Dmminic O'Neill, the new Head of DFID Nepal, takes office on 1 August 2011. He succeeds Sarah Sanyahumbi.


Dominic has worked for DFID since 2002 and has previously headed three other DFID offices: Yemen (2003-6), Iraq (2007) and Sierra Leone (2008-11). Prior to joining DFID he worked as a Country Director for a British NGO, Raleigh International, in Namibia (1998-2000), Mongolia (2000-1) and Chile (2001-2). He speaks Arabic and has worked closely with Islamic and Arab organisations on their engagement in development in Africa. His professional background is in environmental health, with a specalism in water. He previously worked with the Ministry of Health in Namibia in this field (1996- 1998). He is a keen trekker and mountain biker.


Dominic will oversee DFID Nepal's four-year £331 million country programme, the largest bilateral programme in Nepal.


On arrival, Dominic said, "I am delighted to have the opportunity to live and work in nepal for the next few years. The UK has a strong relationship with Nepal, and we have recently agreed a new country plan, which I am sure will make a significant difference to the lives of many poor people in this country. I am looking forward to working with the Government and people of Nepal and all our other partners to make this happen."