Labour and Employment




15k pass Korean language test

KATHMANDU, AUG 23 -The Human Resources Development Service of Korea on Tuesday published the results of the Korean Language Test (KLT) held last month. A total of 15,298 individuals have passed the exam making them eligible to go to Korea to work, according to the Ministry of Labour and Transport Management.

Over 50,000 candidates sat for the test held from July 22-23 hoping to get a job in Korean firms under the Employment Permit System (EPS). Recently, Korea increased the job quota for Nepal to 15,000 because of the good track record of Nepali workers and fast sending procedure. Korea had offered 4,000 EPS job openings last year.

According to the ministry, 13,298 of the successful candidates will be allowed to work in manufacturing and 2,000 in agriculture after passing a medical test. Korea has been hiring Nepali workers under the EPS provision since 2008, and so far more than 9,000 persons have obtained jobs.

Kashi Raj Dahal, director of the Department of Foreign Employment, said the medical test will begin Sunday. “Five government hospitals—Patan Hospital, TU Teaching, Bir Hospital, Teku Hospital and Civil Service Hospital—have been authorised to conduct tests of EPS aspirants.”

Korea, known as a lucrative job destination among Nepali foreign employment aspirants, hires workers from 15 countries—Nepal, Pakistan, Cambodia, Bangladesh,  Vietnam, Mongolia, Thailand, China, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, Myanmar, Kyrgyzstan and East Timor under the EPS.

“Korea is also positive about hiring more workers in the next lot,” said Krishna Hari Pushkar Karna, assistant spokesperson for the ministry.

 


S Korea ups EPS job quota

South Korea on Wednesday decided to hire 15,000 Nepali workers under the EPS which is more than double the quota agreed between the two countries last year
KATHMANDU, AUG 17 -For the second time in a month, South Korea—a lucrative job destination for Nepali youth—decided to increase the job quota for Nepal.

The country on Wednesday decided to hire 15,000 Nepali workers under the Employment Permit System (EPS) which is more than double the quota agreed between the two countries last year.

Under the EPS, Korea had agreed to provide jobs to 7,100 Nepalis in 2012. On August 4, it increased the quota to 10,000.

Officials at the Ministry of Labour and Transport Management said the quota for Nepal had been increased based on the better work performance of Nepalis already working under the EPS provision.

“Effective labour diplomacy, good track record of Nepali workers and best operation of the Korean Language Test in the past month are behind the Korean decision to take in more workers,” the under-secretary and assistant spokesperson of the ministry, Krishna Hari Pushkar Karna, said. He added that they have asked South Korea to further increase the quota to over 10,000 for the next lot. The country was positive on this, Karna said.

To speed up work to send workers of the new lot, the ministry is planning to invite applications for Korean Language Test within the next one month and set up form collection centres in different parts of the country. It has also decided to publish on August 23 the results of the language test held last month.

Earlier, the ministry had planned to publish the results on August 12. However, it was unable to to do so due to Korea’s plans to increase the quota.

Korea had started hiring Nepali workers under the EPS provision since 2008 after an agreement on 2007 to supply workers. Till date, according to officials at the ministry, over 9,000 workers have left the country for jobs in South Korea under the EPS.

According to the Department of Foreign Employment, 3,703 individuals left the country for Korea in the last fiscal year.

After the invitation for the language test in a bid to send 7,100 workers last May, over 57,000 Nepali youth had applied for the same, while over 50,000 had taken the exam conducted on July 22-23.

EPS jobs have attracted Nepali youth as the country assures good salary and perks as compared to other labour destinations. Nepali workers in Korea earn an average of Rs 70,000 a month, which is much higher that what a worker earns in other labour destinations. Moreover, based on the performance, Korean firms can also extend the term of the workers from the basic three years to five years.

Korea has already recognised Nepal as the best labour supplying country for its shortest processing period and good performance. Last year, it rewarded Nepal as the “best sending country” under the EPS. “Since we have been able to impress Korea, I am hopeful that it will send a bigger quota for Nepal for the next lot too,” Karna said.


Agencies jump on bandwagon with rise in labour exports

KATHMANDU, AUG 05 -With the number of Nepali migrant workers flying out increasing by the year, more and more manpower agencies are entering the foreign employment business.

In the last fiscal year, 180 agencies acquired licences from the Department of Foreign Employment to send workers for overseas jobs, up from 61 in fiscal 2009-10.

According to the department, the total number of licensed agencies in the country has reached 994. Meanwhile, the government has scrapped the permits of 216 agencies till the last fiscal year for being involved in illegal activities like cheating foreign jobseekers.

Foreign employment agencies said that competition had increased along with the swelling number of agencies. “The number of workers supplied by my company has been declining annually with employees of manpower agencies opening their own companies resulting in smaller shares of the pie,” said Kumud Khanal, general secretary of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies.

Aspiring foreign employment agencies have to put up a deposit of Rs 3 million to obtain a license. Labour supplying agencies are allowed to send workers to 107 countries around the world. However, labour destinations are concentrated in the Gulf where salaries are lower because of difficulties in obtaining visas for the developed countries.

“There are very good prospects for supplying trainee workers to Japan under the Japan International Training Cooperation Organisation (JITCO) provision. However, agencies have failed to take advantage of the opportunity for lack of marketing,” said an official at the Ministry of Labour and Transport Management. The official added that the number of agencies and departures of unskilled labourers had been increasing, but that there had been no progress in supplying skilled workers that can really boost remittance inflow.

In the last fiscal year, departures of Nepali workers had soared with major labour destinations like Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates going on a hiring spree. According to the department, 354,716 persons left for foreign employment with 111,196 persons securing jobs through personal contact.

Departures in the last fiscal year through personal contacts recorded a jump of 69.02 percent from 65,787 in 2009-10. Department officials said that many people leave for employment in the developed countries such as the US, Japan and the UK through personal contacts.


SKorea hikes EPS job quota to 10,000

KATHMANDU, AUG 03 -Next year, 10,000 Nepali youths will be able to go to South Korea for employment under the Employment Permit System (EPS). Korea has increased the job quota from 7,100 to 10,000 for 2012, according to the Ministry of Labour and Transport Management.

“Korea increased the quota by 2,900 after witnessing our fast track work procedure and good report of Nepali workers already working there,” said Labour Minister Mohammad Ishtiyak Rai. He said Korea has also assured to hire over 10,000 workers for the next lot.

More than 50,000 Nepali youths took the Korean Language Test (KLT) conducted on July 22-23, 2011, eyeing jobs in Korea’s manufacturing sector. Rai said they are also preparing to publish the KLT results on Aug 12. Earlier, the results were scheduled to be published on Aug 23.

Krishna Hari Pushkar Karna, assistant spokesperson for the Labour Ministry said, they are also lobbying with the Korea not to limit the job quota for the next lot to bellow 10,000. “Since Korea is impressed by our work procedures and workers, I am hopeful that it will surely increase the quota for the next lot too,” he added.

In the last three years, Korea has hired around 9,000 Nepali workers under EPS. Under this provision, the country hires workers from 15 developing countries, including Nepal, in sectors such as agriculture, fishery, construction, manufacturing and service sector.

Meanwhile, to speed up the work on sending workers for the next lot, the Labour Ministry is gearing up to collect exam forms for KLT during the period of Sept 15-30 next month. “This time, we will also make a provision to collect the exam forms from the Eastern part of the country,” said Rai.

This year, the Labour Ministry collected KLT forms from Butwal, apart from the Capital, to make it more convenient for EPS aspirants form the Western part of the country. Over 55,000 youths had applied for the test.


EPS workers get more reasons to smile

KATHMANDU, JUL 31 - The South Korean Government, trade unions and management representatives have agreed to increase workers’ hourly minimum wage by 6 percent. The new wage to be implemented from the next year is a plus point for many Nepali migrant workers working there under the Employment Permit System (EPS). Korea has also amended the law to increase foreign workers’ term from current three years to five years. Under the EPS provision, Nepali workers can work in Korean firms for three years.

According to the online edition of Korea Times, the hourly minimum wage has been increased by 260 won to 4,580 won (Rs 307). With this rise, employees who work 40 hours a week will receive at least 957,220 won (Rs 65,000) a month, while the monthly minimum wage for those working 44 hours a week will be about 1.04 million won (Rs 70,000).

On Wednesday, the thirteenth meeting of the Minimum Wage Council of Korea had decided to increase the wage. The trilateral council has estimated that an increase in the minimum wage would benefit 2.34 million workers nationwide, who are mostly engaged in simple manual labour.

Ramesh Bhattarai, a Nepali worker in Korea, said the new wage would increase migrant workers’ salary by around Rs 4,000 a month. He also said that the Korean Government had amended the law, allowing EPS workers to work for additional two years after completing the three-year term. However it would be mandatory for workers to get approval from employers for the extra term, he added.

According to the EPS Nepal Office, there are around 9,000 Nepalis working in Korean firms under EPS. The term of the first lot of workers, who had gone to Korea in 2008, will start expiring after mid-August 2011.

The new rule on additional term will be implemented from Aug 1. And, workers wanting to work for extra two years will have to apply to their employers a week prior to the expiration of their terms.

Mahesh Acharya, chief of EPS Nepal Office, said the new provision of the Korean Government would benefit many Nepalis working there. He said the work terms of Nepali workers under the EPS provision could be extended if employers want.

Next year, Korea is taking 7,100 Nepali workers from Nepal. It is also all set to increase the quota for the next year by 2,000 after witnessing a good track record of Nepali migrant workers. Korean jobs have also become lucrative as they provide much higher salary compared to Gulf countries.
 


High-level teams to visit labour destinations
KATHMANDU, JUL 26 - The government is sending high-level teams to major labour destinations to discuss issues related to Nepali workers and promote labour exports there. The delegation to Japan and a number of other countries will be led by the labour minister while the labour secretary will head the rest of the teams.

The delegations will visit Malaysia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Japan, said the Ministry of Labour and Transport Management. The ministry has asked Nepali embassies through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to fix appropriate dates.

“The high-level team to Malaysia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates will study the difficulties being faced by Nepali workers and seek solutions to them,” said Labour Minister Mohammad Ishtiyak Rai.

Krishna Hari Pushkar Karna, assistant spokesperson of the ministry, said that the delegation to Japan will study why Nepali foreign employment agencies have not been able to send adequate numbers of trainee workers to Japan under the Japan International Training Cooperation Organization’s (JITCO) scheme.

“The squad will hold talks about the difficulties faced by the agencies,” said Karna. He added that other teams would concentrate on skilled labour promotion, increasing the salaries of workers and sorting out problems.

Meanwhile, the ministry has stated that South Korea has assured Nepal that it would increase the quota for Nepal by an additional 2,000 workers under the Employment Permit System (EPS). Korea has provided 7,100 job positions for Nepal in the manufacturing sector for next year.

According to the ministry, Kyung Sik Lim, director general of HRD Korea, has verbally pledged to increase the quota during his visit to Nepal for the Korean Language Test held last Friday and Saturday.

Meanwhile, the ministry last Saturday honoured Lim and Kim Byeong Cheon, director of EPS Centre Nepal Office, for their contribution in providing employment opportunities to Nepali youths under the EPS. Korea hires workers from 15 developing countries under this programme and Nepali workers have left a good track record in the EPS.

PNG, Mauritius being mulled as new destinations
Labour Minister Mohammad Ishtiyak Rai said that the government was mulling sending skilled workers to Papua New Guinea and Mauritius as new destinations. Even though there is great possibility to send a huge number of workers to Papua New Guinea and Mauritius, only a few people are leaving for these countries through individual contracts. Out of the more than 300,000 worker departures in the last fiscal year, one worker went to Papua New Guinea and nine to Mauritius.

Worker departures reach all-time highKATHMANDU, JUL 22 - Departures of Nepali migrant workers reached an all-time high of 354,716 in fiscal 2010-11. The figure represents a growth of 20.61 percent from 294,094 in 2009-10.

The surge in the number of outbound workers has been attributed to swelling demand from major labour destinations such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait. 

Among those going for foreign jobs were 10,416 women. The departees last year included 38,000 workers returning to their jobs after taking a break in their homes.

Director of the Department of Foreign Employment Lal Babu Kawari said that unemployment in the country and higher salaries abroad had led to increasing numbers of Nepal youths leaving for foreign employment.

In a bid to stop the illegal practice of leaving for work abroad by showing old employment contracts, the department on May 23 had introduced a provision under which returning workers were required to obtain a new permit. However, the department has suspended the rule for now following pressure from Nepali embassies and outbound workers.

In the last fiscal year, hiring of Nepali workers by Qatar soared 79.57 percent to 102,966 individuals. It had taken in 57,430 workers during the fiscal year 2009-10. With the increment in the hiring trend, Qatar has become the second largest labour market after Malaysia for Nepalis workers.

Foreign employment agencies said that demand for workers from Qatar had been increasing massively with the country targeting infrastructure development with a focus on the FIFA World Cup 2022 scheduled to be held there. “Free visa, free ticket and a good salary compared to other countries have been attracting more Nepali workers to Qatar,” said Kumud Khanal, general secretary of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies.

Meanwhile, demand for workers in other major destinations—Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait—has also increased. Saudi Arabia took in 71,116 individuals, up from 63,700 during the fiscal year 2009-10. The UAE and Kuwait absorbed 44,464 and 15,187 workers respectively. 

According to the department’s data, even though Malaysia continued to remain in the first position in terms of absorbing Nepali workers, hiring by this country has gone down from 113,982 individuals during 2009-10 to 105,906 workers in the last fiscal year. 

Foreign employment agencies said hiring by Malaysia declined slightly in the last fiscal year because of reasons like passport shortage and negative impact of the protest by Nepali workers against JCY SDB BHD, a multinational company, in August last year.

Country-wise figures
Country    2009-10    2010-11
Malaysia    113,982    105,906
Qatar         57,340    102,966
S Arabia    63,700    71,116
UAE          33,840    44,464
Kuwait      8,255    15,187
Bahrain      4,234    4,647
EPS Korea 2,418    3,703
Oman         3,285    2,442
Lebanon     3,788    151
Libya         1,622    291

26,076 Korean job seekers sit for KLT
KATHMANDU, JULY 22- A total of 26,076 aspirants eyeing jobs under the Employment Permits System (EPS) of South Korea appeared in the Korean Language Test (KLT) on Friday. This year, South Korea has provided 7,100 quotas for Nepali workers for employment in the manufacturing sector.

According to the Ministry of Labour and Transport Management, of the total 28,766 applicants in the first group, 26,076 individuals participated in exam, 2690 were absent and five could not sit for the test for different reasons. The exam for the second group having more than 28,000 EPS job aspirants will be held on Saturday. 

A total of 57,651 individuals had applied for KLT during the first week of May. Results of the test are scheduled to be published on Aug. 23. Qualifying individuals will be able to leave for Korea next year.

Under the EPS, South Korean firms have been hiring workers from 15 developing countries, including Nepal, for employment in agriculture, fishery, construction, manufacturing and service sectors. In the last fiscal year, a total of 3703 Nepali youths left the country for EPS jobs, according to the Department of Foreign Employment.

Returning migrant workers freed of paperwork
KATHMANDU, JUL 13 - The government has put on hold the recently introduced rule requiring migrant workers to submit their employment contract and health certificate to return to their jobs abroad.

The move has come in response to increasing complaints of corruption by officials of the Department of Foreign Employment who have been accused of working with middlemen and certifying fake work contracts. The new provision, which was implemented nearly two month ago, had affected many workers returning to work even though their work contract was still valid. According to the Department of Foreign Employment, the new condition was made mandatory only for new outbound workers and returnees holding old and expired employment contracts.

Labour Minister Mohammad Ishtiyak Rai said that they had directed the department to stop implementing the new provision temporarily because of the confusion among returning workers.

He added that the provision was implemented to curb the trend of leaving the country with expired contracts and to guarantee insurance and compensation in case of death or accident at the work place based on the contract.

On May 23, the department and the Foreign Employment Promotion Board published, on the basis of the Foreign Employment Act and the new regulation, a notice making it mandatory for returnees to submit their employment contract, contribute Rs 1,000 to the Foreign Employment Welfare Fund and buy insurance covering the work contract period to get permission to return to their labour destinations.

Even though the provision was applicable only for workers returning with expired work contracts, many workers holding valid contracts had become confused about the new provision because of lack of proper information and delays in informing Nepali embassies abroad about the requirement.

Following media reports and increasing pressure from workers, the Nepali Embassy in Doha on Tuesday had also urged the Ministry of Labour and Transport Management, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the department to clarify the issue.

The workers approaching the department said that some officials of the department and middlemen had been forging fake employment contracts for the workers wanting to return to their work countries after completing their vacation.

A Nepali worker who was scheduled to return to work in a week said that when he approached the department for information, department officials told him that it was impossible to return without an employment contract. “Later, I was compelled to get a fake work contract with the help of middlemen so that I could get back to work even through my employment contract was still valid,” he added.

Lal Babu Kawari, director of the department, said that they had been controlling the entry of middlemen at the department, and that with the suspension of the new provision, workers would get relief at least temporarily. “The ministry will give the final decision on this provision later,” he added.

Even if the government has put the new provision on hold, workers returning to their labour destinations with expired work contracts will have to continue contributing Rs 1,000 to the welfare fund and pay insurance premiums worth Rs 1,500 to Rs 3,500 depending on age.

Data of returning migrant workers to be collected
KATHMANDU, JUL 12 - The government plans to keep records of Nepali workers returning from foreign employment from the next fiscal year. The Ministry of Finance has assured the Department of Foreign Employment that it would allocate funds in the new budget for this task.

According to the department, 2.03 million Nepalis (including 32,427 women) have left the country to work overseas since the fiscal year 1993-94 till mid-June 2011. However, there are no records of returning migrant workers and how many times they have left the country for foreign employment abroad.

A survey report of the World Bank stated that 77 percent of the returnees were interested in going back to their foreign jobs. According to the department, around 60 percent of the departing workers are repeat migrant workers.

“We have been promised Rs 1 million to set up an ‘arrival desk’ at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA),” said Kul Prasad Regmi, an officer at the Department of Foreign Employment. He added that the ministry had also pledged to provide additional funds at a later stage.

The department had asked for a budget allocation of Rs 2 million to establish the arrival desk to maintain scientific data of returning migrant workers. Currently, a labour desk at TIA under the department has been keeping records of outbound workers based on the work permits issued by the department.

The department had planned to have the existing labour desk maintain records of returning workers too. However, the budget allocation has allowed it to establish a separate desk. “Even though the budget is small, we can at least start this good work,” said Lab Babu Kawari, director of the department.

The proposed arrival desk will mainly collect data of returning workers and gather their feedback about the work they did abroad. Kawari said that they had been holding talks with the TIA authorities and Immigration Department to set up the arrival desk. He added that the records of returning workers would give a clear picture about the trend of workers retuning home on a daily or monthly basis.

Ten labour attachés to be appointed through free competition
KATHMANDU, JUL 05 - The Ministry of Labour and Transport Management (MoLTM) has initiated the process of appointing labour attachés to major labour destinations. This time, the attachés will be appointed to 10 countries through open competition among interested officials working under the ministry.

The appointment of competent labour attachés through free competition is aimed at promoting labour markets and protection of Nepali workers.

Two years ago, the government had appointed labour attachés to four countries having a large number of Nepali workers—Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar—without competition.

Now, with the term of the labour attachés completing soon, the ministry is preparing to replace them and appoint six labour attaches one each in Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Israel, Oman and Kuwait.

Labour Minister Mohammad Ishtiyak Rai said they are planning to appoint labour attachés to 10 labour destinations within the next three months. “We will select competent officials for the posts through transparent and open competition,” he said.

Following the approval of the criteria set for the selection of labour attachés on Monday, the ministry has also issued a notice for interested officials to apply for the posts within 15 days. The ministry will also form a committee in coordination of its secretary to appoint labour attachés. According to Minister Rai, even the four labour attaches completing their term in Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar will be able to take part in the open competition if they meet the criteria.

Based on the criteria set by the government, interested candidates must have good knowledge of English language with at least bachelor’s level of academic qualification. Similarly, candidates must have a minimum TOEFL score of 50 percent or 5.5 marks in IELTS examination or passed the English Language Proficiency course from College of International Languages.

“Prospective labour attachés must be a government employee for last three years and should have worked under our ministry for a minimum period of one year,” said Rai, adding that after selecting the officials, the ministry will give them training on respective countries’ labour laws and native languages.

The ministry is planning to appoint two under secretaries as labour attachés to Japan and South Korea and four section officers for the posts in Hong Kong, Kuwait, Oman and Israel.

In August 2009, the ministry had appointed under secretaries Surya Bhandari and Binod Khanal as labour attachés for Malaysia and Saudi Arabia, respectively. Similarly, section officers Dhruba Koirala and Parbati Aryal have been deputed to Qatar and the UAE respectively for a two-year period.


1,300 plus workers off to foreign lands daily
KATHMANDU, JUN 19 - More than 1,300 Nepalis are departing daily for employment abroad. As per the Department of Foreign Employment, 40,461 persons have left the country for work in foreign labour markets during the 11th month of the current fiscal year (mid-May to mid-June).

Outbound during the review period is the highest monthly departure recorded so far by the government. Earlier, during the final month of the last fiscal year (mid-June to mid-July), 32,869 workers left the country following increased demand as a result of improved economic condition in major labour destinations.

Foreign employment expert and former member of the National Planning Commission Ganesh Gurung said, “Hiring of Nepali workers, particularly unskilled labour, is increasing as Nepali labourers are cheaper and more honest compared to workers from other countries.”

Nepali labour agencies said that hiring by Qatar had been increasing significantly with infrastructure development programmes for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Out of the total worker departures during the 11th month, Qatar absorbed 13,719 persons while Malaysia, the largest labour market for Nepali workers, accounted for 8,748 persons. Similarly, Saudi Arabia took in 8,296 workers, the United Arab Emirates 5,467 and Kuwait 2,098.

Labour agencies said that they had been receiving huge demand for workers from Qatar, Kuwait and Malaysia. However, they have not been able to supply a sufficient number of workers because of limited issuance of passports by the government. Passports are issued only from the capital resulting in massive congestion at the Foreign Ministry.

“We have witnessed enormous demand for workers from Qatar, Kuwait and Malaysia, and departures to South Korea for work under the Employment Permit System too has been increasing,” said Som Lal Bataju, president of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies.

As of the first 11 months of the current fiscal year, 310,001 Nepalis have left the country to work abroad, up 18.67 percent from the 261,218 recorded in the same period last year.

However, the association termed the growth “just a fluctuation” as they had not been able to send workers as anticipated because of the shortage of passports for potential migrant workers.

Migrant Workers' Departure

Month                               No. of worker

Mid-Jul. to mid-Aug.        29,685

Mid-Aug. to mid-Sept.        25,375

Mid-Sept. to mid-Oct.        23,548

Mid-Oct to mid-Nov.        23,809

Mid-Nov. to mid-Dec.         24,614

Mid-Dec. to mid-Jan.        30,485

Mid-Jan. to mid-Feb.        28,136

Mid-Feb. to mid-Mar.        25,011

Mid-Mar.  to mid-Apr.        29,606

Mid-Apr. to mid-May        29,271

Mid-May to mid-Jun.        40,461
 
Saudi limit on workers’ stay may hit 1oo,ooo Nepalis

KATHMANDU, JUN 02 - Saudi Arabia’s decision to limit the stay of migrant workers to a maximum period of six years will affect 100,000 plus Nepali workers working there, according to labour outsourcing agencies.

Saudi Arabian Labour Minister Adel Fakieh said on Tuesday that foreign workers who have stayed six years in the country would not have their work permits renewed as part of their plan to create jobs for Saudi nationals.

Currently, there are eight million foreign workers in Saudi Arabia, including an estimated 500,000 Nepalis staying legally and illegally. There is no precise data regarding the number of Nepalis working there and their length of stay. According to the Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE), a total of 314,793 Nepalis have left for employment in Saudi Arabia through outsourcing agencies and personal contacts during the last 10 fiscal years (1999-00 to 2009-10). “The Saudi policy on expat workers might force an estimated 100,000 plus Nepali workers to return home,” said Kumud Khanal, general secretary of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies. It might affect remittance inflow for some time, however, it might also open the door to fresh labour demand, he added.

Normally, Nepali job seekers go to Saudi Arabia with a two-year work permit. However, many workers have continued working after their permit has expired by getting their visa extended through their employers. Chandra Man Shrestha, acting director general of the DoFE, said that some Nepalis had been working in Saudi Arabia for 12 years. “They complete two years, come home and leave again by getting their visa extended,” he added. In the first 10 months of the current fiscal year (mid-July to mid-May), Saudi Arabia has hired 52,626 Nepali workers.

Following Saudi Arabia’s plan to limit work permits, the Ministry of Labour and Transport Management has written to the Nepali embassy in Saudi Arabia to acquire more information. “Since we have not been notified about such a move formally, we are trying to find out the facts,” said ministry spokesperson Purna Chandra Bhattarai.

News reports said that the Saudi government would limit the stay of foreign workers, mainly unskilled, to six years for certain categories of firms while it will also ban visa renewals for disobedient companies. Many Saudi nationals work in the public sector; however, in contrast to other Gulf countries like Kuwait, citizens do not automatically get a job because of a rapidly rising population.

Meanwhile, following the Saudi government’s policy towards migrant workers, Saudi economists have stated that the decision would have negative effects on the economy and could lead to higher inflation. They said that if the government implemented the plan strictly, more than 210 firms would shut down in the next three years because of labour problems as private firms prefer to hire cheaper workers from Asia.

In 1994, the Saudi government had began a “Saudisation” plan, setting quotas for the number of nationals private firms must hire. The programme failed to achieve a significant increase in the participation of nationals in the private sector, where Saudis still account for only 10 percent of the employees, according to media reports. Almost 70 percent of Saudis are under the age of 30, and the population is increasing by around 2.4 percent annually.
 

Foreign employment up by 17 pc

KATHMANDU, MAY 23 -The number of outbound Nepali workers increased 17.40 percent during the first 10 months (mid-July to mid-May) with a rise in demand from major labour destinations. Qatar, Malaysia, Saudi Arab and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) absorbed more migrant labour from Nepal compared to the same period last year. 

According to the Department of Foreign Employment, 269,540 Nepali workers including 7,087 women workers went abroad during the review period, up from 229,582 during the same period previously. Out of the total departures, 198,041 left through Nepali outsourcing agencies while 71,499 left through their personal contacts.

The Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies said that the growth was normal because during the same period last year many major labour destinations were just recovering from the global recession. “We were expecting an increase of 25-30 percent with improved demand from major destinations like Qatar and Malaysia,” said Kumud Khanal, general secretary of the association.

Qatar increased hiring to 74,282 persons from 47,675 during the first 10 months last year with infrastructure development works for the 2022 Soccer World Cup picking up.

Khanal said that they were being asked daily for a huge number of workers particularly from Qatar, however, a shortage of passports had made it difficult to fulfil demand. “Barely 300-400 passports are issued daily to potential migrant workers while the requirement stands at more than 1,000 passports,” he added.

During the review period, Malaysia, the largest labour market for Nepali workers, took in 87,829 persons with increased economic activities after the global financial crisis last year. It had offered employment to 82,927 individuals last year. Likewise, Saudi Arabia and the UAE absorbed 52,626 and 33,145 workers respectively against 50,085 and 28,356 in the same period last year.

A monthly breakdown shows that departures declined to 29,271 during the period mid-April to mid-May from 29,606 during the previous one-month period. Qatar took in 8,917 individuals to become the largest employer during the period. Malaysia and Saudi Arabia took in 7,459 and 5,720 workers respectively. Similarly, the UAE hired 4,036 workers from Nepal.

Nepal to sign labour pacts with Malaysia, Lebanon


KATHMANDU, MAY 22 -
The government is all set to sign agreements with Malaysia and Lebanon on the recruitment of Nepali workers. The Ministry of Labour and Transport Management said that a high-level team led by the minister or a secretary would visit these countries to sign the memorandum of understanding (MoU).

Even though Malaysia is the largest employer of Nepali workers, the Nepal government has not signed any labour agreement with it. The absence of a pact has been creating hurdles to outsourcing agencies and outbound workers besides making it difficult to address the rights of Nepali workers. Similarly, following increasing complaints of housemaids suffering exploitation at the workplace, the government had moved to sign a labour agreement with Lebanon about 10 months ago.

“The Ministry of Finance has made a commitment to provide the required budget and Malaysia and Lebanon have finished reviewing a draft of the agreement,” said Krishna Hari Pushkar Karna, assistant spokesperson and under secretary at the Labour Ministry. He added that work on concluding a labour pact had slowed down because of the current political situation.

“Since we have no embassy in Lebanon, the signing of the pact will help us to deal with affairs related to workers and ensure their legal rights,” said Chandra Man Shrestha, acting director general of the Department of Foreign Employment. He added that once the agreement is signed, the two countries would be legally bound to assume responsibility for the workers as agreed in the pact.

A few years ago, the Nepal government had unilaterally fixed the basic salary of workers leaving for Malaysia at 546 ringgits. However, as Malaysia has been offering a minimum salary of 481 ringgits, outsourcing agencies have been found making fake job contracts to get approval from the Department of Foreign Employment.

“Around 50 percent of Malaysian firms pay the salary set by Nepal following a labour crunch caused by the financial crisis of last year,” said Kumud Khanal, general secretary of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies. He added that the government should incorporate in the accord provisions for 24-hour insurance, right to change jobs if the hiring firm closes down or goes bankrupt, payment of salaries through banking channels even though the firm is located in a remote area and standardisation of the basic salary.

There are an estimated 500,000 plus Nepalis in Malaysia working in different fields, and most of them are unskilled or semi-skilled. Similarly, in Lebanon, there are an estimated 20,000 plus Nepali workers with most of them working as domestic help or housemaids. The association said that housemaids who have reached Lebanon illegally through personal contacts were facing problems with regard to their professional rights in the absence of legal protection through a labour pact.

“There are cases of abuse of housemaids who are normally on duty round the clock,” said Khanal. He added that the government must sign an agreement to fix the basic salary of housemaids at US$ 250, arrange payment of salaries through banks and ensure inspection of the situation of workers at least every three months besides them providing SIM cards and a special hotline for keeping in touch.

According to the Foreign Employment Act, the government is required to sign labour pacts with major labour destinations to ensure the welfare of Nepali workers. So far, the government has signed labour pacts with the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, South Korea for sending workers under Employment Permit System and Japan to send Nepali industrial trainees to

Japan. The government is also considering signing a labour agreement with Oman and starting direct flights.


Korea job: Nepal receives fresh 3,220 contracts

KATHMANDU, MAY 17 -
Nepal has received fresh job contracts for 3,220 individuals under the Employment Permit System (EPS) in South Korea. The contracts are for individuals from the list of 2008 and 2010.

With this, the number of individuals in the waiting list has come down to 1,200. A total of 4,096 EPS aspirants from last year’s list and 300 individuals of 2008 were in the waiting list. Since January, some 2,000 have left for Korea after receiving the contract.

Mahesh Acharya, chief of EPS Nepal Office, said they expect an additional 1,200 job contracts. “Individuals in last year’s list in the job roster have started to leave for Korea since January,” he said.

In the roster list of 2008, there were 6,585 individuals in the waiting list and 6,000 of them have alerady left for Korea. Acharya said if the trend remains same, all workers selected last year will leave the country within 2011.

Earlier, the hiring process of Nepali workers had been hammered due to global financial crisis. “However, now the economic condition has improved and demand for Nepali workers has increased,” said Acharya.

EPS Korea has already started work on hiring Nepali workers under the quota provided for 2011. This time, Korea is taking 7,100 workers from Nepal. A total of 57,751 individuals had applied for the Korean Language Test conducted recently.

The lure of the moolah
As many as 57,651 Nepalis apply for the Korean Language Test


KATHMANDU, MAY 06 -
A total of 57,651 Korean job aspirants have applied for the Korean Language Test (KLT) this year. South Korea has provided 7,100 workers’ quotas for Nepal this year under the Employment Permit System (EPS).

The number of individuals applying for the test this year increased by 15,508 compared to last year’s 42,143. The Labour Ministry , however, had expected more than 60,000 applications this year. The call for the exam form ended on Thursday when. A total of 7,527 applications were submitted on Thursday. On Monday, the first day, as many as 18,423 youths had applied for the test from three locations—Chyasal and Gausala in Kathmandu and Butwal.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, 16,985 and 14,716 Nepali youth, respectively, had submitted applications for the test, according to Krishna Hari Puskar, assistant spokesperson for the ministry. “The number of youths applying for the test was huge in the first two days in all four centres,” said Puskar. He added that the third day was normal, and by 1 pm on the fourth day, the response came down drastically.

The exam will be held on July 22 and 23 with two sessions each day and results will be published on Aug. 23, according to EPS Nepal Office. This year, the Korean job quotas are only for the manufacturing sector.

Normally, Korea hires workers from 15 developing countries, including Nepal, for employment in agriculture, fishery, construction, manufacturing and service sector. For the last couple of year, South Korean jobs have become lucrative ones as they provide a monthly salary of Rs 70,000 on an average—much higher than what one gets in Gulf Countries.

Last year, Korea had provided 4,000 quotas for Nepal. “More than 8,000 individuals have made it to South Korea under EPS so far,” said Mahesh Acharya, chief of EPS Nepal Office. He added that individuals applying for the test this year can go to South Korea next year. In the first eight months of the current fiscal year, a total of 2006 individuals have left the country for EPS jobs in South Korea.

Migrant worker departure up 19pc

KATHMANDU, APR 21 -
The number of Nepalis leaving for overseas employment surged 19.87 percent in the first nine months of the current fiscal year compared to the corresponding period last year. The growth has been supported by increased hiring by major destinations like Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

According to the Department of Foreign Employment, departures of migrant workers reached 240,269 during the nine-month period against 200,442 in the same period last year. They included 5,922 women workers.

The department said that outbound would have been greater if not for the unrest in the Middle East. The trend of leaving for jobs in Libya, Bahrain and Oman has declined lately because of the conflict in these countries.

“There has been a negative impact of the unrest in the Middle East during the last few months. However, the overall hiring from Nepal has increased,” said Chandra Man Shrestha, acting director general of the department. He added that departures had increased with spurred demand from Malaysia and Qatar in particular.

During the review period, Malaysia took in 80,370 workers from Nepal, up from 68,876. Qatar, the second largest job market, absorbed 65,365 workers, a whopping increment of 53.67 from 42,535 previously with increased demand from the infrastructure sector targeting the 2022 Soccer World Cup. Similarly, departures to Saudi Arabia and the UAE rose from 44,281 to 46,906 and from 25,628 to 29,109 respectively.

Despite the increased hiring from major labour destinations, the growth rate of workers leaving the country, however, has declined to the lowest 0.17 percent in the ninth month (mid-March to mid-April). The growth rate was at 62.83 percent in the third month.

During the ninth month, a total of 29,606 workers, including 958 female, left the country for foreign employment. The figure in the same period last year was at 29,555. Foreign employment agencies say that they have not been able to supply work force as expected this year because of unrest in the Middle East and shortage of passport as well.

“Demands are not coming significantly except from Qatar,” said Kumud Khanal, general secretary of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies. He said the passport shortage problem has also been barring potential workers form leaving the country.

Due to the fighting in the Middle East, departures to Libya, Oman and Bahrain have dropped; and the department has also stopped issuing permits to work in these countries. Shrestha said that the government had been mulling reopening Oman with increased pressure from labour outsourcing agencies.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is analyzing the situation to find out if it is okay to send workers there,” added Shrestha. Oman hired 1,568 workers during the first eight months of the current fiscal year. Likewise, Bahrain, considered to be one of the best labour markets in the Middle East, provided jobs to 2,902 Nepalis.


SKorea to hire 7,100 Nepalis next FY


KATHMANDU, MAR 29 -
South Korea, one of the best labour markets for Nepali outbound workers, is hiring 7,100 Nepali individuals next fiscal year under its Employment Permit System (EPS). It is hiring such a huge number of Nepali workers for the first time after the government demanded to increase the quota for Nepal.

The government has already held discussions with Human Resource Development (HRD), South Korea, and fixed the date for conducting Korean Language Test (KLT) and publishing results. The Department of Foreign Employment has stated that it will start preparations for the exam within two weeks.

Chandra Man Shrestha, acting director general of the department, said preparations are underway for calling for application for the exam on May 2-4, 2011. He said the test is scheduled on July 22 and 23, as participation this year is expected to increase compared to last year. Results will be published on Aug. 23.

In August last year, witnessing a huge response from youths, the government had requested South Korea to increase the quota for Nepal.

Last year, more than 40,000 individuals had applied for the language test for 4,000 EPS jobs. “The quota has been increased this year because of the good reputation of Nepalis working in South Korea,” said Shrestha. He added that chances of further increment of the quota in future are high.

Application fee for the exam has been increased by US$ 9 in order to meet increasing expanses and make the exam advanced. Now, aspirants will have to pay US$ 26 to apply for the exam. Earlier, the fee was US$ 17.

The government is considering entrusting the job of conducting the exam to Private and Boarding School’s Organisation Nepal (PABSON) this year, as last year’s experience with the Tribhuwan University was not so encouraging, according to the department. So far, a total of 6,500 individuals have left the country for EPS job. In the first phase, 6,800 individuals’ names were included in the roster list, of which 5,800 have already reached South Korea.

“Some 50-60 individuals of the first phase are remaining,” said Mahesh Acharya, chief of the EPS Nepal Office. He said names of around 100 aspirants were removed from the roster list, while some of them changed thir mind. In the second phase last year, a total of 4,096 aspirants had passed the language test. Of them, some 700 have already left for South Korea.

Under the EPS, Korea hires workers from 15 developing countries each year and Nepal is eligible to send workers in five sectors—agriculture, fishery, construction, manufacturing and services. Nepali workers earn Rs 70,000 a month on an average.

Korea hires workers from Nepal, Vietnam, Mongolia, Thailand, China, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Kyrgyzstan and East Timor under the EPS introduced in 2004. Nepal had signed the EPS agreement with South Korea in July 2007.

Tide ebbs by 11pc due to mideast unrest

KATHMANDU, MAR 21 -
Political turmoil in the Middle East has hurt the country's foreign employment business. With violence still raging in Bahrain and Libya, departures of Nepali migrant workers to foreign job markets have declined 11 percent.

According to the Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE), departures of Nepali workers during the eighth month of the fiscal year (mid-February to mid-March) dropped to 25,011 from 28,136 in the previous one-month period. The issuance of pre-approvals for migrant workers also fell 18.06 percent.

With 60 percent of the workers going to the Middle East for foreign employment, the unrest there would severely hit the manpower business. DoFE statistics show that departures to major labour destinations in the Middle East—the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Bahrain—have declined in the last one month.

Following the crisis in Bahrain, only 44 migrant workers went there during the period mid-February to mid-March compared to 438 during the previous one-month period. Though a year-on-year comparison shows that departures have increased 23.28 percent in the eighth month, the continuing conflict in the Middle East has spread fear among foreign employment agencies that business might go down.

“The fighting in Libya has created fear among workers aspiring to work in the Middle East,” said Chandra Man Shrestha, acting director general of the department. “Nepali labour outsourcing agencies too are not much confident at this moment of receiving orders and dispatching workers.”

Kumud Khanal, general secretary of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies, said that reluctance of agencies to bring demand from the Middle East and a decline in the issuance of passports by the government were the main reasons for the fall this month. “It looks like departures will go down further,” he added.

The government has also put a ban on sending workers to Libya, Yemen, Oman and Bahrain considering the unrest in these countries.

Khanal said that many agencies were worried that disturbances might spread to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait too. “We have also been notified by some local companies to wait and watch for some period before hiring new workers.”

The Middle East contributes an estimated 60 percent of the total remittance inflow to the country. The first seven months of the fiscal year (mid-July 2010 to mid-February 2011) saw a surge of 23.49 percent in departures of migrant workers. With infrastructure development works targeting the 2022 Soccer World Cup intensifying, Qatar had emerged as one of the top destinations for migrant workers surpassing Malaysia in the mid-January to mid-February period. However, departures to Qatar too have dropped 32.86 percent presently. According to DoFE statistics, 210,663 workers left for foreign employment in the first eight months.

Considering the gloomy prospects in the Middle East, foreign employment agencies are looking at Malaysia for growth. “There is good scope to supply workforce to the construction and plantation sectors in Malaysia,” said Khanal. “However, the government has not been able to fix the wage issue, and Malaysia is likely to allow Bangladesh to supply workers.” However, even in Malaysia, hiring declined by 15 percent last month.

Worker departures 294k last FY

KATHMANDU, JUL 20 - An estimated 400,000 jobseekers enter the labour market each year. With job opportunities in the local market drying up and soaring demand from overseas, nearly 300,000 Nepali workers have left for foreign employment in 71 countries around the world.

According to the Department of Foreign Employment’s annual data on the departure of Nepali workers during the fiscal year 2009/10, a total of 294,094 individuals including 10,056 women left the country for foreign employment. The number is up by 35.42 percent compared to 217,165 departures in the previous year.

During the first four months of the last fiscal year, the number of workers going for work abroad decreased continuously compared to the same months in the previous year due to the festive season and the impact of the global recession, said foreign employment entrepreneurs.

“During the first two to three months, demand for workers was low as the major labour destinations hired fewer Nepali workers citing the impact of the recession,” said Gyanu Gaire, vice president of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies. “Demand started to increase heavily following the recovery and increased demand from Malaysia and Saudi Arabia.” 

The number of outbound had started to increase by double digits from the fifth month when Malaysian and Saudi Arabian firms started to hire more workers from Nepal replacing Bangladeshi workers. On a monthly basis, the highest ever 32,876 individuals left the country during the last month of the last fiscal year.  

“The number of outbound workers will continue to rise if we manage to solve the passport problem at the earliest,” said Gaire. He added that so far over 90 percent of the individuals leaving for work abroad had obtained their passports from their districts; and that if the passport issue was not solved soon, outbound would start to decline within a few months.  

Malaysia, being the largest absorber of workers from Nepal, took in a total of 113,982 individuals during the year, which was up by 225 percent compared to the 35,070 workers in the previous year. Similarly, Saudi Arabia, which used to be the top labour market in past years, absorbed 63,700 (up 33 percent) Nepali workers, while Qatar hired 57,340 (down 25 percent) workers.

Likewise, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait took in 33,840 (up 7 percent) and 8,255 (up 260 percent) Nepali workers respectively during the last fiscal year.

The number of female workers leaving the country for work overseas has also increased by 17 percent to 10,056 from 8,594 during the previous year. The government has allowed Nepalis to work in 108 countries around the world.


Country                      No. of Workers


Malaysia                    113,982





Saudi Arabia              63,700


Qatar                         57,340 



The UAE                   33,840



Kuwait                       8,255



Baharain                     4,234



Lebanon                     3,788



Oman                         3,285



South Korea               2,418



Libya                          1,622



Others                        1,900






Fiscal Year             Male             Female               Total


Upto 2005/06         —                 —                 758,675



2006/07                 204,143          390             204,533



2007/08                 244,366        4,685            249,051



2008/09                 211,371        8,594           219,965    



2009/10                 284,038      10,056           294,094



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Govt mulls identity cards for migrant workers

KATHMANDU, JUL 16 - The government is mulling introducing identity cards for migrant workers leaving the country for various labour destinations. The move is being planned with a view to curbing illegal departures via India.

More than 1,000 workers leave the country for overseas jobs everyday from Tribhuvan International Airport. However, the number of departures via India is said to be same the number leaving from Nepal.

“We have come up with this new concept of issuing ID cards; and once we start this provision, only certified workers with ID will be able to leave the country for work,” said Mohammad Aftab Alam, Minister for Labour and Transport Management, while addressing a press conference on Thursday. “We will also ask India to grant permission for departure only to individuals having the ID card.” Minister Alam said that the card would be issued by the ministry, the Department of Foreign Employment or the Foreign Employment Promotion Board. “This will discourage workers from leaving for work illegally and help maintain the data of the workers.”

In the first 11 months of the current fiscal year, a total of 263,750 individuals have left the country for work abroad taking permission from the department. And the number is expected to touch 300,000 by the end of the current fiscal year.

“Our target this year was 254,100. However, we will be witnessing an average rise of 20 percent compared to the target,” said Alam. He said that foreign employment last year had decreased by 11 percent due to the impact of the global recession. The ministry is also planning to install CCTV at the Transport Management Office to monitor the corruption prevailing at the office while issuing licenses. “We will install CCTV within a few days,” claimed Alam.

Enlisting of Uganda as a new labour destination, starting of sending industrial trainee workers under the JITCO programme and EPS system renewal with South Korea, appointment of labour attaches to four major labour destinations, computerization at the Transport Management Office, compulsory third-party insurance, and establishment of Migration Resource Centre and Skill Development Centres in Dhading, Rautahat and Jumla are some of the major achievements of the current fiscal year.

However, the government has not been able to re-open Israel for foreign employment which has been closed to Nepalis since April 2009. Nor has it been able to fix the minimum salary of Nepali workers in foreign countries. So far, the minimum salary has been fixed only in Qatar. Alam said that the government had not been able to fix the minimum salary of Nepalis working in various labour destinations due to the failure of cooperation from the embassies.

“I have talked to many embassies regarding the fixing of the minimum salary and problems related to this issue,” said Alam. “But they do not pay any heed.”

391 die abroad this fiscal year
KATHMANDU: The number of the people leaving the country for work abroad has increased significantly during the current fiscal year. But along with the rise in departure, the number of workers dying in various labour destinations has also increased.

According to the Foreign Employment Promotion Board, a total of 391 people leaving the country for work died during the current fiscal year. The number includes only those who have left for work legally. There is no data on the deaths of Nepali workers abroad going through illegal ways.

“An average of three dead bodies of Nepali workers land in Nepal every day,” said Sthaneshwor Devkota, executive director of the board, while addressing a press conference organised by the Ministry of Labour and Transport Management on Thursday.

“Of them, normally two dead bodies are of labourers who go for employment illegally, and they do not get compensation too.”

The board has been providing financial assistance of Rs. 100,000 to the family of deceased workers who leave the country through legal channels.

Number of workers who died during the current fiscal year
Saudi Arabia 125
Qatar 100
Malaysia 94
UAE 36
Dubai 9
Bahrain 6
Oman 5
Lebanon 5
Kuwait 2
South Korea 1
Israel 1
Other countries 7
 
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Foreign employment bonds to be issued this week

KATHMANDU, JUNE 20: Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) is preparing to issue foreign employment bonds within this week. The central bank said that it had completed the necessary homework to issue the much hyped bonds.

The government had announced through the budget this year that it would issue bonds worth Rs. 7 billion in order to use the remittance received by the country in development activities.

"We are planning to issue a notice regarding the issuance of the bonds within two-three days," said a senior official of NRB. A meeting of the open market committee headed by the deputy governor will decide the issue date soon, said the official.

The committee will also decide whether to issue the bonds worth Rs. 7 billion and its maturity period. Buyers will get an annual interest of 9.75 percent.

Bond buyers will not have to pay any additional fees while sending money to Nepal and the subscription amount will also get an income tax waiver.

The central bank has recently selected eight companies as sales agents for the bonds out of nine applicants. The selected sales agents are Himalayan Bank, International Money Express, Sewa Money Transfer, Prabhu Money Transfer, Prabhu Finance Company, Incentive Money Transfer, Samik Remit Company and Delta Money Transfer Company.

They will collect money from Nepali migrant workers in Malaysia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and South Korea and deposit the money in the account of the central bank.

"They can send the names of the subscribers individually or collectively, said Gopal Kafle, spokesman of NRB. The sales agents will get a commission of 0.25 percent of the collected money.

The central bank has also fixed the countries the companies can operate. Among them, three have got permission to work in four countries and remaining five companies have been permitted to work in single country.

However, the companies appointed as agents have expressed inability to work for a commission of just 0.25 percent. "The commission amount is too low and the partner companies in the Gulf countries and Malaysia cannot help us in collecting money with just 0.25 percent commission," said Rajendra Sherchan, chief executive officer of Prabhu Money Transfer.

He added that they would be ready to work if the commission was fixed at the level that they are charging currently. "We can work with a commission equivalent to 18 riyals from the Gulf countries and 12-15 ringgits in the case of Malaysia," said Sherchan.

An NRB official said that NRB was discussing the possibility of increasing the commission, but added that they could not increase it by as much as was being demanded by the agents.

Sales agent            countries permitted

HBL                              Malaysia, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar
IME                              Malaysia, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar
Prabhu Money             Malaysia, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar
Prabhu Finance            Qatar
Delta                            Malaysia
Sewa     Money            Qatar
Sramik Remit               Qatar
Incentive Money          Malaysia


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Mega beeline for EPS jobs

KATHMANDU, JUN 16 - Parita Rai, 33, a housewife from Dharan, Rojan Phuyal, 30, a farmer from Kusma and Biswas Sharma Poudel, a bachelor level student of Kathmandu, were among the thousands of youths aged anything between 18 and 35 who queued up in front of Dasharath Stadium on Tuesday to collect forms for the Korean Language Test (KLT) exam.

Many youths from various parts of the country who fell in line there said they were attracted to foreign employment, particularly in the Employment Permit System (EPS) in Korea, as there are no employment opportunities in the country.

“As I see no opportunity for employment in Nepal, I have decided to go to Korea,” said Rai, who had arrived in Kathmandu on Monday evening with more than 300 friends of hers from Dharan to fill up the KLT forms.  “Government quota, a safe and sound job with a good earning as compared to that in Gulf countries are what has attracted me,” Rai added. This year, an estimated 50,000 to 60,000 individuals will appear for the KLT exam. In 2008, when the government had conducted the exam for the EPS for the first time, more than 30,000 had appeared in the test.

According to Krishna Mohan Sapkota, director general of the Department of Foreign Employment, they collected 12,700 forms on Tuesday from 14 counters at the Dashrath Stadium.

“The response from the people was very good on the first day,” Sapkota said. He added that the counter for distributing and collecting forms will open from 10 am to 7 pm from Wednesday because of the football training session in the stadium.

The government will distribute and collect forms until Friday and conduct the exam on August 28 and 29 to select 4,000 candidates for jobs in Korea.  “I know it is going to be a tough competition and I am confident I will make it,” said Poudel, who had been in the queue since seven in the morning.
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JITCO scheme fails to take off

KATHMANDU, JUN 11 - Nepali agencies entrusted with sending industrial trainees under the Japan International Training Cooperation Organization (JITCO) programme have failed to receive requests on the scale anticipated due to lack of proper marketing of Nepal’s capacity and effective communication with Japanese firms.

There are 172 agencies including the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce (FNCCI) authorised to send trainees to Japan, but they have been able to send only 16 trainees so far.