Tara Panthi Email & Phone Number

Nepal

• Lead the design and implementation of innovation and digitization function of Heifer International Nepal.• Prepare business plan and investment plan for implementation of the innovation and digitization function in partnership with farmer organization and private sector.• Strategize innovation to digitalize services on farm advisory, access to finance, access to farm input, access to market, and other business development services in livestock and agriculture value chain that will support more than 1 million smallholder farmer families achieve sustainable living income by 2030.• Lead partnership with national and international Agri-tech companies, agriculture value chain input suppliers, farmers organizations, government bodies and traders to promote agriculture digital innovation.

Lalitpur, Nepal

• Served as the Project Lead for the USAID (Women Connect Challenge Fund managed by DAI) funded Bridging the Gender Digital Gap in Nepal project that provided access to digital technology to 1 million Nepalese rural women smallholder farmers through 380+ digital hubs across Nepal. • Manage Heifer’s signature Public-Private-Producer Partnership (4P) based enterprise development project to establish and operationalize 5 large scale modern abattoirs in 5 cities (Biratnagar, Butwal, Kohalpur, Pokhara, and Tulsipur) of Nepal with total project cost of $ 9 million from the local and provincial government and expected annual turnover of $48 million. • Facilitated preparation of Detailed Project Report including Initial Environmental Examination, and financial plan of the abattoirs, provided technical support to local governments for public procurement of infrastructure construction from international vendor, established 18 public companies and 4 private companies owned by 20,000 smallholder farmers and meat entrepreneurs for abattoir operations, and facilitated their legal, administrative compliances, HR plan and option for impact investment. • Coordinated market systems based innovative prototype projects of the organization such as Blockchain Development project and formation of Apex Body of 290+ cooperatives. • Lead institutional partnership and engagement with national and international institutions such as PwC, Deloitte, Path, UNICEF for potential collaboration in project development.

Lalitpur, Nepal

• Co-founded the organization and led development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of its programs and supervised financial, administrative, and legal compliances of the organization.• Conducted 5 Enterprise Challenges that capacitated 900+ MSMEs, and accelerated growth of 45 MSMEs through Rural Enterprise Accelerator Program (REAP). • Led the Daayitwa Nepal Public Service Fellowship in partnership with 20 government agencies (including Ministries of Industry, Finance, Agriculture Development, National Planning Commission and Investment Board of Nepal), members of parliament and former prime ministers through Governance and Research Program (G-Lab).• Designed and Implemented 3-year long Youth Engagement for Youth Employment Program as a part of DFID’s Skills for Employment Program with International Labor Organization and DFID. • Collaborated with the American Embassy to design and implement the United States Youth Council (USYC) Program-2016.

Kupandole Lalitpur

• Led development and implementation of all the leadership, entrepreneurship and education tourism programs of the academy and supervised its financial, administrative, and legal compliances. • Designed and implemented customized courses and tour packages on leadership, entrepreneurship, governance, and business management such as Leading Innovation, Nepal Leadership Trek, Leading Rural Enterprise Innovation, and Rural Enterprise Service such as Leading Innovation, Nepal Leadership Trek, Leading Rural Enterprise Innovation, Rural Enterprise Service to hundreds of young professionals and university students.

Lalitpur, Nepal

• Evaluated the 3 agriculture based enterprises supported by the EDP program in Nepal and made recommendations for their sustainability.

Helsinki

• Co-authored a public-private partnership framework for localization and commercialization of UNICEF’s innovations in East Africa.

Kotihawa, Rupandehi

• Researched on potential of metal recycling industry, its value chain, vertical and horizontal linkages, end markets in Nepal and South Asia and started the business with paid up capital of NPR 40 million and average annual transaction of NPR 100 million.

• Co-authored “Gender, Nutrition and Health Impacts of Civil Work Programs in Nepal” report for the bank based on qualitative and quantitative analysis of the banks infrastructure-based development projects in Western Nepal.

United States

• Managed 10-15 tutors of the lab to train the college students and faculty on use of digital technology and software in the media lab and directed and edited film projects of the college.

Master Of Science In Economics And Business Administration, Sustainability And Design Thinking

Bachelor Of Arts (B.A.), Economics