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Heavily reliant connected idiosyncratic remittances from West Asia for its economical recovery, Sri Lanka has expressed “grave concern” implicit the escalating struggle successful the region.
Migrant workers sent a grounds $8 cardinal successful remittances past year, boosting overseas reserves and helping betterment from the country’s 2022 economical crash. A full of 3,10,915 Sri Lankans near for overseas employment successful 2025, according to Central Bank data, moving chiefly successful home service, caregiving, construction, and agriculture. The United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia were the largest sources of remittances, on with the United Kingdom, which included funds routed done different countries.
“Sri Lanka expresses its sedate interest regarding the caller hostilities successful the West Asian region,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment & Tourism said connected May 6, 2026. Pointing to a ample Sri Lankan expatriate colonisation whose information is simply a “matter of paramount concern,” the Ministry called for “maximum restraint” from each parties, without naming immoderate enactment to the conflict.
Since precocious February this year, erstwhile the United States-Israel harvester launched its warfare connected Iran, triggering a bid of retaliatory attacks, Sri Lanka’s migrant workers person been surviving successful precarity. Even so, they contributed $815 cardinal successful remittances successful March 2026, signaling a year-on-year maturation of 17.5%. “Cumulatively, remittances during the archetypal 4th of the twelvemonth recorded a notable maturation of 26.5% connected a year-on-year basis,” the Central Bank said. Despite tensions and sedate risks successful the West Asian region, workers’ remittances successful this play acold exceeded net from the exports and tourism sectors, 2 different cardinal overseas speech earners.
‘Commendable outcomes’
In April 2026, the International Monetary Fund, which steers the island’s betterment programme, including done painful austerity measures, noted that Sri Lanka’s “ambitious betterment agenda” continued to present “commendable outcomes”. It pointed to 5% maturation successful 2025, affirmative inflation, and an summation successful gross authoritative reserves to $7 cardinal astatine end-March 2026.
Although hostilities successful West Asia are impacting Sri Lanka “directly and indirectly” — such arsenic substance terms hikes, soaring aerial summons prices — they person not affected remittances from workers, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment Arun Hemachandra told The Hindu. “We sincerely anticipation determination is stableness successful the [West Asian] portion and workers tin proceed going overseas. We besides anticipation determination are nary immense occupation losses similar we saw during the pandemic,” helium said. Sri Lankan missions successful the portion person been instructed to connection much enactment and exigency assistance to workers done helplines. “We are besides engaging intimately with our multilateral partners specified arsenic the International Labour Organization and the International Organization for Migration,” helium said, adding that the authorities was trying its “level best” to motivate workers overseas and those seeking employment overseas.
Sharp emergence successful applications
The Anura Kumara Dissanayake medication aims to nonstop 4,00,000 workers overseas this year, continuing its predecessor government’s argumentation of encouraging labour migration to bolster overseas reserves amid the tentative recovery. With the struggle successful West Asia persisting, however, it remains unclear if it whitethorn beryllium “practically possible” to conscionable that target, the Deputy Minister said. As of May 5, arsenic galore arsenic 82,302 radical person registered for overseas employment, officials said. Since the 2022 economical crisis, Sri Lanka has seen a crisp summation successful passport applications arsenic families effort sending a subordinate abroad, hoping their net volition assistance with the rising surviving costs astatine home.
Asked wherefore tens of thousands of workers are scrambling for jobs overseas, leaving down their families and enduring exploitative moving conditions, portion the authorities claims it has stabilised the economy, Mr. Hemachandra said that authorities was presently focusing connected “macroeconomic stability”. On the heels of a sedate economical clang and dollar shortage, the state whitethorn person to promote overseas employment “in the abbreviated term”, helium said, insisting this was not the government’s semipermanent strategy. “When the microeconomic information becomes normal, taxable to the macroeconomic information becoming normal, we judge determination would beryllium a alteration successful this trend. People would opt for overseas employment not owing to a crisis, but arsenic a substance of choice,” helium added, suggesting that the ongoing betterment programme prioritised macroeconomic fundamentals implicit people’s regular hardships.
Rights defenders and labour activists besides constituent to the evident contradiction successful the authorities continuing to nonstop workers to Israel portion pledging enactment for the Palestinian cause. Some 30,000 Sri Lankan workers are successful Israel, employed successful construction, arsenic caregivers, and successful agriculture.
‘No contradiction’
Queried astir the government’s position, Mr. Hemachandra said Sri Lanka has historically stood for the Palestinian cause. “Our enactment [Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna - JVP oregon People’s Liberation Front] has besides ever been successful solidarity with Palestine,” helium said. Pointing to Sri Lanka’s past diplomatic relations with Israel and the opportunities for workers, wherever the “pay is precocious and moving conditions are good”, helium said: “This authorities astatine nary constituent thought of stopping those things… due to the fact that already galore radical were connected the waiting database and hoping to go. After we came to power, we addressed concerns of irregularities and fraudulent practices and streamlined the process. On the different hand, we separated our Free Palestine basal and our diplomatic narration with Israel arsenic 2 antithetic things. I deliberation immoderate state should person that choice. And erstwhile instrumentality the accidental to nonstop workers to Israel, that does not alteration our basal connected Palestine,” helium said, adding: “There is nary contradiction successful that.”
Meanwhile, authorities are besides exploring “non-Middle Eastern” markets specified arsenic Romania and South Korea and focusing connected skilled migration. “When we make much skilled migration programmes, I americium definite that radical who spell for those jobs volition get backmost successful a precise tenable period. Then they could lend to the Sri Lankan system straight portion being successful the country,” helium said.
