In the past two decades, the rising wave of foreign migration from Nepal has signaled a serious and complex crisis. Migration is no longer just a matter of laborers seeking employment; it is a clear sign that the nation’s potential, labor, skills, and future are being drained away.
In 2001 (2058 B.S.), around 750,000 Nepalis were living abroad. By 2021 (2078 B.S.), this number had exceeded 2.2 million—approximately 8 percent of the total population. These figures show that we have reached a crossroads where the sustainable future of the country is being stifled on foreign soil.
The nature of migration has also changed. Previously, there was a strong flow of workers heading to Gulf countries. Now, in the name of education, the trend has shifted toward countries like Australia, the USA, Canada, Japan, and European nations. Migration, once male-dominated, now shows significant participation from women as well. Their involvement in domestic work, nursing, hospitality, and other service sectors has notably increased.
Several factors drive this mass migration: unemployment, distrust in the education system, political instability, corruption, and the absence of a dignified life. The youth have a clear perspective—“Hard work alone isn’t enough here; there are no opportunities.” The fact that hundreds of thousands of Nepalis are compelled to leave behind their families, villages, and country raises serious questions about our state mechanisms.
Although the money earned abroad has kept the national economy somewhat alive through remittance, this long-term dependency is dangerous. Foreign income may build houses, pay off loans, and fund children’s education, but it does not build a self-reliant nation. Instead, it has left villages empty of youth, neglected agriculture, and fractured social structures.
Along with increasing migration, the social impacts are becoming more alarming. Children are growing up without parents, marital and family relationships are becoming strained, and Nepalese traditions and culture are at risk of fading away.
The government’s focus still remains on “sending abroad,” rather than “bringing back and utilizing.” There is a lack of policy to harness the skills, experience, and capital of returning migrants. Unless an environment is created to channel them into entrepreneurship and agricultural production, the flow of people leaving the country will not stop.
Today’s migration is not just a “brain drain,” it’s a “hope drain.” The workforce, having lost hope within the country, is seeking a foundation for life abroad.
It is time the government realizes that going abroad is not a solution, but a crisis. By introducing new strategies and investments in education, employment, entrepreneurship, agriculture, and infrastructure, efforts must be made to retain youth within the country. If not, tomorrow’s Nepal may no longer remain in Nepal.
