The Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies is facing a possible split after a dispute over Malaysia's new system for recruiting a Nepali workers, with some affected businesses preparing to form a separate association.
The dispute centers on 275 Nepali manpower agencies listed in Malaysia's Foreign Worker Centralized Management System (FWCMS). Of these, 25 are designated principal recruitment agencies and 250 are associate agencies. The two categories have different roles within the arrangement.
The association suspended the listed agencies, first against the 25 and later suspending the other 250 while seeking explanations. The Department of Foreign Employment is also investigating the agencies and has reportedly halted their pre-approval to send workers abroad.
One affected entrepreneur said the agencies had been suspended and excluded from the association and were therefore preparing to organize separately. The entrepreneur accused the association of treating them unfairly and alleged that offices had been vandalized or padlocked.
The association has opposed the system, arguing that giving a small group of agencies control over access to Malaysian employers could create a monopoly or “syndicate.” Its president is Dik Bahadur Khatri.
Nepal’s government has also objected to the principal-and-associate structure, saying Nepal’s foreign-employment legal framework does not set up such a hierarchy among licensed agencies.
On October 2, it asked Malaysia to remove the 25 principal agencies after those companies themselves sought withdrawal. In mid-September, the Department of Foreign Employment asked the 250 associate agencies to explain how they were selected, and Nepal sought joint talks with Malaysia under the existing bilateral mechanism.
Malaysia plans to introduce the new system for Nepali workers from November 5, according to a memo from the system’s operator, Bestinet Sdn Bhd.
