’s Asia 21 Young Leader based on his achievement and leadership and in 2011, he was invited to join the highly selective group of Asia 21 Fellows. In 2012, Rabi was selected by GIZ and Bertelsmann Stiftung Foundation as a Transformation Thinker, and invited to join a network of young leaders and decision-makers from countries in transition.

Saroj P. Dhital

Speaker

Saroj P. Dhital M.D., D.Med, is a general surgeon with interests beyond clinical surgery. One of the founders of Public Health Concern Trust-Nepal (phect-NEPAL), Kathmandu Model Hospital, he is the Sr. Consultant Surgeon of the Department of Surgery in Kathmandu Model Hospital. His interest in ‘Demystification of Knowledge for Empowerment of People’ led him to work for promoting rural surgery. This also led him to close association with individuals and institutions working in the field of communication and information technology. He is also involved in the Health Sciences and Telemedicine sector of NREN. Dr. Dhital is also active in People’s Movement for Democracy and Peace in Nepal and is the past senior Vice-president of the Physicians for Social Responsibility-Nepal (PSRN), an affiliate to the International Physicians for Prevention of Nuclear War ( IPPNW ). He is actively involved in several activities related to health sector and social service. He is the founder president of Telemedicine Society of Nepal and had also worked as president of America-Nepal Medical Foundation (ANMF – Nepal), formerly . Currently, he works as an active member in several organizations like Rural Health Society of Nepal, Nyaya Health Nepal, Surgeon’s Society of Nepal, Nepal Medical Association, etc. He is also a columnist, Poet, and a good writer.

Dr. Sudip Shrestha

Speaker

Dr. Sudip Shrestha is an eminent figure in the field of oncology in Nepal. He has been contributing in the area for more than a decade now. He did his MBBS from Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), University of Madras, India, MD in Internal Medicine from the Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Nepal and Advanced Post-graduates training in Medical Oncology from Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute and Research Center. Dr. Shrestha is currently the chairman of Nepal Cancer Hospital & Research Center. He and his team incepted the concept of an institution with a multidisciplinary department taking care of all types of cancer and cancer patients in the holistic approach under one roof. In the past, he worked as Medical Director and HOD of Medical Oncology Department of Bhaktapur Cancer Hospital (National Cancer Center). He was also working as Sr. Consultant in Medical Oncology Department and was Coordinator of oncology services in Om Cancer Care Center, Om Hospital and Research Center, Kathmandu Nepal and Sarvang Hospital. He has a vast knowledge in managing different types of cancer. He has attended several conferences, seminars and meet that had been held nationally and internationally. He has also been participating in the post graduate program as a faculty in Nepal and aboard. He has been invited as a key speaker for programs from around the world. He also took part in developing national protocol for breast and cervical cancer. He has organized and chaired many international conferences that were held in Nepal. Dr. Shrestha has a keen interest in Palliative care. He is working passionately to establish palliative care services in different cancer hospitals in Nepal, the program supported by INCTR. He played an instrumental role in establishing Nepalese Association of Palliative Care (NAPcare). He also has a belief that supportive care is as much important as treatment, thus; he initiated the idea and played an important role in establishing Nepal Cancer Support Group. He has pledged to make supportive care available to every cancer patients through NCSG in days to come.

Dr. Subash Pyakurel

Speaker

Dr. Subash Pyakurel is a medical graduate from Institute of Medicine who has thereafter focused at healthcare innovation and newer thoughts for the health sector of Nepal. After some experience in clinical field and medical education, he recently started a treatment facilitation organization named Health Concern which has served more than 25,000 people from different parts of Nepal with information, options and guidance about best treatment according to their requirement. The service is given free of cost through phone call, skype, facebook, website and (recently) mobile application. The sustainability is managed through healthcare consulting, healthcare management, selling healthcare innovation and treatment abroad. With high degree of professional commitment, he has created and proven a new sector in healthcare that can directly benefit the people by making their treatment easy, effective and economic. With his lively presence and presentation in international forums, he is gradually linking Nepal to a global dynamism of fast-changing health sector.

Tim Seal

Speaker

Tim is Technical Director for TESS-India. The project, funded by UKaid from the UK Government, is designed to address the urgent need to improve the quantity and quality of teacher education in India. He provides strategic leadership, knowledge and advice to the TESS-India project in a technical context, with focus on usability, technical requirements, implementation and open educational resources and practice. Tim draws upon 15 years of expertise in open learning, interactive media, design and theory. Since joining The Open University in 2008, Tim has worked alongside a variety of external partners to produce award winning teaching materials. As Assistant Director of SCORE, funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, Tim helped lead the three year project that aimed to assist the Higher Education sector in realising the benefits of Open Educational Resources.

Dr. Tshering Lama

Speaker

Dr Lama graduated of Northumbria University, UK with BSc (HONS) Health Development Studies, Masters of Public Health and Ph.D. in Telemedicine. Beside his academic achievement, he was awarded and honored with several national and international awards, some of the awards: The first ever Lord Glenamara International Scholarship by Northumbria University in recognition of his efforts in improving public health and the environment through volunteering; The International Student of the Year 2006 in the UK. He was further honoured by Northumbria university by establishing 20 scholarships for Nepalese students under his name Tshering Lama Northumbria University Scholarships. Currently Dr. Lama is the Country Director for Childreach Nepal- a local charity but also part of the global network of Childreach International, works in partnership with local communities to help improve children’s access to healthcare, education, and child rights and protection in Nepal. He is an Academician (Participatory Action Researcher), Development worker, Motivational and Public Speaker, Social Activist, Connector, (attempting to be a good human being…)

Dr. Umesh Khanal

Speaker

Dr. Umesh Khanal has experience in the field of medical through his service. Dr. Khanal has worked as Medical officer in different hospitals in Ministry of Health Nepal. He has huge level of interest in the areas of topic Teleradiology, Telemedicine, Medicine and Law, Clinical Research. Currently he is an assistant Professor in the Department of Radiology and Imaging, TU Teaching Hospital. Dr. Khanal is also the Visiting Consultant Radiologist at Nepal Police Hospital, consultant Radiologist at Himal Hospital Pvt. Ltd and Manamohan Memorial Community Hospital. He has actively participated in various conferences in the field of medicine and radiology. Dr. Khanal completed his MBBS and MDRD from Institute of medicine, TU and also is a law graduate.

Dr. Gokul Bhandari

Conference Chair

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Dr. Rudra Pandey

Local Organizing Co-chair

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Dr. Rudra Pandey is a pioneer in the software outsourcing industry in Nepal. He is currently the Executive Chairman of Deerwalk Inc., USA with a subsidiary in Nepal. Prior to that, he was the Chief Operating Officer of Verisk Health created from the acquisition of D2Hawkeye Inc. by Verisk Analytics.

Dr. Pandey was a founding partner and the Chief Technology Officer of D2Hawkeye Inc. which has one of the largest outsourcing firms in Nepal.

He also has significant IT experience in the financial services industry.

Surendra Nath Adhikari

Conference on-site Coordinator

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