The Foreign Employment Promotion Board (FEPB) is planning to provide skill-based training to 10,000 aspirant migrant workers. 

According to FEPB Director Nirmala Thapa, the decision was taken to train youths seeking overseas jobs this fiscal year, and help widen their job opportunities in foreign countries.

“We all know how skill deficient our labour force has been over the years. Most of them have no professional skills at all. Thus, we have been trying to give them some useful training to increase their prospects,” added Thapa.   The FEPB has earmarked around Rs100 million for such training programmes to be run in all provinces. 

Nepali migrant workers, especially those in Gulf countries, often lack skills which ultimately land them in menial jobs mostly in the construction sector. The training will be free and open to all. However, preference will be given to those youths planning to work aboard, according to the FEPB.   

“This is purely skill-based training targeted at those who wish to go on foreign employment. The candidate should not have to be a passport holder, but we will give them priority,” said Thapa. “During selection, we will set some basic criteria for candidates. They should be basic literate, of working age and willing to go abroad.”

The training will be around 160 hours and last for a month. The training will be conducted in four major sectors—construction, hotel management, garment and tailoring and security services. 

Besides, there will be a separate session where trainees will be given basic information about foreign employment, procedures, required documents and knowledge on rules and regulations of the hosting countries.  

The training programme will be organised in all seven provinces, the board said, “the training venues will be fixed later”. 

The number of seats provided to each province will also be proportionally allocated as per the total population, ratio of people going abroad on foreign employment and poverty in the province, added Thapa. “This training is one of our major activities under our annual programmes. We make sure the candidates are provided with quality training,” said Thapa. The FEPB has already moved ahead with the process, asking the letter of interest from interested firms for conducting training.