KATHMANDU, May 7: Minister for Labour, Employment and Social Security Ramji Yadav has said the government lacks records of women leaving Nepal on visit visas to work abroad as domestic workers.
Speaking at a meeting of the Industry, Commerce, Labour and Consumer Welfare Committee, Minister Yadav expressed concern over the growing number of women migrating for domestic work through unofficial channels.
He said discussions on whether to halt labour approvals for domestic workers had reached the parliamentary committee level, and studies conducted by the ministry showed that many women were travelling abroad outside the legal labour migration system.
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According to the minister, many women are travelling through India and other third countries using visit visas before taking up domestic work overseas.
“Women are not going abroad through the official labour approval process. Many are using visit visas via India and other countries to work as domestic workers,” Yadav said. “Once they leave through unofficial routes, they do not appear in government records. If they face problems abroad, they often cannot even contact Nepali embassies because they did not obtain labour permits.”
He added that the lack of official records makes it difficult for the government to trace workers or provide assistance in emergencies.
“We have no data on who sent them, how they travelled, or where they are,” he said.
Minister Yadav described the situation as alarming for a country where women make up 51 percent of the population. He said the ministry is carrying out further research and studies to identify solutions.
He also noted that domestic work remains a highly sensitive and risky sector, making it difficult to track workers when problems arise abroad.
