Yubika Bhandari, the current General Secretary of the Nepal Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA), has announced her candidacy for the upcoming NATTA presidential election.
With more than two decades of experience in Nepal’s tourism sector and six years of continuous involvement in NATTA’s executive committee, Bhandari has entered the race with a vision to strengthen the organization and make it more effective for tourism entrepreneurs across Nepal.
Bhandari has served NATTA in various leadership roles since 2020, including Joint Treasurer, Secretary, and currently as General Secretary. She has been the Managing Director of Shashi’s Holidays International Travel and Tours since 2011.
An architecture graduate, Bhandari completed her Executive MBA from the School of Management under Pokhara University. She has also been honored with the Nepal Bidhya Bhushan ‘Kha’ award from the President of Nepal and the Chancellor’s Gold Medal from Pokhara University for her outstanding academic achievements.
During her tenure as General Secretary, Bhandari played an active role in financial management, policy advocacy, and representing Nepal’s tourism sector at international platforms, including FITUR Spain and sales missions in China and Malaysia.
She was also involved in capacity-building initiatives conducted in collaboration with UNDP and the Nepal Tourism Board, where more than 700 tourism professionals from all seven provinces received training.
Announcing her candidacy, Bhandari stated that her priority would be to transform NATTA from a reactive organization into a proactive institution with better planning and coordination.
Her key agendas include making NATTA’s communication and decision-making processes more transparent and technology-friendly, ensuring equal representation of tourism entrepreneurs from outside Kathmandu, strengthening policy coordination with the government, and introducing capacity development programs for tourism professionals nationwide.
Bhandari said her candidacy is not aimed at personal position or recognition but at building a stronger, responsible, and future-oriented organization that represents the needs of Nepal’s tourism industry.
The NATTA election is scheduled to take place on Shrawan 29, where the new executive committee will be elected. Several candidates have already shown interest in contesting for the president’s position, with Bhandari’s announcement gaining significant attention within the tourism sector.
