After months of negotiations, the governments of Nepal and Malaysia are set to sign the much-talked-about labour pact on Monday.

A high-level delegation, led by Malaysian Minister for Human Resources M Kulasegaran arrived in Kathmandu on Sunday night for the purpose.

Minister for Labour, Employment and Social Security Gokarna Bista will sign the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on behalf of the Nepal government, according to ministry Spokesperson Narayan Regmi.

“Before the official signing of the pact, delegations from both countries led by respective ministers will hold a meeting,” added Regmi.

Both countries have gone through a series of diplomatic negotiations and reviewed the proposed labour agreement draft thrice in the last six months, before finalising the draft last month.    

The labour agreement, first ever between Malaysia and Nepal, will resume the migration of Nepali workers to the South East Asian country. Recognised as one of the source countries for Malaysia’s foreign labour force almost a decade ago, Nepal is currently the second largest contributor of foreign workers to the South East Asian nation.

The new labour pact is seen as a landmark deal in the country’s foreign employment sector as Nepali workers will no longer have to pay any recruitment fees for jobs in Malaysia.

As per the agreement, the Malaysian employers will have to bear all the expenses pertaining to hiring of workers, including a return journey air tickets.

“Our main aim is to protect rights of our workers and ensure their safety in the host nation. This deal is going to be a milestone in that respect,” Regmi told the Post. “This labour deal means the Malaysian government will also be responsible for the safety of our workers.”