Achyuta Samanta, Founder of KIIT & KISS has been nominated as a Member of Asia Economic Forum (AEF), an independent think tank that acts as a forum for promoting policy dialogue on major issues facing Asia at present and aims at bringing together important policy makers in various fields. It is for the first time that an Indian and an Odiya has been selected as a Member of AEF. Samanta’s social commitments through KISS- the largest free residential institute for 12,000 poorest of the poor tribal children-weighed in favour of him getting selected for becoming a Member of AEF, which has set its goal to promote sustainable development that includes human development, economic progress and environmental sustainability in Asia at the time of increasing globalization and growing regionalization in the world today. The other members of AEF are various renowned policy makers from Singapore, Cambodia and Indonesia.

Expressing his happiness over such a rare honour, Samanta candidly said that in this forum, he would raise important issues among Asian leaders to work for eradication of poverty and for the economic development of the region. He would contribute towards education, health and overall development of the under-privileged of Asia, he added.