Libya seeking migrant workers from Nepal

African Press Agency

Nepal will soon start sending migrant workers to Libya, to work in infrastructure projects after the two countries reached an agreement on the matter, APA learns here Sunday.

Nepal has given approval to two manpower agencies to send Nepali workers to Libya, and about 500 Nepalese will leave soon for the north African country, reported the local press quoting officials from the Nepali Department of Foreign Employment.

“We will start sending Nepali workers to Libya after sorting out issues related to wages, facilities and pre-departure costs,” said Chandra Prasad Joshi, under secretary of the department to “Nepal News”.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is communicating with the Libyan authorities to establish labor relations, and has proposed to Libya for the sending of more Nepali workers, added the newspaper.

SOS Manpower, one of the two manpower agencies, started the selection process from last Friday. "We have got a call for 298 workers," said Bibek Shrestha, business development officer of SOS. "All Libyan demands are for unskilled labor," he added.

“WON — a Korean Construction Company has already forwarded demand for more than 2,000 Nepali workers to work in infrastructure projects in Libya,” said Som Lal Bataju, vice-president of Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agents to the local news website “myrepublica”.

A total of 244 Nepali job seekers had left for Libya during the fiscal year 2007/08.

“Nepali recruiting agents have assured that Nepali workers would get wages between US$175 and US$250 excluding overtime benefits in Libya,”said myrepublica.com.

The Nepalese newspapers saw the new agreement with Libya as quite important, as the key labor destinations in east Asia and the Middle East are cutting demand for workers amid the deepening global financial crisis.

Libya has emerged as an encouraging destination for Nepalis who want to work in its infrastructure sector, said the local press.

The number of Nepali workers leaving for foreign employment during the first eight months of the current fiscal year has decreased by 17 percent as compared to the same period last year.

According to the Department of Foreign Employment, the number of migrant workers departing for overseas destinations during the period has been 126,812 persons, compared to 152,682 previously.