Note/Material

Foreign Employment

Objective: To find out the state of foreign employment and its importance in our context.

Introduction:

Income from overseas is one of the most important components of the Gross National Product in the context of Nepal. Many people of Nepal have gone to different countries of the world. They work there with their skills, hard work, and full dedication. Their earnings greatly contribute to the GNP of our country. Nepalese people do not have enough job opportunities in the country. In order to earn their livelihood and surplus income, they find foreign employment the best option and go to different countries of the world. Although it provides opportunities to jobless people and benefits for a short period of time, it does not help the country in the long run because of the brain drain. When skillful people of Nepal go abroad, the available resources of the country can’t be utilized and the country remains backward.

The following table shows the number of people who migrated overseas:

Areas/Countries	1991		2001
	Number	Percentage	Number	Percentage
India	587,243	89.2	589,050	77.3
Other South Asian nations	4,977	0.8	2,691	0.3
Western Asia	6,343	1.0	11,826	14.5
Other Asian Countries	20,024	3.0	33,785	4.4
Europe	6,404	1.0	11,157	1.5
North America	2,150	0.3	1,997	1.3
Other countries	581	0.1	5,115	0.7
Not mentioned	30,566	4.6	–	–

Source: Population Report of Nepal 2064

The following table shows the number of people who got labor visa for foreign employment:

Country	058/59	059/60	060/61	061/62	062/63	063/64
Malaysia	52,926	43,812	45,760	66,291	75,526	74,029
Saudi Arab	21,094	17990	16,875	13,366	15,813	39,279
UAE	8,411	12,650	12,760	12,726	15,317	25,172
Qatar	19,895	26,850	24,128	42,394	55,892	60,005
Kuwait	378	907	3,194	1,789	640	4,441
Hong kong	482	564	672	523	140	261
Bahrain	695	818	606	536	540	1,200
South Korea	131	712	1,324	327	131	765
Israel	16	55	433	815	876	405
Oman	96	44	73	330	28	509
others	610	641	835	864	349	655
Total	104,732	105,043	106,660	139,961	165,252	204,721

Source: Department of Employment and Labor

Importance of Foreign Employment:

1. Job opportunity to over 10 lakh people
2. Earning foreign currency
3. Good relation with other countries
4. A great contribution to GNP
5. Learning good techniques and experience
6. Advertisement of Nepal
7. Improvement in the lifestyle of the people