Gunakar Bhatta has been appointed as the vice-chairman of the National Planning Commission (NPC).
A Cabinet meeting held on Tuesday made the decision to appoint Bhatta, according to a minister.
Bhatta previously served as an executive director at Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). He had recently resigned from that position amid rumors of his potential appointment as governor. He spent 25 years at the central bank, having entered the service as an assistant director in 2000.
During his long tenure at the central bank, he headed the economic research department and also worked in the bank supervision department, banks and financial institutions regulation department, payment systems department, and monetary management department.
Bhatta holds a PhD in economics from the United States. He also previously served as an advisor to Nepali Congress leader Prakash Sharan Mahat during Mahat's tenure as finance minister.