Gulf (UAE · Saudi · Qatar)
Labour-migration pipeline accounts for 55–60% of SL workers' remittances; Hill Country domestic-worker pipeline is the most consequential channel.
CBSL estimates ~1.9–2.1m Sri Lankans work abroad, largest concentration in GCC (Qatar, UAE, Saudi, Kuwait). Hill Country Tamil women disproportionately represented in domestic-worker migration. Gulf remittances are SL's primary forex pillar of recovery.
- 2024Confirmed · Tier-A source
ILO documented continuing kafala-linked arrangements for SL domestic workers in GCC states.
- Jun 2025Confirmed · Tier-A source
SL Parliament Q&A confirmed continued large-scale deployment with minimum wage and conditions issues.
Gulf labour dependency is the most significant structural lever on Hill Country Tamil communities — remittances substitute for absent state welfare. Any Gulf-state restriction on SL worker deployment would cause severe economic shock to communities already structurally marginalised. For the NE, Gulf-charity flows into eastern Muslim communities create dynamics distinct from Tamil-Hindu NE and may widen communal fault lines.
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