Nepal and Qatar agree to revise 2005 Bilateral Labour Agreement (audio report)

December 3, Kathmandu: Nepal and Qatar have agreed to revise the Bilateral Labour Agreement to make Qatar an even better destination for Nepali migrant workers.

In the fourth meeting of the Nepal –Qatar Joint Committee that concluded in Kathmandu on Friday, both parties agreed to revise the labour pact reached in 2005.

The Qatari side has accepted Nepal’s proposal for its support for the socio-economic reintegration of those Nepali migrant workers who returned from Qatar.

Qatar has also agreed to systematize the Qatar Visa Centre.

The Government of Qatar has given its consent to establish a training centre in all provinces of Nepal targeting capacity enhancement of workers to be hired from Nepal.

During the meeting, the Nepali side was urged to lift a ban on domestic labour.

In response, the meeting agreed to form a bilateral joint committee and incorporate the issues in course of revising the labour agreement being based on the recommendation of the same committee.

The meeting discussed the guarantee of social security of workers, workplace safety, health and insurance policy and so on.

Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security, Binu Bajracharya, led the Nepali side in the meeting, while Mohammed Hassan Al-Obaidli, Secretary for Labour Affairs, Qatar led the Qatari in the meeting.

Nepal and Qatar mark around three decades of the establishment of diplomatic relations. Both countries had signed the Labour Agreement in 2005 in a bid to make labour migration safe and systematic.