Saudi Arabia gains attraction of Nepali job-seekers after Malaysia suspended migrant workers

Kathmandu March 1- More and more foreign job aspirants are seeking employment opportunities in Saudi Arabia after Malaysia temporarily suspended recruiting migrant workers. Considering the attraction of foreign job-seekers to Saudi Arabia, the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Kathmandu has lifted the limit given to manpower agencies on the number of passports that can be submitted at the embassy for visa.

Earlier, the embassy used to accept around 600 passports for visa procedures on a daily basis and now it has started accepting around 1,000 passports per day. The Saudi Arabian Embassy has authorised 312 local manpower agencies to send workers to their country. The recruitment companies in Saudi Arabia are required to approach only authorised agencies to hire foreign workers.

Saudi Arabia has become a popular destination for Nepali foreign job-seekers this year. As per Department of Foreign Employment, a total of 80,506 individuals had taken final labour permit to work in Saudi Arabia during the first seven months of this fiscal. Between mid-January to mid-February — the last month of the review period — 13,656 individuals had taken final labour permit to go to Saudi Arabia, followed by Qatar (10,415).