Nepal

Five government officials have been honoured with Integrity Icon Nepal 2022 award in recognition of their hard work and integrity in service delivery.

The individuals were awarded with the titles at a ceremony on Thursday evening. The ceremony took place in a closed group event and was broadcast live for the public through social media, with thousands of active viewers. 

Kalpana Adhikari, engineer at the Department of Roads, Lalitpur; Mohan Krishna Maharjan, senior food research officer at the Department of Food Technology and Quality Control, Kathmandu.

Also awarded on the evening were Rajesh Sah Jaiswal, head constable at the District Police Office, Sarlahi; Roshani Devi Karki, under secretary at the Ministry of Health and Population, Kathmandu; and Sujan Kumari Bardewa, section officer at the Border Administration Office, Namche, Solukhumbu. 

The icons were revealed through social media and promoted in a series of offline and online campaigns across the country showcasing their exemplary work, Integrity Icon Nepal said in a statement.

During the crowning ceremony, each icon was awarded different titles based on their work and persona. Adhikari was awarded as the icon who is “Leading by example”, Maharjan “Symbol of dedication”; Jaiswal “Grounded with values”; Karki “Voice against injustice”; and Bardewa “Practical in action”. 

Manamaya Bhattarai Pangeni, the Integrity Icon for 2021 winner, congratulated the Integrity Icons 2022, saying, “We need to fulfill our responsibilities via good words, behavior, and actions. This is what helps us make our lives easier and better and allows us to continue doing good.”

Introduced in Nepal in 2014 as a campaign to find, celebrate and connect honest government officials, the Integrity Icon has since become a global movement. 

The annual event is organised in 15 countries to role-model individuals who go beyond the call of duty and build support for their efforts to realize a collective societal shift towards ethical conduct and greater accountability.