Foreign jobs: 2024 marks record departures
The highest number of departures for foreign employment in the history of Sri Lanka was reported in the year 2024, which was 312,836, according to the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE).
The SLBFE said that previously the highest number of foreign employment departures was reported in 2022, while in the last six years from 2019 to 2024, a total of 1.3 million people have left for overseas jobs.
In 2024, a total of 185,162 men and 127,674 women are reported to have left for foreign jobs.
The highest number of Sri Lankan workers left for Kuwait (77,546), while 51,550 left for the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
In comparison to previous years, a high number of Sri Lankans left for foreign jobs in South Korea (7098), Israel (9665), and Japan (8665).
The Foreign Exchange earned through migrant workers has also shown a significant increase in 2024, with US$ 6462 million reported as of the end of November.
2025-01-01
