KATHMANDU, April 23: Nepal Policy Institute (NPI), a global Nepali diaspora think-tank, has urged the government to evacuate all Nepali migrant workers stranded in various countries and bring them back home.
Making various recommendations to the Nepal government and Non-resident Nepali Association (NRNA) concerning the problems faced by Nepali migrant workers due to the coronavirus outbreak, NPI has suggested both immediate and long-term measures to the government to deal with the issue of Nepali migrant workers in the coming days.
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"The top priority of the government should be to welcome all stranded Nepali returnee migrant workers, daily wage earners and any other Nepali who have been impacted by the spread of coronavirus and arrange transportation back to their home destinations in Nepal. At the same time, the government must also start planning for post-return livelihood activities related programs for their employment," reads the first immediate recommendation made by NPI to the government.
It urged the government to evacuate all stranded Nepali workers to safe places on the basis of their needs and the urgency of their situations, and organize repatriation in safety and dignity, preferably in groups, upon assessing their mental, physical and health conditions.
The organization suggested to the government to empower Nepali missions abroad to hire the laid-off Nepali workers/students as interns, with some living expenses, in support of mission’s work to provide extended services to the needy migrants and support their family members within communities during the crisis period.
"Give special attention to needy migrants from Malaysia and Gulf countries by utilizing the Migrant Workers' Welfare Fund, centrally collected from the migrant workers," reads one of the suggestions.
