Ministry of Commerce And Supplies - Enhanced Integrated ...

N T I S201014) Labour ServicesBackgroundTable 2.46Attractive Markets for TourismAttractive markets for TourismTop 10 - Weighted index for size and growthTourism expenditure Average annualCountryRank(US$ billion, 2008) growth (2000-2008)1 Germany 91 8%2 Saudi Arabia 6 81%3 USA 80 3%4 UK 69 9%5 France 43 13%6 Iran 9 43%7 China 36 16%8 Russian Federation 25 16%9 Italy 31 10%10 Ukraine 4 35%Source: Based on UNWTO World Tourism Barometer, October 2009.Over 1.5 million Nepalese are currently working abroad, with remittances in 2009 estimated at US$2.7billion. This makes labour services by far the largest foreign exchange earner of the Nepalese economy. As acomparison, revenues from tourism are US$352 million, and all goods export in 2008 was only around US$1billion. Remittances are 17 per cent of GDP, one of the highest shares in the world. 105Temporary migration has a long history in Nepal. 106 Previously limited to the British army and the Indian army,migration has now spread to more than 100 countries. Additionally, people are at liberty to go to any countryaround the world on their individual effort. Unlike the history of Nepalese male workers going abroad, thehistory of women migrant workers started only after the promulgation of the Foreign Employment Act 1985,but most migrant workers are still men.Most Nepalese working abroad are low-skilled and therefore earn relatively low salaries, typically less thanUS$200 a month. Transaction costs are high and could cost 25 per cent of the salary earned over a two-yearperiod.As noted in the previous chapter, from an export perspective, what is relevant are remittances from temporarymigrant workers. Transfers from Nepalese that are permanent overseas residents are not exports. Balance ofPayments (BoP) data do not distinguish between the two types of transfer. However, in the case of Nepal, itcan be assumed that a great majority of BoP transfers are from temporary migrant workers.105Nepal ranks 14 th in the world in the share of remittances in GDP (World Bank, 2007 data).106The tradition of Nepalese youth going for foreign employment can be traced back to the early 19th century, when the East India Companystarted recruiting Nepalese youth in the army. Since then, the Nepalese people have continuously been engaged in foreign employment.94NEPAL TRADE INTEGRATION STRATEGY 2010BACKGROUND REPORT