Dr Paras Kharel is Executive Director of South Asia Watch on Trade, Economics and Environment (SAWTEE), a Kathmandu-based think tank. He leads SAWTEE's research and policy engagement on trade, regional integration and the graduation of Nepal from least developed country status. His expertise lies in international trade and applied microeconometrics. He has edited two volumes on South Asian cooperation and integration and published in the Review of International Economics, International Economics and the East Asian Economic Review. He holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Melbourne.