Nepal has reiterated that it will not accept the process Malaysia has moved forward with, under which only a limited number of manpower companies would be authorised to recruit Nepali workers.
Malaysia had earlier listed only 25 manpower companies as “registered recruitment agencies” in its Foreign Worker Centralised Management System (FWCMS) for bringing in workers from Nepal. After that drew widespread opposition in Nepal, Malaysia listed an additional 250 manpower companies as “support agencies” placed under those 25 companies.
However, the Nepal government has taken the position that even this structure- 25 principal manpower agencies with 250 support agencies under them is not acceptable.
The Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security informed Malaysia of this through a diplomatic note. Malaysia had listed 25 “principal agencies” empowered to bring in worker demand from employers and to send workers, with an additional 250 manpower companies placed under them as “support agencies.”
According to a ministry official, Malaysia was informed that this kind of monopolistic arrangement is not acceptable under Nepal’s constitution and existing legal framework. The official said Nepali law makes no provision for such a structure of principal and support agencies.
In its response to Malaysia, the ministry noted that Nepal’s Foreign Employment Act, its regulations, and the constitution give equal standing to all licensed foreign employment businesses. It also pointed out that the bilateral labour agreement between Nepal and Malaysia contains no provision for “principal” and “support” agencies, making clear that Nepal cannot accept such a system.
Under the Foreign Employment Act, 2064 (2007), all licensed and active foreign employment businesses are given equal standing for sending workers abroad. The ministry has concluded that existing law contains no provision limiting the right to send workers to a specific destination country to only a select few institutions.
The ministry’s stance is that no institution can be arbitrarily restricted under the Act, regulations, or constitution, and that the bilateral agreement likewise contains no such principal/support agency arrangement, so the government remains committed to its existing legal framework.
Ministry spokesperson Mira Acharya said that after Malaysia sent a letter outlining its plan to bring in workers through 25 principal and 250 support agencies, Nepal responded within a day or two through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stating that the arrangement was unacceptable and that Nepali law does not envision sending workers through a limited set of manpower companies. As of now, Malaysia has not responded to that letter.
Earlier, once Malaysia made the list of 25 manpower companies public, the Nepal government had already made its objection clear, urging that any change to the existing system be settled through bilateral discussion. Malaysia then listed an additional 250 companies as “sub-agents” under the 25 main companies, a move the ministry also rejected, and it has since begun investigating and taking action against the companies on the list.
After the list of 25 companies was made public, Labour Minister Ramji Yadav had also called in Malaysia’s chargé d’affaires for talks. The ministry told Malaysia the arrangement was inconsistent with Nepal’s constitution, existing law, and the Nepal-Malaysia labour agreement, and urged a resolution through the joint technical committee and bilateral mechanisms. Some of the 25 listed companies subsequently asked to have their names removed, and after discussions with the ministry, all 25 agreed to be removed from the FWCMS list.
A ministry official said the government’s main challenge now is to keep Malaysian employment opportunities open while preventing a monopoly from being established among a limited set of companies, noting that demand for Nepali workers in Malaysia remains large, with thousands of positions still in process, so the government does not want to make any hasty decision that could disrupt employment. The official added that Nepal’s goal is not to halt employment in Malaysia, with 25,000-30,000 positions currently in process and more in the pipeline, but that Nepal is not obliged to accept a monopolistic system in the name of employment.
The government’s effort, the official said, is focused on removing the disputed structure rather than damaging the employment relationship with Malaysia. To that end, the ministry has directed the Department of Foreign Employment to investigate the basis on which the 25 principal companies were listed under the Malaysian system, and is preparing to seek clarification on how and on what basis the 250 support agencies were included. Following the ministry’s directive, the Department has suspended prior labour approval for the listed manpower companies.
The ministry said it has pursued the matter at both the legal and diplomatic level, not merely through a single letter, and stressed that Nepal responded promptly once Malaysia’s letter arrived, with the government’s position remaining clear that it will not accept any system falling outside the bounds of existing Nepali law and the bilateral agreement.
Nepal’s policy is to continue its employment relationship with Malaysia while refusing to accept any structure that unequally restricts Nepali foreign employment businesses.
