Origins In December 1974, the idea of creating an institution to promote the ecologically sound development of mountainous regions was discussed at the International Workshop on the Development of Mountain Environment in Munich, German. In 1979 concrete commitments were made to establish the centre during a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (
UNESCO) Regional Meeting in Kathmandu, under the framework of the
Man and Biosphere Programme. The Japanese organization
Institute for Himalayan Conservation, established by
Jiro Kawakita, also sent a statement of intent for the establishment of ICIMOD to the Nepal government and the Man and Biosphere Programme of UNESCO. The Government of Nepal offered to host the new institution, and the Governments of Switzerland and the
Federal Republic of Germany and
UNESCO agreed to act as the founding sponsors.
His Majesty's Government of Nepal and UNESCO signed the agreement that provided the legal basis for establishing the Centre in September 1981 in Paris. The centre was finally established and inaugurated on 5 December 1983 with its headquarters in Lalitpur, Nepal, and legitimised through an Act of Parliament in Nepal in the same year.
Headquarters For the first 20 years, i.e. from late 1983 till late 2004, ICIMOD was based at a rented premises in
Jawalakhel, Lalitpur. On 5 December 2004, the 21st anniversary of ICIMOD, a new headquarters for ICIMOD was inaugurated by
King Gyanendra of Nepal at Khumaltar, Lalitpur. The 1.5 hectares for this headquarters campus, worth over US$1 million, were contributed by the Government of Nepal. The governments of China and India contributed US$100,000 each, for the construction of the new headquarters. The government of Pakistan committed US$100,000 for its construction. The government of Bangladesh contributed US$28,300, including a Bangladesh pavilion in the campus. The government of Bhutan contributed in kind, in the form of a Bhutan pavilion in the campus. In the
earthquake of 25 April 2015 in Nepal, the headquarters received minor damages, but the Bhutan pavilion completely collapsed. The pavilion was subsequently rebuilt and re-inaugurated in 2016.
Directors/Director Generals of ICIMOD Since its inception, ICIMOD has been headed by a male Director General. The first head of ICIMOD, Kenneth Colin Rosser, was designated as the 'Director' of ICIMOD and all subsequent heads have been designated as the 'Director Generals'. From 1984 until 2020, these Directors were from a country outside the Himalaya region. So far, all the Director Generals of ICIMOD have been men. Following is a list of the Director Generals of ICIMOD until the present: • Kenneth Colin Rosser, from the United Kingdom (1984–1989) • E.F. Tacke, from the Federal Republic of Germany (1989–1994) • Egbert Pelinck, from the Netherlands (1994–2000) • Gabriel Campbell, from the United States of America (2000–2007) • Andreas Schild, from Switzerland (2007–2011) • David Molden, from the United States of America (2011–2020) •
Pema Gyamtsho, from the Kingdom of Bhutan (2020–present) == Organisational structure ==