Kathmandu, Sept 30: Recruitment of Nepali workers for Malaysia has been thrown into uncertainty as manpower agencies remain divided over Malaysia’s new centralised foreign worker recruitment system, while government agencies have begun questioning how participating companies were selected.
Under Malaysia’s Foreign Workers Centralised Management System (FWCMS), 275 Nepali manpower companies have been listed, comprising 25 “principal agencies” and 250 “support agencies.” The Department of Foreign Employment has sought clarification over the selection criteria and reportedly halted preliminary approval of Malaysian job demand documents under the new system.
The dispute centres on whether Malaysia should be allowed to limit recruitment to selected Nepali agencies or whether all licensed companies should have equal access.
Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies President Dik Bahadur Khatri said the system should not create a monopoly for a limited group of companies.
“All manpower companies operating legally in Nepal should receive equal treatment and opportunity,” Khatri said, urging the government to resolve the issue through diplomatic talks with Malaysia.
Agencies included in FWCMS, however, argue that Malaysia selected them under its own procedures and that they neither sought special treatment nor expect additional benefits.
Milan Kattel, operator of Asia Link Manpower, said any dispute over companies listed in a Malaysian government system should be resolved through talks with Malaysia rather than by pressuring Nepali agencies to withdraw.
Reports had earlier said 22 of the 25 principal agencies had agreed to withdraw from FWCMS.
The controversy has also reached the prime ministerial level. The governments of Nepal and Malaysia have discussed making labour recruitment transparent, orderly and free from exploitation. Sources say the talks also covered the possibility of allowing more Nepali manpower agencies to participate rather than limiting recruitment to the existing 275.
The Department of Foreign Employment, meanwhile, has launched an inquiry into the 25 principal and 250 support agencies, seeking details about how they were selected.
Some manpower operators have questioned whether the department’s action is consistent with the government’s diplomatic efforts. They argue that while the government is negotiating with Malaysia to expand participation, the department is simultaneously investigating companies already listed in the Malaysian system.
Recruitment agencies have called for better coordination among the Labour Ministry, Department of Foreign Employment, Foreign Ministry and Nepal’s diplomatic mission in Malaysia.
At the heart of the dispute is not simply whether the 275 agencies should remain on the list, but how many Nepali agencies should be allowed to recruit for Malaysia and under what criteria.
Malaysia says FWCMS is intended to centralise recruitment by connecting employers, governments, recruitment agencies and health centres through a single system.
For Nepal, the challenge is to ensure that any arrangement remains transparent and competitive while protecting Nepali workers from exploitation.
Recruitment agencies have urged a quick settlement, warning that prolonged uncertainty could disrupt new recruitment, affect employment opportunities and eventually hit remittance inflows from Malaysia, one of Nepal’s major labour destinations.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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