The Industrial Training Institute Nepal Pvt. Ltd. in Basundhara, which had been operating the Skills Verification Program (SVP) unilaterally implemented by Saudi Arabia in a way that imposes a financial burden on Nepali workers, was sealed on Wednesday.

The joint monitoring team from the Ministry of Youth, Labour and Social Security, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, the Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT), and the Department of Foreign Employment sealed the Industrial Training Institute.

The monitoring team stated that the Industrial Training Institute was sealed because it had not obtained permission to conduct skills verification. The team also reported that the institute had been issuing skills certification certificates to workers going for foreign employment in violation of the prescribed conditions. The monitoring team clarified that CTEVT is the only government body authorized to grant permission for skills verification.

The Industrial Training Institute had started issuing SVP certificates to workers who paid $50 (7,000 rupees) per person after conducting a three-hour test. Workers without the SVP certificate are not allowed to apply for a visa at the Saudi Embassy in Kathmandu.

Previously, Saudi Arabia had planned to implement the program from Asar 3 (mid-June). However, after manpower entrepreneurs vandalized the Industrial Training Institute, which had been given the responsibility to implement the SVP, the program was immediately halted.

Saudi Arabia has introduced skills verification for five occupations: loading and unloading, porter, cart operator, and construction sector workers. It has not been clearly specified which jobs within the construction sector are included.

The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development of Saudi Arabia has stated that the skills certification program has been implemented to obtain a labor visa for Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has said that it is conducting skills certification to grant professional recognition.

On Asar 12 (late June), Minister for Youth, Labour and Employment Ramji Yadav met with Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to Nepal, Fahad Mohammad M. Al-Meneikhir, and requested an immediate suspension of the skills certification process for Nepali workers. The government had sent a diplomatic note to Saudi Arabia, stating that the program should only be implemented on the basis of bilateral consultation and requesting that the skills verification program not be advanced immediately. However, without receiving a response, the skills verification process was started in Nepal.

According to a notice issued by the Saudi Embassy, workers must first register online on Saudi Arabia’s ‘Professional Certification Portal’ for skills verification. Only after registration can they pay the fee in dollars via Visa or MasterCard. Applicants must select their occupation from among those available under the program.

According to Saudi Arabia’s notice, workers will be given up to three attempts for the skills verification test. If they fail, they will not be allowed to go to Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has stated that this program has been implemented in all source countries.

The Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies has stated that the skills verification certificate is mandatory for those going to Saudi Arabia. “The government must immediately open the way for Nepali workers to go to Saudi Arabia without skills verification through diplomatic efforts. The Nepal government should always think in the workers’ best interest and control costs,” said the association’s president, Dik Bahadur Khatri. “The environment for going to Saudi Arabia should be restored to what it was before.”