ISLAMABAD – Malaysia, for long, has been a secure job market for Nepaliworkers, especially in the security sector jobs. But that could change soon.
According to reports, the South East Asian country is currently in a bid toimport workers for security jobs from countries other than Nepal as well.
Malaysia is in negotiations with Pakistan to bring in Pakistani workers forsecurity jobs, media reports say.
Negotiations have intensified in the recent weeks, and both countries arediscussing the possibility of hiring nearly 150,000 security guards inMalaysia, reported The Nation, a Pakistani English daily. “The initialnegotiations between both the countries have already been held at thehighest level while modalities to formalise the hiring process were beingworked out,” Pakistan’s High Commissioner in Malaysia Amna Baloch wasquoted as saying by the Pakistani paper.
The development can seriously affect Nepal’s labour market in Malaysia,which has been one of the most popular labour destination countries amongNepali workers, according to experts and officials familiar with thedevelopment.
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For years, security sector jobs have been reserved for Nepali migrantworkers.
“It was never said that security sector jobs were only for Nepali workers.But it was somehow an undeclared internal policy that Nepali workers wouldbe hired for security jobs [in Malaysia],” said Jeevan Baniya, a labourmigration researcher with the Centre for the Study of Labour and Mobilityat Social Science Baha.
“Once they start hiring workers even for security sector jobs from othercountries, it will automatically lead to a drop in the number of Nepaliworkers in the sector.”
