IDinsight appoints Karan Nagpal as new India Regional Director

August 3rd, 2023 – IDinsight announces today the appointment of Dr. Karan Nagpal as its new India Regional Director. In this role, Karan will establish and implement IDinsight’s regional strategy to deepen its impact in India. In addition to leading and supporting IDinsight’s India-based team, he will focus on building strategic partnerships with clients, funders, and peers. As part of IDinsight’s senior leadership team and management group, Karan will also continue to contribute to the goals of the global organisation.

In recent months, Karan has served as the interim co-India Regional Director (IRD) alongside Neha Raykar following the transition of Mallika Ahluwalia to Chief Strategy Officer. Prior to his role as interim IRD, Karan served for four years as Economist at IDinsight as well as an Associate Director. In these roles, he developed and managed key relationships with national and state government partners, and international funders, and drove some of IDinsight’s highest-impact work in India, including work with the Delhi government on its COVID-19 response effort. His work and leadership span sectors including governance, financial inclusion, sanitation, data collection innovations, and public health.

Karan’s prior research work focused on urbanization, governance, and political economy in developing countries, particularly in India and Brazil. Prior to joining IDinsight, he consulted with the World Bank, worked as a trade policy advisor with the Government of Vanuatu, and taught economics at St Peter’s College, Oxford.

Karan holds a DPhil (PhD) and an MPhil in Economics from the University of Oxford, and a BA (Honors) in Economics from St. Stephen’s College (Delhi), where he graduated at the top of his class. He was awarded the Inlaks scholarship for his graduate studies at Oxford.

I am excited and humbled to lead IDinsight India,” said Dr. Karan Nagpal, incoming India Regional Director. “Over the past 12 years, we have built close relationships with governments, NGOs, and philanthropic organisations. We have also established a reputation for analytical rigour. Along with IDinsight India’s experienced leadership team, I look forward to deepening existing partnerships and developing new relationships in service of our primary goal: improving as many lives as possible through our projects, products, and ideas.”

“I’m delighted that Karan has taken up this important post at IDinsight,” said IDinsight interim-CEO Esther Wang. “He brings deep ambition for social impact, a strong connection to our culture and people, and commitment to excellence in serving our clients.”