IOM and the Government of Nepal have launched a Migrant Resource
Centre in the capital, Kathmandu. The centre, which is located at
the Foreign Employment Promotion Board, will serve as an autonomous
body within the Ministry of Labour and Transportation Management
for information, welfare and promotional activities related to
migration.

Minister for Labour and Transport Management Aftaab Alam, who
inaugurated the centre, welcomed the initiative, describing the MRC
as "a milestone" in making Nepal's overseas employment business
safe, well managed and dignified.

Labour migration is critically important to the Nepal, which is
a major country of origin for migrant workers and where remittances
account for some 18 per cent of GDP. Some 1.2 million
documented and an estimated 1.3 million undocumented Nepalis live
and work abroad, mainly in Malaysia and the Gulf states.

"The aim of the MRC is to provide migrants with the information
that they need to make informed decisions, to prevent them from
being cheated by unscrupulous agents and human traffickers, and to
discourage them from choosing the irregular, undocumented route,"
says IOM Nepal Chief of Mission Sarat Dash.

For more information please contact:

Pravina Gurung

IOM Kathmandu

Tel: +977.1 444 262 50

Email:  "mailto:pgurung@iom.int">pgurung@iom.int