Alumni Feature | Dharmendra Singh, Master’s in Public Policy ‘16

Dharmendra Singh, a 2016 batch alumnus, is currently working with Ontario Public Service at the Ministry of Infrastructure in Toronto, Canada. He is a TEDx speaker and in his role at the Office of the Minister of Infrastructure, Dharmendra is assisting the Parliamentary Assistant and the Minister of Infrastructure on policy advisory and stakeholder relations. He is responsible for overseeing the development of policy in the areas of Ontario Connects to achieve 100 percent broadband connectivity across the province by the end of 2025, 5G wireless network for open innovation and supporting infrastructure priorities for municipalities across Ontario. Dharmendra worked for over a decade in financial services before pursuing the MPP course at the National Law School of India University, Bangalore. After graduating, Dharmendra was assisting the Chair of the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs at the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in Toronto. Dharmendra, while serving here as Senior Advisor, Policy and Legislation played an important role in facilitating 2020 and 2021 Ontario Budget consultations and helped in organising the longest ever consultation in the history of Ontario from businesses, Indigenous partners, labour groups, non-profits, associations, religious and cultural organisations, and many others across all regions and sectors in Ontario, to help inform the next phase of Ontario’s response to COVID-19, Ontario’s Action Plan: Protect, Support, Recover.

While recollecting his time spent at NLSIU, Dharmendra said: ““The professors at MPP are the best part of the program for presenting a diverse viewpoint of policy issues in a given context. Professors coming from diverse backgrounds and experience are experts in each of their respective fields and I found I was coming away with incredible insider knowledge of the policy landscape. There is something to be learned, and earned, from this program for every individual as it gives you the knowledge and opportunity you need to hit the ground running, whether you work within the government, consulting services or not-for-profit entities. The MPP program provides an opportunity to fine-tune skillsets while learning more about policy development in an engaging and fun environment.”

Dharmendra is passionate about empowering people and improving outcomes by accelerating innovation, leveraging data and digital transformation in governance.