After no Nepali candidate was able to clear basic language and skill tests directed by the Japan Foundation, the Japanese government has begun taking applications for nursing caregivers for the year 2021.
A couple of months back, a total of 497 Nepalis competing to go to Japan to fill in as nursing caregivers had showed up for the Japanese language test. While just 56 had managed to breeze through the assessment, every one of them had failed the consequent work-related skill test.
According to the Foundation, it will conduct examinations for 1,000 job applicants this month and 1,300 in March. The exam dates for this month have been scheduled on 14, 15, 16, 21, 22, 23, 28 and 29. Similarly, the dates in March have been set for 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19.
The Foundation informed that the exams will be computer-based and each examinee should pay Rs 2,500 as registration fee. The examinees’ writing, vocabulary, and typing abilities will be checked in the test. Full marks in the exams will be 250 and job-seekers will need to score a minimum of 200 marks to pass the assessments.
The foundation conducted first phase of tests in Nepal, Philippines, Cambodia, Indonesia and Mongolia last year. However, the number of job aspirants who breezed through the tests from different nations has not been revealed at this point.
The joint secretary at Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security, Umesh Dhungana, said that the government had held talks with the Japanese government and requested them to simplify the test format for Nepali migrants, taking into account that all the applicants had failed the tests last year. However, the establishment authorities informed that the test method has not been changed.
On March 25, the government had signed a Memorandum of Co-operation (MoC) with Japan, making it easier for Nepali workers to travel to the world’s third biggest economy for work in 14 employment categories at zero expense. According to the MoC, only applicants who pass both language and skill tests will be eligible for employment in Japan.
The MoC also states that the Japanese government will hire Nepali migrant workers in care-giving, building cleaning, manufacturing of food and beverages, food service industry, machine parts and tooling and industrial machinery.
Other sectors where workers will be hired are shipbuilding and ship machinery, automobile repair and maintenance, aviation, accommodation, agriculture, fishery and aquaculture, electronics, information and construction industries.
