Kathmandu, January 7

Amid criticism over the failure of the Prime Minister Employment Programme (PMEP), the new leadership at the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security is preparing to revive the programme and has vowed to employ over 60,000 youths in the ongoing fiscal year.

Under PMEP, the government will provide a minimum of 100 days of employment to 60,000 unemployed youths, as per the ministry.

Speaking at a press meet today, Minister for Labour, Employment and Security, Rameshwar Raya Yadav, vowed employment for 60,000 youths under PMEP, which was introduced last year for the purpose of providing employment to the unemployed youths at the grassroots level.

Yadav further informed that the government will soon allocate a budget for the PMEP for next fiscal year which means that the government will give continuity to the programme.

He also informed that the government will provide unemployment allowance if the government fails to provide them jobs.

The minister also said that the government was aware about the need to bring in remittance through the banking system, provide skills to Nepali migrant workers before they go to foreign countries, and manage the foreign employment sector as a whole.

Minister Yadav said the ministry will give continuity to work plan prepared by former labour minister Gokarna Bista and if needed will introduce new working methods.

Last year, 177,000 unemployed youths had benefited from the PMEP. For the programme, the government had allotted Rs 3.5 billion. Similarly, the government has allocated Rs 5.1 billion for employing 60,000 youths in the current fiscal year.

The government has identified agriculture, cooperatives, livestock, development, energy, irrigation, drinking water and sanitation, forest and environment and tourism promotion as working sectors for PMEP.

Roads and transportation, education, reconstruction, national pride projects, information and telecommunication, industry and health sectors have also been identified.