Labour agreement reached between Nepal and Saudi

Kathmandu: A labor agreement has been reached between Nepal and Saudi Arabia.

Minister Bhandari’s private secretariat informed that during the sideline bilateral meeting and discussion on Tuesday, the landmark agreement for sending Nepali workforce to Saudi Arabia took place between the Minister for Labour, Employment and Social Security, Sharat Singh Bhandari, and Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tariq Al Hamad.

Minister Bhandari shared that Saudi Arabia has agreed to immediately sign two pacts on skill certification of the general and skill-based workers program, keeping the domestic labor agreement as it is.

It may be noted that Nepal has given its approval to the draft agreement related to general labor with Saudi Arabia.

An agreement for sending general workers to Saudi Arabia has already been reached. Yet, signing the agreement is left,’ said Minister Bhandari.

Saudi Arabia had insisted that the general agreement could be signed only after the domestic workers’ agreement. The current meeting has decided to proceed with the already reached pact and to do the further groundwork on the draft of the domestic labor agreement,’ said Minister Bhandari.

He apprised the Saudi side of the directive of Nepal’s parliamentary committee, noting that the domestic labor agreement should be made after concluding the labor agreement between the two countries.

Minister Bhandari also pointed out the necessity of a pilot project to that end.