NATIONAL10 [RELIGION (Spotlight Weelky)]

Man Of Action

The newly appointed deputy executive director of UNICEF says going beyond normal call of duty is a key to success

Gautam : Aiming high

When he was a student at a local school in Tansen in western Nepal, his teachers considered him an intelligent boy. "He will achieve something outstanding," they predicted. Some four-decades later he has proved them right.

Newly appointed deputy executive director at the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), Kul Chandra Gautam, is the first Nepali to hold highest office ever in the United Nations system. A man of inquisitive nature, his decision to join the UN organization was no less dramatic.

When he was doing his masters in public affairs from a US university in the seventies, US-Vietnam war was on the peak. Enthralled by stories of heroic feat of the Vietnamese people, he decided to visit that country and work there if possible. As he was learning French, he came across an advertisement put by UNICEF to work in Cambodia. The officers interviewing him said that he was exactly the person they were looking for. Thus began his career with the UNICEF in 1973.

Though he could not go to Hanoi, he started working in Cambodia as Assistant Program Officer at the very difficult time just before the Khmer Rouge came in power. He later served at different positions within UNICEF in Indonesia, Laos, Haiti and New York. Gautam was the point man during the World Summit for Children in New York in September 1990.

The main responsibility in his new job as the deputy executive director is "to build worldwide partnership and alliances for children," says Gautam. In the next five years time, UNICEF has plans to raise 1.5 billion dollar per annum to fund its activities from present around one billion dollar per annum. " Besides governments, I will be focusing on non-governmental sector to raise additional money," said Gautam. "One-third of our income comes from the non-government sector," he said.

In his new capacity, Gautam will be focusing in regions where the state of children is very miserable. The state of affairs of children in South Asia is one of the most disheartening and discouraging after Africa, he said. Nepal has made some progress over the years in case of improving state of her children. In Nepal, 200 children out of 1000 died before reaching one year in 1960 which has declined to 72 per 1000 in 1999. "That's not good enough compared to Sri Lanka (where only 15 out of 1000 children die before reaching one year). Nepal has a long way to go," he said.

Upon his retirement (he has eight more years to serve the UNICEF), Gautam wants to come back to Nepal and settle down here. "I want to work from global level to local level and start works in my home district, Gulmi," he said. He has already set up a Fund in memory of his late mother and started providing health services in the village where he was born. "I want to do a lot of reading, especially Nepali literature."

Gautam is inspired by his grand father, Kapilmani Gautam, who was a farmer. His father, Om Prakash Gautam, is also a father. "My grand father wanted me to become a `pundit' (religious teacher) and encouraged me to read and write. He always inspired me to do good things in life," says Gautam.

During his tender age, Gautam had to leave his house in search of education. He studied Sanskrit for one and half years at Varanasi (India) and later studied from Class Seven to Nine at Janata Secondary School in Palpa. He studied Class Ten from Juddhodaya High School in Kathmandu and secured tenth position in SLC Board examinations. After passing Intermediate level from Tri-Chandra College, he was selected for scholarship at Dark North College in the US. He completed his post graduation study from Harvard University.

Married to Binita Dhital in 1974, Gautam's daughter, Jyotsna, has recently completed her graduation in film making . His son, Biplav, who is studying Business Administration in Bangkok, is interested in football in Nepal and has already set up a homepage on the subject in the Internet. " I have got special memory of Indonesia as my both children were born there," he recollects.

For Gautam, Nepal is the best place to live in. "No country in the world can be compared with Nepal," he says proudly. A widely traveled man, Gautam also likes Indonesia, Rio de Janeiro of Brazil and Guatemala. "I want to do something for Nepal and the Nepalis but there is little that I can do directly from my present position," says Gautam. "So, I would try to formulate policies to help people in least developed countries. In that way, Nepal and other countries with similar socio-economic situation could benefit," he said.

It was a matter of joy, pride and accomplishment for Gautam to be appointed second man at a prestigious organization like UNICEF. "I want my appointment to help bring honor to Nepal and tangible progress for the world's children," said Gautam, who took his new responsibilities from April this year. "UNICEF has a glorious record of significant achievements for the world's children. I will ensure that those achievements are sustained and new ground is broken for further progress," he added.

So, what is the secret of his success? "If you want to succeed do more than your ordinary call of duty. Once you show you know your job go beyond the call of duty," says 50-year-old Gautam modestly.

By Bhagirath Yogi