Protests halted as MoYLE, NAFEA reach agreement

KATHMANDU: An agreement between the Ministry of Youth, Labour and Employment (MoYLE) and the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies (NAFEA) has led to the suspension of all protest programmes announced by NAFEA, the ministry said.

The decision follows talks in which both sides agreed to make optimum efforts to conclude amendments to the Foreign Employment Act and Regulations as soon as possible to make foreign employment more transparent, safe and dignified.

NAFEA launched protests on August 7 with a 15-point demand and had announced it would halt the deployment of Nepali workers to overseas labour destinations from today. NAFEA President Dik Bahadur Khatri said the protest was suspended after discussions with government representatives in the presence of Minister for Youth, Labour and Employment Ramjee Yadav.

Khatri said some demands would take time to address because most are policy-related and will be incorporated into the ongoing amendment process. "The demands presented by the NAFEA are as it is," he said, adding that certain issues will be addressed through amendments to the Act.

Under the agreement, the Department of Foreign Employment will facilitate consideration of demands submitted with the necessary evidence and documents. If the Department cannot resolve a request, the matter will be taken up by the Ministry, the agreement states.

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