ANTWERPEN:- The example of Pragya Timilsina, a young woman of Nepali origin, being elected as a member of the city council of the municipality of Bruges has paved the way for second-generation Nepalis to seek political identity and achieve success in the mainstream of Europe, America, and Australia.
According to Pragya, the main job of a city council member is to participate in the decision-making process related to local policies, plans, and development, and to play a role in the management of city services, facilities, and development.
Pragya said, ‘The position I was elected to is not full-time. I go as needed, right now my main work is focused on academic studies and the responsibilities of this city councilor.’
According to her, elections are held every 6 years in Belgium. She was elected to the position from the CD&V party in the elections held in October 2024. She says that she is the first Nepali youth to be elected to the Bruges city council.
Pragya says that she ran for city council member after the Nepali community urged her to do so and was elected to the position. She says that she is currently juggling her studies and the responsibilities of the city council, and feels that she has matured more since she entered politics at a young age.
She says, ‘The city meeting is usually in the evening. I go to college in the morning. I come from college and prepare for the meeting,’ she shares her experience, ‘but it is difficult to find time to watch movies and do the normal activities that other friends of my age do.’
She said that she has received a lot of help and support from local citizens and the party in her political journey. She plans to move forward in politics immediately after completing her studies.
Pragya came here with her mother on a family visa in 2011 after her father became a permanent resident of Belgium. She arrived in Belgium at the age of 8, while studying in grade 3, and completed her education in various schools in Belgium. She is currently in her second year of undergraduate studies at the University of Ghent, studying Biomedical Sciences.