A Nepali working for the World Food Programme was among the 157 people killed in a plane crash in Ethiopia on Sunday.

The Nepali identified as Ekta Adhikari, who hails from Gorkha district, was working for the WFP office in Ethiopia.

The Boeing 737 Max 8 came down near the Ethiopian town of Bishoftu just six minutes after it left Addis Ababa for the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, in a statement, said he was deeply saddened by the plane crash which killed 19 UN staff. WFP Nepal has expressed its solidarity with family members to mourn Adhikari’s death.

There were passengers from 35 different countries on board the plane.