KEY FINDINGS
External migration for employment is an important livelihood strategy in Nepal. A significant part of the population, an estimated 30% in 2011, is heavily or fully dependent on the resulting remittance flow for their basic needs.
The main recorded impact of the earthquakes on external migration has been the decrease in the number of people leaving the country, while few migrants residing abroad returned. Foreign migration has been further impacted by the recent introduction of a zero-cost migration policy, which obliges employers in seven main destination countries to provide air tickets and visas to Nepali migrants. To support those affected by the earthquakes, external migrants increased the volume of remittances to Nepal in the direct aftermath, with an estimated 35% increase in remittance flows in the months following the earthquakes as compared to last year.
Although the decrease in external migration increases the availability of labour required to reconstruct houses and infrastructure within Nepal, it will deprive a part of the population of an important source of income. If foreign migration does not return to pre-crisis levels, an increase in the overall poverty rate is likely.