Kathmandu: The government has begun the process of filling vacant positions in the boards and leadership structures of various public institutions after scrapping a large number of political appointments earlier this month.
On May 2, the government published a notice in the Nepal Gazette dismissing 1,594 office bearers from 108 public bodies in a single decision. The vacancies created by the mass removal have reportedly stalled policy-level and long-term decision-making in several institutions.
The dismissals were carried out through the “Special Ordinance on Removal of Public Office Holders, 2026 BS,” under which most politically appointed officials lost their positions. To restore operations in affected institutions and complete board appointments, ministries have now started issuing public notices inviting applications for vacant posts.
Following the dismissals, the government has already called for applications to appoint five board members to Nepal Airlines Corporation and a new Director General for the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. Candidates who applied for those positions have also been invited to deliver presentations as part of the selection process.
According to Gokarna Prasad Upadhyay, information officer at the Ministry of Tourism, appointments to the two aviation bodies are expected to be finalized soon. He added that the ministry plans to accelerate similar recruitment processes for other institutions affected by the dismissals.
The Ministry of Communication has also issued public notices to fill key posts under its jurisdiction, including the chairperson and board members of the Nepal Telecommunications Authority and the executive director of the Security Printing Centre. According to the notice issued on Saturday, interested applicants have until May 18 to apply.
The ministry has invited applications for one chairperson and four member positions at the Nepal Telecommunications Authority, urging qualified candidates to submit applications in the prescribed format.
Similarly, applications have been invited for the executive director position at the Security Printing Centre, with the same May 18 deadline for eligible candidates.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology has introduced a unified guideline for selecting and recommending vice-chancellors at public universities. The procedure, issued on May 7, aims to make the appointment process more transparent and systematic.
Under the new guideline, the ministry has already issued a 10-day public notice inviting applications for vacant vice-chancellor positions at several universities, including Tribhuvan University, Purbanchal University, Pokhara University, Lumbini Buddhist University, Agriculture and Forestry University, Mid-West University, Far Western University, and Rajarshi Janak University.
The newly introduced “Unified Procedure for Selection and Recommendation of Vice-Chancellors of Universities, 2026 BS” states that candidates must hold at least a PhD degree from a recognized university.
Applicants are also required to have at least 10 years of experience in research and academia, demonstrate strong managerial capability in academic institutions, be at least 40 years old at the time of application, possess high moral character, and not be affiliated with any political party.
The guideline further states that candidates must not be disqualified from holding public office under existing laws.
Applicants are also required to submit self-declarations confirming that their vision papers and work plans do not contain plagiarism. In addition, one individual may apply for vice-chancellor positions at a maximum of two universities only. The guideline also includes conflict-of-interest provisions preventing selection committee members from participating in evaluations involving close relatives.
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