IOM is today opening a liaison office in the Nepalese capital
Kathmandu.

The office, IOM’s 292nd office worldwide, is expected to
work with the Nepalese government to enhance its migration
management capacity and to help it to address irregular migration
issues including human trafficking.

Migration is an important livelihood option for many in Nepal,
where 31 per cent of the population of 26 million live below the
poverty line and 42 per cent of the workforce are unemployed or
under-employed.

The majority of Nepalese migrants work in South Asia, the Middle
East and South East Asia, notably in India, Malaysia, Qatar and
Saudi Arabia. Some 95 per cent of Nepalese migrants are men and
over 90 per cent are unskilled labourers.

In 2002-2003 Nepalese migrant workers’ remittances reached
US$720 million, representing some 14.8 per cent of GDP and 65 per
cent of the country’s foreign exchange earnings.

The economic benefits that Nepal derives from labour migration
are offset by the prevalence of human trafficking in the country
– despite ongoing government efforts to combat the
problem.

Many trafficking victims come from the country’s poorest
areas, where between 100,000 to 200,000 people have been internally
displaced by a long running conflict.

For more information please contact:

Nahreen Farjana

IOM Dhaka

Phone: +880 2 881 4604

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