Recruitment process for Japan unlikely to begin before Nov

KATHMANDU: Nepal and Japan on March 25 signed a memorandum of cooperation (MOC) on a basic framework for hiring workers from Nepal.

With the agreement, the process of hiring Nepali workers was slated to commence from April 1. But, it is unlikely that the recruitment process will start before November.

An official at the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security told Khabarhub that the process has been delayed as issues concerned to the security of Nepali workers and nature of works are yet to be finalized.

The official informed that Japan is yet to respond on a letter by Nepal government questioning types of workers it is willing to recruit. Thus, causing the delay.

“Officials from both the countries are yet to discuss the issues necessary while sending workers from Nepal. The technical committee has failed to convene. So, it unlikely that the process of recruiting Nepali workers will start before Oct/Nov,” the official said.

The Ministry is for sending workers to Japan by establishing a mechanism similar to the Employment Permit System (EPS) for South Korea. But, the homework to establish such a mechanism is yet to be done.

The Ministry estimates Japan will be hiring some 2,000 workers from Nepal annually. Officials at the Ministry said that Japan will be hiring only skilled workers. It has prioritized four sectors in the first phase – health, industry, caregiver and agriculture sector for hiring manpower from Nepal.

Japan has inked agreements with five countries on hiring foreign workers.  But, the deal with other countries is different compared to that reached with Nepal.

Japan has signed agreements with other countries to recruit workers through manpower agencies. But, Nepal and Japan have inked an agreement to recruit manpower through a government-led mechanism.

After facing a severe crunch of workers, Japan has adopted a policy to recruit foreign workers in 14 sectors by 2019. In the first phase, Japan will be recruiting worker from the Philippines. It will be hiring Filipino workers within April.