Covid-19 results in massive decline in labour migration numbers, with no immediate hopes of recovery

The number of labour permits issued to migrant workers has slumped to a new low owing to the pandemic, but available jobs are likely to even fewer, labour migration experts warn.

The Covid-19-induced lockdown has resulted in a loss of jobs at home, but this is also set to reduce the number of Nepalis going abroad for work, which experts say could hit the country’s economy hard, as it will massively curtail remittance inflows.