Hom Karki

The Nepal government is planning to hold high-level talks with the governments of major labour destinations in order to systematise the foreign employment sector.

The government has expected that the meeting would help reform the sector, which is regarded as one of the most indecent, unmanaged, and insecure areas.

Deputy Prime Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha said the reform of this sector would not be possible without the commitment of destination countries. “This sector cannot be reformed unless the sending and receiving countries commit at some point to resolve the problem,” said Shrestha.

“We are now planning high-level meetings with the governments of destination countries, giving a big priority to this sector.”

According to Shrestha, a high-level committee has been formed under his leadership to enhance coordination among stakeholders. “The committee will do its bit to systematise the foreign employment sector,” said Shrestha.

The government is preparing to hold meetings with the governments of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Malaysia and South Korea. Shrestha said he would lead the talk team. 

These countries are the major recipients of Nepali migrant workers, with Qatar, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait being the top five absorbers. Qatar displaced Malaysia as the top recruiter of Nepali migrant workers last fiscal year. A total of 103,371 Nepali individuals went to Qatar in 2011-12, whereas Malaysia hired 98,339 Nepalis.

However, the government has signed labour agreements with Qatar, Bahrain and South Korea only. On top of that, the agreement with Qatar has not been implemented yet.

As per the Foreign Employment Act, the government is required to sign labour pacts with all major labour destinations to ensure the safety and rights of Nepali workers as per the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

Despite the unprecedented increase in the number of Nepali workers in the Gulf countries, there has not been a single foreign minister-level meeting between Nepal and these countries. “There are many problems in recipient countries. Without finding out and resolving these problems, our one-sided efforts will be meaningless,” Shrestha said. 

Nepali ambassador to Qatar Maya Kumari Sharma said a high-level meeting is very essential to resolve the core problems.

Published on: 2 September 2012 | The Kathmandu Post