Kathmandu, October 1:

Chief Justice Dilip Kumar Poudel awarded the ‘Hem Bahadur Malla Honour’ to Chandni Joshi, regional director of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), at a programme held in the capital today. Joshi was awarded for her advocacy of issues of gender equality and women’s empowerment at the regional level. She was also given honorary membership of the Public Administration Association of Nepal (PAAN) at the same programme. Speaking on the occasion, CJ Poudel said sustainable and excellent administration is the backbone of any country and added that currently Nepal needs efficient, effective, transparent and responsible administration.

Kamal Mani Dixit, chairman of Salt Trading Corporation Ltd, termed Hem Bahadur Malla a “father figure”. Joshi said though development cooperation policy commitments to achieve the Millennium Development Goals recognise gender equality and poverty are linked, measures to achieve equality have not been taken. “Focus should be on creating strategies, devising mechanisms and forging partnerships to spur implementation of commitments to achieve the Beijing Platform for Action and the MDGs,” Joshi said.