Dr Shesh Ghale is an
Australian businessman of Nepalese origin,
billionaire
A billionaire is a person with a net worth of at least 1,000,000,000, one billion (1,000,000,000, i.e., a thousand million) units of a given currency, usually of a major currency such as the United States dollar, euro, or pound sterling. The ...
and the former president of
Non Resident Nepali Association (NRNA). Based in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...
,
Victoria, Ghale is the CEO of
Melbourne Institute of Technology (MIT), which he co-founded with his wife,
Jamuna Gurung.
Ghale and his wife, Gurung, are the third billionaires of Nepalese origin after
Binod Chaudhary and
Balkrishna.
Biography
Born in the western
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is ma ...
village of
Lamjung, Ghale undertook his initial tertiary education in the former USSR (1979 to 1986) graduating with a Master of Civil Engineering degree from the
Kharkiv National Automobile and Highway University. He undertook his studies on a Nepalese Government scholarship and, on returning to Nepal, worked as a highway project engineer for the Nepalese Government's transport department. Ghale relocated to Melbourne in 1990 to undertake further studies and to settle his family in Australia. He graduated from
Victoria University in 1994 with a Master of Business Administration.
He is actively involved in Melbourne's business and commercial life and has a passionate commitment to education.
Ghale is the CEO and co-founder of the Melbourne Institute of Technology.
Net worth
Ghale and his wife, Gurung, are the first billionaires in the global Nepalese
diaspora
A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews afte ...
and the only third billionaire of Nepalese origin after
Binod Chaudhary and
Balkrishna.
Ghale and Gurung first appeared on the
''BRW'' Rich 200 in 2009,
and jointly appeared on subsequent rich lists.
With a
net worth
Net worth is the value of all the non-financial and financial assets owned by an individual or institution minus the value of all its outstanding liabilities. Since financial assets minus outstanding liabilities equal net financial assets, ne ...
of approximately A$1.18
billion
Billion is a word for a large number, and it has two distinct definitions:
*1,000,000,000, i.e. one thousand million, or (ten to the ninth power), as defined on the short scale. This is its only current meaning in English.
* 1,000,000,000,000, ...
in 2019, Ghale and Gurung were named by ''
The Australian Financial Review
''The Australian Financial Review'' (abbreviated to the ''AFR'') is an Australian business-focused, compact daily newspaper covering the current business and economic affairs of Australia and the world. The newspaper is based in Sydney, New S ...
''
Rich List as the 78th richest Australians.
They were previously ranked as the 81st-richest Australian by ''The Australian Financial Review'' in the
2018 Rich List.
;Note
* : Net worth held jointly with Jamuna Gurung.
Philanthropy
Ghale is known both for his philanthropic work, especially in the aftermath of the
April
April is the fourth month of the year in the Gregorian and Julian calendars. It is the first of four months to have a length of 30 days, and the second of five months to have a length of less than 31 days.
April is commonly associated with ...
and
May 2015 earthquakes in Nepal, as well as for his rise from an international student to his listing on the list of Australian billionaires. Following the 2015 Nepal earthquakes, as the president of NRNA International Coordination Council (ICC), Ghale led a well-coordinated relief and reconstruction activities. As a result, he and his wife spent much of the following years leading the campaign by stationing themselves closer to the ground zero of the devastating earthquake.
Some of his key achievements included service as the Honorary Consul General of Nepal in Victoria (1997-2000); nominated for the 2013 Ernst and Young Australian Entrepreneur of the Year Award; elected president of the Non-Resident Nepali Association (NRNA) for an inaugural two-year term (2013–2015) and re-elected for a second two-year term (2015–2017); awarded Doctor of the University ''
Honoris Causa
An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad h ...
'' in 2015 by the Federation University in recognition of Ghale's distinguished service and contribution to Australian Higher Education, and to urban preservation and development, and of course to the people of Nepal; appointed "Special Envoy for Nepal Earthquake Reconstruction and Development" by the Government of Nepal in 2015; and in the same year appointed "Goodwill Ambassador for 2015-17" in the Male Leaders in the campaign against Domestic Violence by the Nepalese Ministry of Children, Women and Social Services.
In 2015, Ghale and Gurung co-founded the MIT Group Foundation to help under-privileged and vulnerable communities of Nepal through education and health. They have donated
NPR रू1
billion
Billion is a word for a large number, and it has two distinct definitions:
*1,000,000,000, i.e. one thousand million, or (ten to the ninth power), as defined on the short scale. This is its only current meaning in English.
* 1,000,000,000,000, ...
to the Foundation.
References
External links
Shesh GhaleNepaleseAbroad.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghale, Shesh
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Nepalese businesspeople
People from Lamjung District
Australian chief executives
Nepalese emigrants to Australia
Victoria University, Melbourne alumni
Australian billionaires
21st-century Nepalese businesspeople
Nepalese company founders