From Kuwait to Korea: the Diversification of Sri Lankan Labour Migration

Abstract

The author attempts to analyse the changing trends in labour migration in Sri Lanka, in terms of socio economics, household remittances, occupations, gender, and migration destinations. While female domestic labour to the Middle East dominated the migration scenario up to the mid 1990s, there was a change in destination from the Gulf region to some European countries such as Italy, Cyprus, and Korea, in East Asia. The percentage of male migrants and semi professionals also increased with the increased construction activities and newly acquired oil wealth in some oil rich countries. While women continued to outnumber men as labour migrants, there was a surge in the number of male migrants during the last ten years, where a doubling of numbers was seen. The effect of these changes is analysed in the context given earlier, through an exhaustive survey carried out in a selected area in Sri Lanka.