The World Development Report titled ´Job´ released by the World Bank´s Nepal Country Office here today emphasizes on the need of creating more job opportunities globally. It states that six billion jobs should be created in the coming 15 years.[break]
Addressing the report-releasing programme, Tahseen Sayed, World Bank Country Manager for Nepal, expressed the belief that the political transition in Nepal would end soon leading to more job opportunities and increased economic activities.
Stressing the need of prioritizing entrepreneurship development, vocational education and women´s empowerment, she appreciated the diligence and the commitment to work among the Nepali women and pointed out the need of utilizing these traits to increasing productivity and growth.
Former finance minister Madhukar Shumsher Rana said that the women were having to shoulder double burden of work at home and work in the field and that their source of income had shrunk for lack of commercialization of agriculture.
He suggested that poverty could be lessened to a certain extent in the rural areas through the maximum utilization of the forest products.
The report´s author, Jesko Hentchel, highlighting the main points of the document, said that the agriculture sector was the means for economic prosperity of Nepal and also the sector for creating adequate job opportunities.
Hentchel, an economist, suggested the government and the sides concerned to pay attention to this fact.
Another economist, Arpita Nepal, pointed out to the lack of business environment in the country due to the slackness in the rule of law, the loss of job opportunities due to the shrinking of business and industries and the declining investor´s confidence for lack of investment and industry-friendly Labour Act.
CEO of Nepal Banking Training Academy, Sanjeev Subba, warned that the country itself could be bereft of youths in future if job opportunities were not generated for them within the country.
As per the report, globally 1.6 billion people work on salary or wage basis while 1.5 billion people are engaged in agriculture and self-employment.
The report also states that 21 million people are working as forced labourers while 620.1 million people are illiterate and do not work.
Likewise, the report states that 90 million people have gone abroad in search of work while 115 million children are working under hazardous conditions.
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