Govt seals Saudi skills verification centre over unauthorised worker fees

KATHMANDU: The Nepali government has sealed a skills verification centre in Kathmandu after an inspection team found that it was conducting skills tests and issuing certificates to workers seeking employment in Saudi Arabia without the required government approval.

The centre, located in Basundhara, Kathmandu, had been operating the Saudi Skills Verification Program (SVP) and charging prospective migrant workers US$50 per person for the assessment and certification process.

The action was taken by a joint monitoring team comprising officials from the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security, Department of Foreign Employment, Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT) and the Ministry of Education.

The team inspected the centre on July 22 after receiving information that the programme was being implemented without the government’s formal approval or knowledge.

According to the inspection findings, the centre’s operator, Industry Training Institute (ITI), had obtained permission from CTEVT to provide skills training but was found to be conducting skills assessments and issuing certificates beyond the scope of its authorised activities.

The government team concluded that the centre was issuing skills verification certificates to prospective migrant workers in violation of the stipulated conditions.

The centre had reportedly begun conducting a three-hour skills assessment for workers who paid the US$50 fee. Workers without the SVP certificate were reportedly unable to submit visa applications at the Saudi Embassy in Kathmandu.

The skills verification programme reportedly covered workers in occupations including loaders and unloaders, porters, pushcart operators and construction workers.

The Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development has said the skills verification programme is linked to the process of obtaining employment visas for certain categories of workers travelling to Saudi Arabia.

The controversy emerged after preparations were made to formally inaugurate the skills verification centre in Kathmandu on June 17, with the Saudi ambassador to Nepal scheduled to attend the launch. However, the planned inauguration was disrupted after manpower business operators protested at the centre and allegedly damaged its banners and entrance.

Following the protest, ITI issued a notice stating that the SVP programme had been suspended temporarily.

The issue subsequently drew the attention of the Ministry of Labour. Labour Minister Ramji Yadav reportedly held discussions with Saudi Ambassador Fahad Mohammed Al-Imamikh and requested that the programme be halted. The ambassador was said to have assured the minister that he would consult the Saudi government and provide further information.

The government subsequently believed that the programme would not be implemented immediately. However, the skills verification process reportedly resumed soon afterward.

The inspection team has described the operation as a syndicate-like arrangement that placed an additional financial burden on Nepali migrant workers, many of whom take loans to finance their foreign employment journeys.

An official involved in the monitoring process said the centre had been operating without government approval and imposing additional costs on workers.

“This is another form of syndication. The centre was operating without government approval or even informing the government, while imposing an additional financial burden on workers. As the programme was being forcibly implemented, we sealed the centre after determining that the activities were unlawful,” the official said.

The official also argued that requiring ordinary workers to pay additional fees for skills testing before travelling for foreign employment was unfair, particularly given the financial burden already faced by migrant workers.

The monitoring team is preparing to submit its report to the Ministry of Labour. The ministry is expected to take further legal and administrative action based on the findings of the inspection.

The development comes amid growing scrutiny of the costs and procedures imposed on Nepali migrant workers seeking employment in Gulf countries. The government’s decision to seal the centre has raised questions about the implementation of foreign-government-mandated certification programmes in Nepal and the need for such programmes to operate through transparent, legally authorised and properly regulated mechanisms.