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Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Nepal Abdulla Saeed Mubarak Jarwan Al Shamsi paid a courtesy call on the Minister for Labor, Employment and Social Security Sharad Singh Bhandari on Monday.

During the meeting, the two discussed matters concerning the welfare of Nepali migrant workers in the UAE.

Minister Bhandari stressed the need to revise the minimum wage for Nepali workers, proposing a minimum monthly salary of at least 1,000 dirhams. He also called for mandatory provisions of accommodation and food allowances equivalent to 400 dirhams.

In response, Ambassador Al Shamsi welcomed the proposal positively and assured the Minister of his full support in its implementation.

The Ambassador also expressed his interest in the Nepal Government's pilot project introduced for sending females abroad as domestic help.

Minister Bhandari informed him that all internal preparations for the project have been completed, and the deployment process will commence following the final decision from the House of Representatives (HoR) Committee on Industry, Commerce, and the Labour and Consumer Welfare.

Furthermore, Minister Bhandari shared that the Government of Nepal is advancing the digitization of all labor-related services and facilities, hoping for continued cooperation and support from the UAE Government towards that end.

Nepali Congress central member and Education Department head Nain Singh Mahar said that economic indicators have turned positive during the first year of the NC and CPN-UML coalition government.

He, however, said that questions have been raised about the implementation of the seven-point agreement, including good governance and constitutional amendments.

He said so while speaking at an interaction titled “People and Government “organized by the School of Democracy in Kathmandu on Monday.

“Many new policies and regulations have been formulated; lawmaking processes have gained momentum. It has been said that this has made it easier for the businesspersons to do trade,” he mentioned, adding, “Important issues like long-stalled peace process work and amendment of the Citizenship Act have also been finalized.”

According to him, an online system has been developed to make it easier for the service seekers to receive services from government offices. It is itself a great achievement for the country that a politically stable government has been formed, he added.

Leader Mahar said that all these works have shown a ray of hope to the people.

He, however, noted that questions have been raised pertaining to the purpose of government operations, direction of implementation, and overall management.

“The seven-point agreement, including constitutional amendments, reached during the formation of the government a year ago has not been implemented yet,” Mahar said. “The government has not been able to do much in controlling corruption and providing good governance, which the people have been hoping for.”

Mahar is preparing to formally file his candidacy for the post of General Secretary in the 15th General Convention of the Nepali Congress.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has stated that the country's economic indicators have turned positive during the first year of the current government's tenure.

He claimed this via social site today, adding that national development projects have also started gaining momentum during this period.

"We are about to complete one year in government. During this time, economic indicators have turned positive, and national development projects have taken pace," he wrote.

He further added that with the amendment of laws, the culture of working online has been growing. "There are still lots of works to be carried out and the government focus remains firmly on that," he added.

Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak has directed the concerned authorities to investigate the people who travelled to Spain with Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.

On Sunday, the Home Minister directed Home Secretary Gokarnamani Duwadi and Inspector General of Police Deepak Thapa to determine whether the people except those in the official delegation had travelled to Spain during the Prime Minister's recent visit to Spain.

“They have been instructed to investigate whether anyone travelled to Spain on a visit visa apart from the official delegation,” the Home Minister said.

“The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) and the Anti-Human Trafficking Bureau of Nepal Police will be deployed to carry out the investigation. If anyone is found guilty, legal action will be taken in accordance with the law,” he said.

It may be noted that Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli had travelled to Spain on June 28 in the course of attending the Fourth United Nations International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD-4) in Spain held from June 30 to July 3.