Newly Appointed Cabinet Features 10 Ministers Under 40, Led by Youngest PM in Decades

Kathmandu. The cabinet of the newly elected Prime Minister Balen Shah includes ten young individuals under the age of 40. The 15-member cabinet formed on Friday marks the first time that young people have a significant presence.

Prime Minister Shah himself is 36 years old. The country has received a Prime Minister under 40 for the first time in 52 years. Surya Bahadur Thapa was 36 when he became Prime Minister in 2020 BS. The youngest minister in Shah's cabinet is Sasmita Pokharel, who recently turned 29 and serves as the Minister of Education.

The oldest minister is Dr. Swarnim Wagle, who is 51 years old and serves as the Finance Minister.

Including Prime Minister Balen, there are nine ministers in the cabinet aged between 30 and 40. They are Home Minister Sudhan Gurung (38), Minister of Physical Infrastructure Sunil Lamsal (35), Health Minister Nisha Mehta (38), Minister of General Administration Pratibha Rawal (32), Law Minister Sobita Gautam (30), Agriculture Minister Gita Chaudhary (32), Labor Minister Deepak Kumar Sah (34), and Minister for Women and Children Sita Wadi (30). Only the Minister of Education, Sasmita Pokharel, is under 30.

There are four ministers aged between 40 and 50: Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal (47), Energy Minister Birajbhakta Shrestha (44), Tourism Minister Khadakraj Poudel (46), and Communication Minister Dr. Bikram Timilsina (43).

Only the Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle is over 50. Compared to the Prime Minister Balen, there are seven ministers younger and seven ministers older.

Compared to the previous cabinet, the current one appears highly inclusive. Among the cabinet members, the Khas Arya community constitutes the largest share at 53.33 percent. Female participation is 33.33 percent.

Furthermore, Madhesi representation is 20 percent, Janajati 13.33 percent, and Tharu and Dalit communities each have 6.66 percent representation. The Muslim community has zero presence.  

According to Section 28(5) of the Representative Assembly Election Act, 2074, political parties must prepare closed lists of candidates by considering geographical and provincial balance, ensuring representation based on population as mentioned in Schedule-1, including Dalit, Indigenous Janajati, Khas Arya, Madhesi, Tharu, and Muslim communities, in accordance with inclusive principles.

Schedule-1 of the said Act stipulates that the closed list preparation should include Khas Arya at 31.2 percent, Janajati at 28.7 percent, Madhesi at 15.3 percent, Dalit at 13.8 percent, Tharu at 6.6 percent, and Muslim at 4.4 percent.