Kathmandu – The Nepal government has appointed development economist Yanki Ukyab as the first female Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Investment Board Nepal (IBN), marking a historic milestone since the board’s establishment, The appointment places an experienced public policy and investment specialist at the helm of Nepal’s premier investment promotion agency. The Cabinet approved the appointment on Wednesday following a recommendation from the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers.
The Investment Board Nepal is responsible for facilitating large-scale domestic and foreign investments, including strategic infrastructure and public-private partnership (PPP) projects. Ukyab’s appointment comes as Nepal seeks to attract higher levels of foreign direct investment and accelerate the implementation of major development projects.
Who is Yanki Ukyab?
Yanki Ukyab is a development economist and public policy expert with extensive experience in economic policy, investment, public finance and sustainable development.
She holds a master’s degree in Public Policy from the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. During her career, she has served as a Senior Policy Adviser at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Pacific Regional Office and previously worked as a Development Economist with UNDP Nepal.
Ukyab has also held key finance and investment-related responsibilities at the Investment Board Nepal, giving her first-hand experience in the institution she will now lead. Beyond government service, she has been actively associated with the Nepal Economic Forum, contributing research, policy analysis and publications on economic development, fiscal policy and investment.
Her work has focused on strengthening economic governance, improving the investment climate and promoting sustainable and inclusive economic growth, making her one of Nepal’s well-known policy professionals in the development sector.
The government expects the new CEO to strengthen the Investment Board’s role in mobilising private investment, improving investor confidence and expediting nationally significant projects that are central to Nepal’s long-term economic growth strategy.
