Kathmandu. From August 8 to 12, 1998, in coordination with the United Nations, the World Youth Conference was organized in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, with the participation of ministers looking after youth affairs of 140 countries of the world.

Since 2000, International Youth Day has been celebrated every year on August 12 as an important day for youth empowerment, awareness and debate.

In this context, for 2025, the United Nations has set the slogan ‘Local Youth Action for the Sustainable Development Goals and Beyond’, if

In Nepal… The political situation in the country has forced the youth to go abroad as the day is being celebrated across the country with the theme of sustainable development and golden future essence: participation of local youth as the basis of prosperity.

Sanjay Naharki, who came from Palungtar in Gorkha to fly to Japan at Tribhuvan International Airport with Nepal’s national flag around his neck, said that if it was good in the country, he would not have gone abroad.

He also complained that the government did not understand the compulsion to leave home, family and friends and go abroad. Lilaraj Sunar of Makawanpur was waving goodbye to his son Rakesh Sunar, 25.

According to him, I am sending my son to make him a slave of another, the state should open industries and factories in the country and create an environment for the youth to live in the country and bring the condition of working and eating.

Rajib Karki, a resident of Likhutamakoshi in Ramechhap, was leaving with his two children and wife while he was on his way to Saudi Arabia for foreign employment. He said that the compulsion to leave children, wife, family and go abroad is the government’s right policy and not creating employment conditions in the country.

As the number of youths going for foreign employment is increasing, there is a growing concern that Nepal will be a country of old age. Around 2,000 youths are going abroad every day for employment due to lack of employment opportunities in the country.

According to the Department of Foreign Employment, a total of 839,266 youths had obtained labour permit to go for foreign employment in the last fiscal year 2081-82 BS.

On an average, 69,939 people have taken permission every month and 2,300 per day.

This is the highest ever for foreign employment. In the last fiscal year, 60 per cent of those who went for foreign employment after obtaining labour permit took a new labour permit and 40 per cent took a re-labour permit.

The 10 major labour destination countries for Nepali workers are the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Malaysia, Romania, Japan, South Korea, Croatia and Bahrain respectively.

According to the Department, last year, the highest number of workers went to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and 69 countries including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, South Korea, Japan and Malaysia, Bahrain and Europe with institutional and individual labour permits. ।

Photo: Nepal Photo Library