Reintegration of Returnee Migrant Workers in Nepal: A Post-COVID Policy Gap Analysis.

Abstract:

Sustainable reintegration of returnee migrant workers is a growing concern in Nepal. Despite various attempts by the government, many returnee migrant workers are compelled to continue their foreign employment, which was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper conducts a gap analysis of current policies and program implementation and explores the impact of the pandemic on migrant workers. Finally, the paper concludes that a lack of dedicated institutional and legislative arrangements and poor coordination among various stakeholders have hindered the successful reintegration of returnee migrant workers in Nepal.

Keywords: labour migration; reintegration; returnee migrant workers; COVID-19; Nepal; implementation gap

1. Introduction

According to the National Population and Housing Census 2021, more than 2.19 million Nepali citizens were absent during enumeration (National Statistics Office [NSO], 2023). The absent population refers to those who have been living overseas for more than six months for various purposes. Most of them had probably migrated abroad for employment opportunities, higher education, or both, although there is no data to establish the exact numbers.

Migration for employment, i.e. labour migration, has been an important contributor to Nepal’s economy at the national and household level for over four decades (Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security [MOLESS], 2022). Migration for overseas studies has also increased significantly in the recent years and emerged as the fastest growing population in Australia and the United States of America (USA) (Adhikari & Khatri, 2023). Labour migration and overseas migration together made nearly a million mark in 2022/23.

Labour migration from Nepal has a long history that can be traced back to the early 1800s. During this period, the British East India Company started recruiting Nepali hill men as Gurkhas to serve in their military force (Kansakar, 2003). However, this was not an official government policy, and no records were kept (Adhikari, 2020). It wasn't until 1985 that the Government of Nepal introduced the Foreign Employment Act (FEA), repealed by FEA 2007, to regulate labour migration (MOLESS, 2022). Following the Act, the Department of Foreign Employment (DOFE) was established to authorize mandatory labour permits and oversee the migration process through private recruitment agencies (PRA). The DOFE now keeps records of all labour migration based on the permits issued.

India has been a long-time host of Nepali migrants. However, due to a lack of policy and institutional arrangements, migration to India is not officially recorded (Adhikari & Khatri, 2023). Nepal and India have a bilateral treaty that allows the border between the two countries to remain open and free for work and visits without any travel documents (Ministry of External Affairs [MEA], 2020). This has resulted in missing records of migrants between these countries because DOFE only keeps records with labor permits, as required by the Foreign Employment Act of 2007. According to the National Population and Housing Census 2021, over 744,000 Nepali migrants, which make up 34% of the total absent population in India, are recorded (NSO, 2023). However, the purpose and status of these absentees are not clear in the Census. Some speculate that there might be more migrants living and working in India who are not accounted for due to a lack of policies and institutional arrangements. This has created a void in the Nepali migration market, and there are no reliable reports regarding their status and exact numbers. Therefore, this paper aims to engage with the information based on formal and maintained data by DOFE and the Department of Education (DOE).

Malaysia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, especially Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, are the most preferred destinations, that hosts over 76% of total Nepali migrant workers (NMW), and offer them a wide range of employment opportunities (MOLESS, 2022). In the last 15 years, DOFE issued over 7.7 million labour permits, including renewals at the rate of nearly 10% annual increment (MOLESS 2020, 2022).

In recent years, there has been a significant rise in Nepalese students pursuing higher education abroad, resulting in a growing trend of migration. Popular destinations for higher education include Australia, USA, Canada, Japan, and various European countries. DOE issues no objection certificates (NOC) to students seeking to study abroad. In the financial year 2008/09, over 18,000 NOCs were issued by the DOE, but this number has since skyrocketed to 110,000 in the year 2022/23. Over the past 15 years, DOE has issued over 669,000 NOCs to students aspiring to study overseas (Ministry of Education, Science and Technology [MOEST], 2023). The NOC is a mandatory document that allows students to pay admission and education fees, travel, and carry foreign currency.

The COVID-19 pandemic, as declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2020, had a significant impact on global supply chains and travel, affecting millions of workers and businesses in GCC and Malaysia (Joshi et al, 2022). A major impact was the resulting job losses with migrant workers from developing origin countries sharing the main burden (Gulyas & Pytka, 2020). With over 6.9 million deaths and over 767 million infected cases globally, COVID-19 became more impactful than previous crises such as the Ebola virus epidemic, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and MERS epidemic, global financial crisis, tsunami and others (Gulyas & Pykta, 2020, World Health Organization [WHO], 2023). Nepali migrant workers were also among the hardest hit forcing them to return home prematurely or leave their jobs. This situation created an overwhelming pressure to Nepal’s labour market, especially in the reintegration of returnee migrants.

The reintegration of migrant workers who have returned to Nepal in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be a significant challenge. Despite the lack of dedicated policies or programs to address this issue, the government of Nepal has taken a positive step forward by introducing the Reintegration Programme (Operation and Management) Directives for Returnee Migrant Workers, 2079 (MOLESS, 2022). It is imperative to successfully reintegrate these workers in Nepal due to the growing uncertainty of labour markets (Adhikari, Gale & Vince, 2024), more restrictive policies in the GCC countries (Chaloff, Hevré & Sirivunnabood 2023) increasing workplace hazards for non-migrant workers (Kuttappan, 2018), and the need to make migration a voluntary choice rather than a necessity (Karki, 2018). While initial expectations were that returned migrants would effortlessly integrate into the local economy, ongoing political instability, lower wages, and a shortage of reintegration opportunities in Nepal have made this a daunting task. Furthermore, many Nepalis have returned to their traditional migration destinations in the GCC and Malaysia, where demand and recruitment have rebounded to pre-pandemic levels (Chaloff, Hevré & Sirivunnabood 2023). In the year 2022/23, over 771,327 labor permits were issued to allow Nepali youth to work overseas, casting doubt on the government's ability to execute their plan for reintegration.

This paper analyzes current status of reintegration policies and programs and evaluate them against the goals to identify implementation gaps recommends for the policy suggestions for effective reintegration based on a few good experiences in other countries.

2. Methodology and Conceptual Framework

This paper adopts conceptual framework in the Figure 1 and policy implementation gap analysis in the Table 1 to discuss about the status of reintegration policy status in the migration governance. This paper analyses the best available scholarly articles, government reports and newspaper opinions.

Gap analysis can simply be described as a difference between expectations and achievement. A policy implementation gap analysis is considered as an efficiency tracker or assessment tool that identifies the differences between the actual performance and its potential. In other words, it measures the effectiveness of current policies in relation to their potential policy outcomes.

This paper proposes an institutional and policy analysis framework, based on the framework used by Ostrom (2005), to identify implementation gaps.  A framework helps to make a ‘diagnostic and prescriptive inquiry’ that identifies different components and elements contributing to implementing policies and programs (Ostrom, 2005). The Table 1 represents a framework to make a policy gap analysis in the return and reintegration of returnee migrant workers.

This paper has used various terms in the conceptual framework and in the paper throughout that are discussed in the following sub-sections to avoid any mis-understanding to the readers.

2.1. Dimensions of Migration

There are various dimensions to migration, based on their migration destinations, purpose and time period. However, this paper explains only a few terms such as migrant workers, emigration, remittance, return migration and reintegration which are more relevant to the study.

2.1.1.      Emigration and migrant workers:

Migration is the act of relocating oneself or a group of individuals from one location to another, typically in search of better living conditions and employment opportunities. When this movement occurs across national borders, it is called international migration or emigration. The International Organization for Migration (IOM), Glossary on migration explains emigration as ‘an act of moving from one’s country of nationality or usual residence to another country, so that the country of destination effectively becomes his or her new country of usual residence.’ (IOM, 2019, p. 64). The International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (ICRMW) defines a 'migrant worker' as ‘a person who is to be engaged, is engaged or has been engaged in a remunerated activity in a State of which he or she is not a national’ (OHCHR, 1990, Article 2.1). In Nepal, the term foreign employment is commonly used for labour migration.

The GON publishes annual reports on the labor migration destinations for workers seeking employment abroad. In the year 2013/14, NMWs obtained work permits in 131 countries. This number increased to 157 countries before the COVID-19 pandemic, but has now decreased to 144 countries since the outbreak (MOLESS, 2022). This shows that NMWs have a wide range of options when it comes to choosing their labor migration destination. However, some countries, such as the GCC countries and Malaysia, have always been the dominant players in terms of overall recruitment. Even after the COVID-19 pandemic, Malaysia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE remain the top four destination countries for NMWs and continue to account for the majority of overseas recruitment (Figure 2). Although their share has declined somewhat (as indicated in Figure 2), they still account for a significantly higher proportion of the 144 destination countries for NMWs. Additionally, a few new destination countries for NMWs, such as Romania, Croatia, and Cyprus, have emerged in recent years (DOFE, 2023).

Figure 2. The trend of the top four destination countries and their share in the total recruitment (FY 2011/12-2022/23)

Source: DOFE, 2023; MOLESS 2022

2.1.2.      Remittances:

To put it simply, remittances refer to the funds transferred by migrant workers to their family members, relatives, or other individuals residing in their home country. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) defines remittances as “household income from foreign economies arising mainly from the temporary or permanent movement of people to those economies” (IMF, 2009). When calculating a balance of payment account in macroeconomics, it includes all personal transfers, such as personal remittances and employee compensation (IMF, 2009).

            Remittance has become an essential source of foreign exchange, primarily because of labour migration. Remittance accounts for more than a quarter of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) (Ministry of Finance [MOF], 2022). This influx of remittances has played a crucial role in reducing poverty levels from 42% in 1992 to 18.6% in 2021 (MOF, 2022; Pant, 2016).

2.1.3.      Return and Reintegration:

While there are varying definitions of return and reintegration, return migration generally refers to the process of migrant workers returning to their origin country from the country of destination (Wickramasekara 2019, p.3). The United Nations Department of Social Affairs (UNDESA) defines return migrants as ‘persons returning to their country of citizenship after having been international migrants (whether short- term or long-term) in another country and who are intending to stay in their country of own for at least a year’ (UNDESA, 1998, p. 94). Similarly, the International Labor Organization (ILO) defines return international migrant workers as “all current residents of the country who were previously international migrant workers in another country or countries” living over six months (ILO, 2018).

International Organization for Migration (IOM) defines reintegration as ‘A process which enables individuals to re‐establish the economic, social and psychosocial relationships needed to maintain life, livelihood and dignity and inclusion in civic life.’ (IOM, 2019, p.176). ‘Reintegration is an essential part of return migration’ that can contribute to boosting the local economy with the returnee migrant workers’ capital gained overseas (Fonseca, Hart & Klink, 2015, p.9).

Nepal does not have well managed information on return migration and reintegration. However, records of new hires (new labour permits) and rehires (renewed labour permits) give some thoughts on studying the reintegration scholarships.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting lockdowns have had a profound impact on the global economy and labour market. Nepal, in particular, saw a large number of its workers losing their jobs and returning home amid the uncertainty caused by the pandemic. In 2020/21-2021/22, over 674 thousand migrant workers returned to Nepal via Tribhuvan International Airport, with more than half a million being repatriated by government-facilitated endeavours (MOLESS 2022). Additionally, the pandemic resulted in the tragic loss of over 207 Nepalese workers overseas (NPC, 2020). These figures are indicative of the severe impact of the pandemic on the Nepalese labour market and its workforce.

COVID-19 changed the composition of new hire, rehire and migration destinations. In Figure 3, number and share of rehiring is gradually increasing until onset of COVID-19 pandemic. Interestingly, rehiring was more than new recruitment in the year 2018/19. After the new normal in the post-COVID-19 era, overall recruitment increased but decreased the number and share of rehires (Figure 3).

Figure 3. New hire and rehire trend of Nepalese migrant workers (2011/12-2022/23)

Source: DOFE, 2023; MOLESS 2022

2.2. Types of returnee migrant workers

There are different kinds of returnee migrant workers based on their migration journey and motivation for return, including volunteer return or forced return.

2.2.1.      Regular Returnees:

Employers in GCC countries and Malaysia typically hire migrant workers for a single contract that lasts 2-3 years. Once the contract period is over and migrants return home, they are called regular returnees (Cassarino, 2014). These returnees can choose to continue working in the same country or go to a different one by renewing their employment contract with the same employer or finding a different one. The employers can decide to extend, renew, or terminate the migrant worker's contract after their initial employment period (Kuttappan, 2018).

2.2.2.      COVID-19 Related Returnees:

During and after the COVID-19 pandemic, many Nepali migrant workers returned home. There were two other cohorts, whose returns were related to the pandemic. The first cohort were the job losers due to the closure or shrinking of businesses/employers earlier than the contract period (NPC, 2020).  Workers who returned due to distress associated with COVID-19 contagion and for family reunion form another category. According to the National Planning Commission of Nepal, as of 21 August, 2021, Nepal had repatriated 528,540 migrant workers from various locations, mainly GCC countries and Malaysia through air routes (IOM 2021). However, there are still many migrants who return through India's borders that are missing in the records (NPC, 2020). Unfortunately, Nepal does not have disaggregated information on these categories, but only the number of total repatriated migrants.

2.2.3.       Others:

Some NMWs choose to return to Nepal for reasons beyond what has been mentioned earlier. While they are not obligated to return, they do so for various reasons. This includes not being able to fulfill their migration goals and not being able to secure the jobs they were promised. Additionally, some NMWs return to their home country so that they can migrate to other regions or countries as part of their multi-stage migration plan. For example, migrating to countries like the GCC and Malaysia can be less expensive and easier. They can then gather money and skills before moving on to more advanced countries like Australia and the USA (Valenta & Garvik, 2023).

2.3. Determinants of return and reintegration:

Return migration plays a vital role in facilitating knowledge and skills transfer as migrants bring back valuable expertise, experience, and capabilities acquired abroad (Wickramasekara, 2019). Upon reintegrating into their home country, they have the opportunity to contribute these skills towards local development. Various factors determine return migration and their reintegration into the local economy. These factors can influence the decision and experience of returnee migrant workers, such as labour agreements, individual and socio-economic characteristics of migrant workers, and policy interventions to facilitate or restrain return and reintegration.

2.3.1.      Labour Agreements:

A bilateral labour agreement between Nepal and a country of destination, if any, is an important document that can guide activities to the process of return migration and their effective reintegration after return. For example, the bilateral MOUs with the Republic of Korea made an agreement to promote the reintegration of migrant workers after their return and provide training and support services for reintegration (MOLESS, 2022). However, despite being major host countries, GCC countries and Malaysia are silent on support services for the reintegration of migrant workers. The country’s power in the diplomatic relationship, information, and intent of the policymakers are critical to making impactful labour agreements focusing on effective reintegration.

2.3.2.      National policy and programs:

National policies or public policies are guiding documents by the government to implement programs. These policies and programs, when backed up by the existing Law, become stronger to protect labour rights and ensure welfare to the migrant communities. Nepal does not have a dedicated policy for reintegration, however, various policies have mentioned reintegration of returned migrants. Consequently, these policies have guided programs and projects that complements effective reintegration strategy by the government. Such as, ‘The Directive on Grant Schemes for Encouraging Foreign Educated and Trained Youth in Agriculture, 2015’ promotes youths’ agriculture entrepreneurship after their return (MOLESS, 2022, p. 37). Also, agriculture was the most preferred enterprise or engagement option (33%) for repatriated Nepali migrants after COVID-19 (Adhikari, et al., 2023).

2.3.3.      Personal aspirations and preferences:

In the migration cycle, individuals can make decisions to continue their overseas employment or return based on various ‘subjective aspirations and preferences’ (Flahaux, 2021, p.150). Individuals' intention to return can change over time and their migration experience. Also, structural factors such as the countries' political, social and economic conditions also influence migration (return) decisions that eventually impact the sustainable reintegration process (MOLESS, 2022).

3. Current Return and Reintegration Programs and Policies

The decision to return home after temporary labour migration is often expected, though some may choose to remigrate to continue their journey. Cassarino (2014) notes that the motivation to return can vary, depending on whether the migration cycle was complete, incomplete, or interrupted (p.7). For those who have achieved their migration objectives or whose contract has ended, the cycle is considered complete (Cassarino, 2019, p.7). However, incomplete or interrupted return migration occurs when migrants are unable to achieve their objectives and are forced to leave due to crises caused by factors such as war, conflict, family or personal issues, health problems, and events such as the COVID-19 pandemic (NPC, 2020).

Also, high unemployment rates (11.5% in 2017) and limited economic prospects in Nepal are driving factors for many young people to seek overseas employment opportunities (Valenta & Garvik, 2023). Other drivers of migration include wage disparities, lack of recognition for overseas qualifications, and poor working conditions (Adhikari, 2020, pp. 45-46). It is more concerning that the unemployment rate is higher among the young population, 19.2% for 15-29 years, which is 2.7% for the whole population in Nepal (ILO, 2023). Therefore, young people are more likely to migrate to various destinations available to them.

Reintegration is very important step in migration cycle. Cassarino (2014) defined reintegration as the ‘process through which a return migrant participates in the social cultural, economic and political life of the country of origin’ (pp. 183-186). Also, reintegration often analysed through effectiveness and sustainability. Effective return contributes to sustainable return and reintegration. Effective return is explained from the lens of origin as ‘migrant workers return in safe and dignified manner after achieving their migration objective overseas’ (Wickramasekara, 2019, p. 4). It requires a good collaboration between the origin and receiving countries to ensure the safe return and dignified employment opportunities along with facilitation to access support services to contribute their skills and capital to the community as needed (Wickramasekara, 2019, p. 4).

Although there were no specific policies or institutions dedicated to the reintegration of migrant workers, it was generally considered a part of labor migration management to support migrant workers in different stages of the migration cycle. However, the concept of reintegration is gaining importance as a critical aspect of labor market management. In recent years, several initiatives and guidelines have been implemented to support these individuals and their families, which is a promising development (Table 2).

Table 2. Programs and policies related to reintegration in Nepal

3.1. Economic reintegration

In 1998, Nepal launched a pilot project to create local employment opportunities by mobilising locally available resources, Microenterprise Development Program (MEDEP), with financial assistance from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) (IOM, 2021). It is now spread to all 753 local-level administration units in Nepal collaborating with various stakeholders to promote entrepreneurship and create employment through its micro-enterprise development model. Similarly, the Youth and Small Enterprise Self-Employment Fund (YSEF) was introduced in 2009 to promote employment and self-employment. It facilitates young entrepreneurs (18-50 years) to access collateral-free and low-interest loans (less than 5% for target groups) from NPR20,00-NPR200,000. In the same year, Nepal Rastra Bank introduced Foreign Employment Bonds in 2009 and later introduced Foreign Employment Savings Bond-2027 (MOLESS, 2022, p.124) for five years at an interest rate of 12.5% and waived income tax on their interest earnings with the bonds investment.

Considering agriculture as the major economic sector, the Government of Nepal introduced two important projects in 2015, Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project and Rural Enterprises and Remittances Project (RERP) or SAMRIDDHI (IOM, 2021, p. 15). Migrant families and returnee migrants are among the target beneficiaries of these projects who can create sustainable income sources based on a high-value agricultural commodities value chain and their commercialisation (NPC, 2020). Likewise, GON introduced the Prime Minister Employment Program (PMEP) in 2019 to create more short-term employment opportunities for unemployed youth. In the last three years, PMEP received more than the NPR24 billion budget to create 3-400,000 local employment opportunities. Though it is a more generic program, it also encourages returnee migrant workers to invest their overseas savings, skills and experiences in fostering local entrepreneurship and creating jobs (NPC, 2020). Safer Migration (SaMi) and Reintegration of Returnee Migrant Workers (ReMi) are two more projects to assist migration and reintegration process (IOM, 2021).

In addition, GON has established the Foreign Employment Welfare Fund (FEWF) in 2008 under FEA 2007 from the membership fee of every migrant worker. This fund can be mobilised in the welfare of migrant workers and their families, including employment rehabilitation programs, conduct of social and economic reintegration programs (MOLESS, 2022).

3.2. Social reintegration

SaMi and ReMi projects introduced in 2011 and 2022 respectively are working mainly in social reintegration domain (IOM, 2021). These projects provide psychosocial counselling, skills training, legal support, information and awareness on safer migration. Similarly, the SAMRIDDHI project aimed to support returnee migrant workers in their reintegration process by providing them with tailored services and opportunities, thereby contributing to the social, cultural, economic and political development in Nepal (MOLESS, 2022).

3.3. Political reintegration

Söderström (2013) stated that the political aspect of reintegration is not widely discussed and is ‘under-theorised’ to represent political reintegration in academic research (p. 3). Political involvement should be the conditio sine qua non in defining political reintegration (Söderström, 2013, p. 23). GON has recognised the importance of the participation and representation of the migrant stakeholders to make effective migration policies to ensure effective and sustainable reintegration (MOLESS, 2022).

4. Review of Reintegration Programs

In order to promote sustainability, it is recommended that the return and reintegration process for migrant workers prioritise three key areas. The first one, economic stability to ensure they can maintain a livelihood without facing vulnerability. Secondly, social and cultural reintegration should be implemented to facilitate their active participation in the receiving society. Finally, political-security reintegration is required to guarantee their access to safety and justice upon their return (Wickramasekara, 2019, p. 4).

Despite various endeavours to improve local employment and investment environment, Nepal has attained only limited success. An IOM study identified policy gaps and challenges  at three levels: structural, community, and individual. The study stated that scattered and independent programs implemented by various government and non-government organisations could have been more effective in achieving sustainable structural reintegration. Poor coordination and collaboration among institutions made programs scattered and sometimes overlapped (Karki, 2018). Additionally, there needs to be more reintegration-specific policies and institutions to ensure a systematic approach across different administrative units in Nepal (MOLESS, 2022). At the community level, migrants and their families have limited access to and awareness of available reintegration services. Lastly, at the individual level, reintegration services need to be improved and meet their specific requirements (IOM, 2021, p. 35).

The DOFE provided labour permits to 144 countries, but only 11 countries have bilateral labour agreements. More interestingly, DOFE has been providing approvals to recruit in major host countries like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait (MOLESS, 2022).  

The Nepal Labour Force Survey (NLFS) in 2017/18 reported that only 42.8% of returnee migrant workers found a job, 13.4% were unemployed and 43.8% were outside the labour force (Central Bureau of Statistics [CBS], 2019). Similarly, Foreign Employment Bonds in 2009 and Foreign Employment Savings Bond -2027 were targeted only at selected countries (Pant, 2016) and are now undersold (MOLESS, 2022). Also, due to limited marketing and awareness about the bonds, there was a shortfall in targeted sales over the years (MOLESS, 2022, Sapkota, 2013).  Over a million youth entrepreneurs have benefitted from the YSEF project, which is always below the targeted numbers, loan disbursement and loan repayment (Snellinger, 2018).

Also, the COVID-19 pandemic has posed unprecedented challenges in absorbing returnee migrant workers in the local labour market and forced migrants to overseas employment, as one of the most accessible options. The unemployment rate was mostly around 10.5% and increased to over 13.1% after the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and now it is 11.1% (World Bank, 2023).

5. Good Practices

After COVID-19 pandemic, the labour markets has became more uncertain when unemployment is on the rise. So, global supply chain for the labour markets and labour demand have disturbed. However, there are various countries practices good practices for reintegration of return migrants that Nepal can learn to implement.

·         Incorporation of reintegration provisions into national legislations and policy frameworks: The Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka have introduced policies and Acts to promote reintegration activities.

·         Dedicated institutions and programs for reintegration: National Reintegration Centre for OFWs (Overseas Filipino Workers) in the Philippines supports returnee migrant workers to reintegrate socio-economically. Similarly, the Productive Migrant Workers Village (Desmigratif) provides supports and information to the family members of migrant workers.

·         Recognition of prior learning and skills certification: Government authorities in the Philippines and Cambodia and non-government organisation in Singapore support returnee migrant workers to recognise their overseas qualifications and provide necessary training.

·         Surveys and need assessment to prepare databases: The European University Institute and Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment, Bangladesh conduct surveys of returnee migrant workers. It is important to identify the services needed by the returnee migrant workers to reintegrate them into the domestic labour market.

·         Happy return program: The Republic of South Korea initiated Happy Return Program since 2009 which informs migrant workers to pre-return recruitment services, supports them with vocational training, linking to jobs in their home country.

·         Awareness: The Philippines provides information sessions/training to migrant workers and their families about the migration cycle and reintegration preparedness, such as pre-employment orientation training, pre-departure orientation training and post-arrival orientation training.

6. Conclusion and Way Forward

Reintegration is an important stage of the migration cycle. Effective reintegration has been realised and discussed extensively after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the global labour market disruption. A few existing policies and legislations in migration governance could also facilitate effective reintegration in Nepal.

To assist returnee migrants in reintegration, the government can mobilise the Foreign Employment Welfare Fund, established mainly by the migrant workers’ membership fees. This fund provides financial support to help returnees engage in income-generating activities, encouraging self-employment and entrepreneurship opportunities. Skills and vocational training programs have been implemented to enhance the employability of returnee migrants and economic reintegration. These initiatives focus on providing training in specific trades, entrepreneurship development, and skill upgradation. In addition, these programs aim to facilitate their transition into the domestic job market by equipping them with relevant skills.

Counselling and support services play a crucial role in assisting social and political reintegration of the returning migrants. Collaborating with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and civil society, the government offers psychological support, legal aid, and assistance in accessing healthcare and education services. These services help address the emotional and practical challenges faced by returnees.

Awareness and information campaigns are conducted to educate potential migrants about safe migration practices, their rights, and the available support services. In addition, these campaigns aim to reduce the vulnerabilities faced by migrant workers and empower them to make informed decisions regarding their overseas employment.

Although policies and programs are in place, there are still challenges in fully implementing them. One major issue is the need for dedicated policies and legislation to support a specialised agency. Additionally, there is poor coordination between government programs, NGOs, civil society, and other stakeholders, which makes it challenging to address the complex needs of returning migrants and ensure their successful reintegration into society.

The policy analysis of the reintegration endeavours uncovered discrepancies in the policy provisions and outcomes after their implementation, broadly at the structural level and household (or individual level). This paper recommends the following steps for the effective reintegration of Nepali returnee migrant workers based on the identified gaps in policy implementation and good practices in different countries.

·         A dedicated policy and a dedicated institution:  Nepal seriously lack a dedicated reintegration policy that supports establishing a dedicated institution. More than half of total households are dependent on migrant remittances and over half a million migrant workers who migrate annually with almost half of them being returnees, it is urgent for them to integrate into the local economy and leverage their overseas qualifications and capital. Also, policy to inform migrant workers about preparedness to return after contract and financial literacy, from the lessons from different countries would contribute to effective reintegration.

·         Co-ordination and collaboration: Various government and non-government organisations have implemented different programs and projects to reintegrate returnee migrant workers, including vocational training, entrepreneurship support, technical support, subsidised loan, and awareness campaigns. However, many returnee migrant workers are deprived of those support services and forced to continue for overseas employment. Proper coordination and collaboration with all the stakeholders would make the reintegration program more effective, which avoids duplication and increase the reach to targeted communities.

·         More programs in addressing social, economic, and psychological reintegration: Reintegration programs are focused mainly on economic dimensions, however, it is equally important to consider the social and psychological aspects for effective and sustainable reintegration. In addition, the government should allocate reasonable budgets and programs to strengthen the capacities of government officials and facilitate effective public service delivery. 

·         Awareness: Migrant workers and their families have limited information about the reintegration process and services, including financial management, insurance, and networking with the local job market. Nepal can learn from the good practices around, such as the Philippines, to inform migrant workers and their families for effective reintegration after return.

·         Database on migration information: It is necessary to keep records of migrant workers and returned migrants by the government. Collecting and maintaining information for public use will contribute to evidence-based policymaking for sustainable migration management.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

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