September 12: A workshop on labor market information system to assess the demand of labour in the domestic market of Nepal has concluded. The workshop was organised by Employers Led Labor Market Secretariat (ELMS) project on Friday with the participation of five private umbrella organisations. 

The program was organised with the objective of institutionalizing the labor market information system and collecting labor market information. The programme will provide information on the status of workers available in Nepal's labor market. 

President of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI), Bishnu Kumar Agrawal, said at the workshop that the programme would be of great help in establishing a relationship between people looking for employment opportunities and the employers. He said that the programme, which was launched in collaboration with five private sector organizations, would be an example for the future reference as well.  

On the occasion, President of Hotel Association of Nepal Sirjana Rana, President of the Federation of Contractors’ Association of Nepal Ravi Singh and Treasurer of Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Sukuntalal Hirachan were unanimous in saying that this programme would help in providing information about the need of Nepali labor market and supply of manpower. They are hopeful that the programme will help solve the long-term unemployment problem in Nepal. 

Stating that there is a lack of competitive and skilled manpower in Nepal, vice president of CNI Birendra Raj Pandey said that the work for capacity building should be done institutionally. 

Under this project, 10 professions each related to construction, agriculture and tourism sectors will be selected and professional criteria related to those professions will be prepared. The project aims to develop professional standards with the direct involvement of employers and skilled workers and make them helpful for future curriculum development.