Leadership

Chhaya Sharma

Country President, Nepal

A Member of the Constituent Assembly (2013-2017) in Nepal, Chhaya Sharma is the epitome of women's empowerment in the country. She is the Founder & Chairperson of Nepal College of Travel and Tourism Management, the first college in Nepal that provides training on tourism. She is also the Founder of Kaasthamandap Vidyalaya School and SAARC Chamber Crafts Village, a retail outlet for handicrafts from the SAARC region.

Chhaya Sharma underwent professional training in the Development of Rural Tourism in Israel with a specific aim to learn methods and processes that can help generate income and job opportunities for women in tourism. Rooting for women empowerment, she founded the Federation of Women Entrepreneurs Associations of Nepal (FWEAN) and served as its President from 2011-2013. While being the President, she helped set up the Woman Entrepreneurs Association (WEAN) in 15 districts to facilitate self-employment for rural women.

Currently, she is an active and influential member of multiple organizations promoting tourism and regional peace & development. It includes being a member of the advisory committee of the SAARC Chamber Women Entrepreneurs Council. An iron-lady in every sense, Chhaya Sharma has overseen various research works on Micro Enterprise Development for income generation for women in the Far-Eastern and Mid-Western regions of Nepal.

Having done Masters in Sociology from Tribhuvan University, she understands the dynamics of social factors that play a significant part in maintaining peace, wellbeing, and harmony in society. It is why she underwent professional training via the program "Conflict Transformation Across Cultures" from SIT, Vermont. She also had herself trained through various courses in learning to provide interventions on social healing and sustainable peace.

Chhaya Sharma has always been vocal about the significance of women’s growth in the country's economy. Walking the talk, she pioneered the establishment of the Women Entrepreneurship Development Fund to offer a collateral-free loan to rural women. She led a delegation of Women Parliamentarians on a study tour to Dehli’s "Dilli Hart," advocating establishing the Women’s Craft Village in Nepal.

Traveling over 20 countries, Mrs. Sharma understands the types of platforms and tools women require for self-sustaining growth. She has been awarded various accolades in her career spanning over two decades. She was awarded the Best Entrepreneur of the year, 2000, by the Ministry of Industry. She has been honored as the Ambassador for Peace by Universal Peace Federation.