Nepal is going to hold consultations with Saudi Arabia, one of the top labour destinations for Nepali migrant workers, for a Labour Agreement.A three-member technical team headed by Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Employment (MoLE), Ram Kumar Acharya, arrived in the Saudi Arabian Capital Riyadh on Sunday night for the task.The team is here upon an invitation of the Saudi government.

Ramesh Prasad Khanal, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Govinda Mani Bhurtel, Joint-Secretary of the MoLE are also in the Nepali team which is set to hold discussions with a secretarial team of the Gulf nation’s Ministry of Labour, according to Acting Nepali Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Ananda Prasad Sharma.

Issues including the proposed Labor Agreement between Nepal and Saudi Arabia and entry of ordinary labourers and domestic workers among others are likely to be discussed during the consultations.

The technical team comprising representatives of the both countries is also expected to prepare a final draft of the Labour Agreement and determine the day when the agreement will be signed.

Many Nepali migrant workers in Saudi were reported facing various sorts of inconvenience and forms of exploitation including overtime works without due payment, different jobs from those mentioned in their contract papers among others in absence of labourer-friendly laws and the lack of a proper Labour Agreement between the two nations.