Publication: Youth Labor Migration in Nepal
Loading...
Date
2018-04
ISSN
Published
2018-04
Author(s)
Denisova, Anastasiya
Editor(s)
Abstract
This descriptive study investigates internal and external labor migration by Nepalese youth. External labor migration is separated into the flow to India, which is unregulated, and the flow to other countries, which typically takes the form of temporary contract migration to countries with bilateral labor agreements with Nepal (referred to in Nepal as foreign employment). The study finds that labor migration by Nepalese youth is extensive and male dominated. The regions with the highest rates of labor outmigration are rural Terai, rural Hills, and Mountains. Female labor migration is mostly within Nepal, whereas male labor migration is mostly to other countries. Most labor migrants are wageemployed, and engage in services. Labor migration is positively associated with education attainment for women, but negatively associated for men. Labor migration is also positively associated with household economic status for women. Just four destination countries (Malaysia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates) account for the majority of foreign employment workers. Nepal’s foreign employment system faces several challenges, including implementation shortcomings in the government’s institutional arrangements for workers, and the substantial market power of private recruitment agencies over workers. Male foreign employment outflow appears to be mainly associated with economic and other forces in the top destination countries. Male youth labor migration has negative effects on the likelihood of employment and hours worked for female and male youth household members who remain at home, although the effects are not consistently significant.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“Bossavie, Laurent; Denisova, Anastasiya. 2018. Youth Labor Migration in Nepal. Jobs Working Paper;No. 13. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/29682 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Distortions in the International Migrant Labor Market : Evidence from Filipino Migration and Wage Responses to Destination Country Economic Shocks(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2012-04)The authors use an original panel dataset of migrant departures from the Philippines to identify the responsiveness of migrant numbers and wages to gross domestic product shocks in destination countries. They find a large significant elasticity of migrant numbers to gross domestic product shocks at destination, but no significant wage response. This is consistent with binding minimum wages for migrant labor. This result implies that labor market imperfections that make international migration attractive also make migrant flows more sensitive to global business cycles. Difference-in-differences analysis of a minimum wage change for maids confirms that minimum wages bind and demand is price sensitive without these distortions.Publication Toward an Objective-Driven System of Smart Labor Migration Management(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2010-12)This policy note offers motivation and a game plan for achieving a coherent and mutually beneficial labor migration system. It argues that migrant workers may make important contributions to economic growth and development in both sending and receiving countries if they find enabling conditions. To achieve a potential win-win-win situation requires: (1) a sustainable migration management system that takes into account the interests of the various stakeholders involved; (2) a clear identification and articulation of objectives and interests in migration by key stakeholders, based on a common conceptual framework for migration and development; (3) regional and bilateral coordination mechanisms to balance these (potentially divergent) objectives and to reach compromise under labor agreements and policies; and (4) effective, evidence-based polices and public and private sector interventions to achieve the objectives that are known and applied at the levels of sending, receiving, returning, and circulating.Publication Managing International Migration for Development in East Asia(World Bank Group, Washington, DC, 2014-06)The objective of this book is to analyze the economic and social impact of international migration on labor sending and labor receiving countries in the East Asia region. More specifically, the book seeks: (a) to examine the impact of international migration on key development indicators, including poverty, investment, labor force participation, labor productivity and wages; (b) to evaluate current government structures and institutions for managing migration, with a view to identifying future policies for maximizing the benefits of international labor migration. The book includes new work on these key policy issues from six East Asian countries: three labor sending countries (Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam) and three labor receiving countries (Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand).Publication Projecting Demand for Skilled Foreign Labor and Meeting Skills Shortages : Selected Country Approach(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2013-01)Policy makers apply skilled labor gap projections to their immigration policies in a number of ways including: differentiating immigration policies by region, based on skills supply and demand mismatches; introducing more flexibility in admissions policies to acquire specific skills; and designing programs to actively attract immigrants with specific needed skills to specific occupations. Challenges in projecting an economy's demand for skilled foreign labor may include bias and gaps in available data sources, as well as difficulty determining the most appropriate methodology and impediments posed by imperfect methodological assumptions. A difficult economic context may provide further challenges to projecting and filling foreign labor needs.Publication Bilateral Arrangement of Temporary Labor Migration(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2018-09-01)The number of individuals who have crossed borders has mushroomed over recent years. The phenomenon of international migration, however, is heterogeneous in terms of the underlying motives and aspirations of migrants. Forced international migrants are involuntarily displaced refugees who flee conflict, violence, or persecution across an international border. Voluntary migrants can additionally be classified into two categories: (i) temporary labor migrants who migrate for economic reasons for a fixed duration of time, and (ii) immigrants who move with the intention of changing their country of residence, due to factors such as wanting to reunite with family or to benefit economically. Bilateral labor agreements (BLAs) between sending and receiving countries are institutional tools designed to facilitate migratory flows and maximize the potential benefits of temporary international migration for all concerned. This study focuses on the employment permit system (EPS) in Korea, a temporary migration program for low-skilled workers considered a good global practice among efforts toward the goal of co-development - that is, the mutual benefit of both sending and receiving nations. The EPS has accomplished several remarkable achievements, including a drastic reduction in migrants’ cost burden, enhanced transparency, reduction in the share of workers overstaying, and improved access to worker protection. The process used to match employers and temporary labor migrants also merits significant improvement.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Classroom Assessment to Support Foundational Literacy(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-21)This document focuses primarily on how classroom assessment activities can measure students’ literacy skills as they progress along a learning trajectory towards reading fluently and with comprehension by the end of primary school grades. The document addresses considerations regarding the design and implementation of early grade reading classroom assessment, provides examples of assessment activities from a variety of countries and contexts, and discusses the importance of incorporating classroom assessment practices into teacher training and professional development opportunities for teachers. The structure of the document is as follows. The first section presents definitions and addresses basic questions on classroom assessment. Section 2 covers the intersection between assessment and early grade reading by discussing how learning assessment can measure early grade reading skills following the reading learning trajectory. Section 3 compares some of the most common early grade literacy assessment tools with respect to the early grade reading skills and developmental phases. Section 4 of the document addresses teacher training considerations in developing, scoring, and using early grade reading assessment. Additional issues in assessing reading skills in the classroom and using assessment results to improve teaching and learning are reviewed in section 5. Throughout the document, country cases are presented to demonstrate how assessment activities can be implemented in the classroom in different contexts.Publication The Journey Ahead(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-10-31)The Journey Ahead: Supporting Successful Migration in Europe and Central Asia provides an in-depth analysis of international migration in Europe and Central Asia (ECA) and the implications for policy making. By identifying challenges and opportunities associated with migration in the region, it aims to inform a more nuanced, evidencebased debate on the costs and benefits of cross-border mobility. Using data-driven insights and new analysis, the report shows that migration has been an engine of prosperity and has helped address some of ECA’s demographic and socioeconomic disparities. Yet, migration’s full economic potential remains untapped. The report identifies multiple barriers keeping migration from achieving its full potential. Crucially, it argues that policies in both origin and destination countries can help maximize the development impacts of migration and effectively manage the economic, social, and political costs. Drawing from a wide range of literature, country experiences, and novel analysis, The Journey Ahead presents actionable policy options to enhance the benefits of migration for destination and origin countries and migrants themselves. Some measures can be taken unilaterally by countries, whereas others require close bilateral or regional coordination. The recommendations are tailored to different types of migration— forced displacement as well as high-skilled and low-skilled economic migration—and from the perspectives of both sending and receiving countries. This report serves as a comprehensive resource for governments, development partners, and other stakeholders throughout Europe and Central Asia, where the richness and diversity of migration experiences provide valuable insights for policy makers in other regions of the world.Publication World Development Report 2006(Washington, DC, 2005)This year’s Word Development Report (WDR), the twenty-eighth, looks at the role of equity in the development process. It defines equity in terms of two basic principles. The first is equal opportunities: that a person’s chances in life should be determined by his or her talents and efforts, rather than by pre-determined circumstances such as race, gender, social or family background. The second principle is the avoidance of extreme deprivation in outcomes, particularly in health, education and consumption levels. This principle thus includes the objective of poverty reduction. The report’s main message is that, in the long run, the pursuit of equity and the pursuit of economic prosperity are complementary. In addition to detailed chapters exploring these and related issues, the Report contains selected data from the World Development Indicators 2005‹an appendix of economic and social data for over 200 countries. This Report offers practical insights for policymakers, executives, scholars, and all those with an interest in economic development.Publication Argentina Country Climate and Development Report(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-11)The Argentina Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) explores opportunities and identifies trade-offs for aligning Argentina’s growth and poverty reduction policies with its commitments on, and its ability to withstand, climate change. It assesses how the country can: reduce its vulnerability to climate shocks through targeted public and private investments and adequation of social protection. The report also shows how Argentina can seize the benefits of a global decarbonization path to sustain a more robust economic growth through further development of Argentina’s potential for renewable energy, energy efficiency actions, the lithium value chain, as well as climate-smart agriculture (and land use) options. Given Argentina’s context, this CCDR focuses on win-win policies and investments, which have large co-benefits or can contribute to raising the country’s growth while helping to adapt the economy, also considering how human capital actions can accompany a just transition.Publication Lebanon Economic Monitor, Fall 2022(Washington, DC, 2022-11)The economy continues to contract, albeit at a somewhat slower pace. Public finances improved in 2021, but only because spending collapsed faster than revenue generation. Testament to the continued atrophy of Lebanon’s economy, the Lebanese Pound continues to depreciate sharply. The sharp deterioration in the currency continues to drive surging inflation, in triple digits since July 2020, impacting the poor and vulnerable the most. An unprecedented institutional vacuum will likely further delay any agreement on crisis resolution and much needed reforms; this includes prior actions as part of the April 2022 International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff-level agreement (SLA). Divergent views among key stakeholders on how to distribute the financial losses remains the main bottleneck for reaching an agreement on a comprehensive reform agenda. Lebanon needs to urgently adopt a domestic, equitable, and comprehensive solution that is predicated on: (i) addressing upfront the balance sheet impairments, (ii) restoring liquidity, and (iii) adhering to sound global practices of bail-in solutions based on a hierarchy of creditors (starting with banks’ shareholders) that protects small depositors.