Press Release —Local

UN Migration Agency trains Nepali labour recruiters on ethical recruitment

Kathmandu - IOM, the UN Migration Agency has launched a two-day training course on ethical recruitment for Nepali labour recruiters in Kathmandu.  

The training is designed to increase recruiters’ understanding of ethical recruitment practices, and provides practical information on how recruiters can prepare for the launch of the International Recruitment Integrity System (IRIS) at the end of 2018.  

IRIS is a global social compliance scheme that is designed to promote ethical international recruitment.  It works by defining and setting a benchmark for ethical recruitment – the IRIS Standard - and by establishing a voluntary certification scheme for recruiters.   

IRIS has been created in response to the growing demand from the private sector and governments for ethical recruitment services.

“It is imperative that all stakeholders work together to change the current international recruitment model to make it fairer for all involved. This includes shifting the cost of recruitment from the worker to the employer and making the whole process more transparent,” said IOM Nepal Chief of Mission Paul Norton.  

Nepal is one of major labour sending countries in the world and ranks fourth in the world in terms of contribution of remittances to GDP.  Each day, nearly 1,600 young people leave the country to work overseas.  

The training is being attended by representatives of Ethics Practitioners Association of Nepal (EPAN), an umbrella organization of recruitment agencies in Nepal, and other agencies that are committed to ethical recruitment.   

IOM plans to hold more trainings in Nepal, and other countries, in the coming months..

For further information please contact
Paul I. Norton at IOM Nepal, Tel. +977 1 4426250, Email: iomnepal@iom.int