![Rajesh Chandra 2014](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Rajesh_Chandra_2014.jpg)
Rajesh Chandra is a
Fiji
Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
an academic. In February 2005 he was appointed the first
Vice-Chancellor
A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system.
In most Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and former Commonwealth n ...
of the newly founded
University of Fiji
The University of Fiji is a university based in Saweni, Lautoka, Fiji. It was established in December 2004 under academic leadership of the Fiji Institute of Applied Studies and financial sponsorship of the Arya Pratinidhi Sabha of Fiji, a Hi ...
. He served as Vice-Chancellor and President of
The University of the South Pacific
The University of the South Pacific (USP) is a public research university with locations spread throughout a dozen countries in Oceania. Established in 1968, the university is organised as an intergovernmental organisation and is owned by the gov ...
(USP) ending his term in December 2018.
Chandra was born in
Maro in
Nadroga Navosa Province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...
. He completed his
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
degree at
The University of the South Pacific
The University of the South Pacific (USP) is a public research university with locations spread throughout a dozen countries in Oceania. Established in 1968, the university is organised as an intergovernmental organisation and is owned by the gov ...
with distinction. and holds a
PhD in Industrial/Development
Geography
Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...
, which he completed between 1981 and 1985 at the
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...
. He is the author of more than 45 articles in
academic journal
An academic journal or scholarly journal is a periodical publication in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as permanent and transparent forums for the presentation, scrutiny, and d ...
s and books. He is also the author or editor of five books, including ''Industrialization and Development in the Third World'' and ''An Atlas of Fiji'', which is used as a textbook in all Fijian secondary schools.
USP career
Chandra served on the staff of the
University of the South Pacific
The University of the South Pacific (USP) is a public university, public research university with locations spread throughout a dozen countries in Oceania. Established in 1968, the university is organised as an intergovernmental organisation and ...
(USP), the South Pacific Islands regional university, from 1975 to 2005, before taking up the Vice-Chancellorship of the new University of Fiji. He was Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the USP for nine years, and also served for three years as Acting Vice-Chancellor, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Academic), and Director of Planning and Development. From 1987 to 1988, he was Head of the School of Social and Economic Development, and from 1994 to 1996, of the Geography Department. In early June 2013, USP's council cleared Chandra of allegations (based on a petition circulated by a group called USP-devoted IE for Justice) of corruption and abuse of authority.
After retiring from USP in December 2018, Chandra's successor, Professor
Pal Ahluwalia, alleged he had found evidence of significant abuse of office during Chandra's tenure. This included the promotion and overpayment of favoured managers and the systematic abuse of allowances and privileges, amounting to millions of dollars. The matter was investigated by New Zealand accounting firm BDO, which substantiated many of the allegations but th
reportwas suppressed by the USP Council. The subsequent scandal over poor governance and mismanagement was widely documented in the international media. The University Council decided to move the headquarters of USP from Fiji to Samoa in protest at the Fiji Government's interference in the management of the regional institution.
International roles
Chandra served as Chairman of the Executive Committee of the
Commonwealth Universities Study Abroad Consortium (CUSAC) from 1999 to 2003. He has been a visiting professor or research fellow at numerous institutions, including
McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...
, the Macmillan Brown Centre for Pacific Studies at
Canterbury University
The University of Canterbury ( mi, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was f ...
, the National Centre for Development Studies of the
Australian National University
The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...
, and the
Pacific Islands Development Program, East-West Center, in
Honolulu
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...
.
Personal life
Chandra is married with a son and a daughter.
References
Sources
The University of the South Pacific website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chandra, Rajesh
People from Nadroga-Navosa Province
Living people
University of the South Pacific alumni
Fijian Hindus
Year of birth missing (living people)
University of British Columbia alumni
University of Fiji faculty
Vice-chancellors of the University of the South Pacific
Fijian expatriates in Canada