ECONOMYNEXT – Migration of skilled Sri Lankan workers could slow the recovery of the island nation’s bankrupted economy, Central Bank officials warned.
More Sri Lankans seek greener pastures and are going abroad for foreign jobs since the island nation declared sovereign debt default in 2022.
A record 312,836 people left the country last year, surpassing the previous record high of 310,953 hit in 2022, data from Sri Lanka Foreign Employment Bureau showed.
Chandranath Amarasekara, Central Bank’s Assistant Governor said they have included the brain drain as possible downside risk that could slow the economic growth in this year’s economic projections.
“This is based on the available information we have made this assumption on possible risk,” Amarasekara told reporters in Colombo after releasing the Monetary Policy Report for the last three monetary policy meetings.
“There is a lot of anecdotal evidence from all sectors of the economy that they are complaining that many skilled workers are leaving the country.”
“That will have a severe impact on the economy. We are trying to grow the economy. This could affect some of the sectors in the economy unless we are able to get some of those people back.”
Top officials from many private banks have said cream of their staff has already left the country and they are facing daunting tasks in the skilled labour force.
S. Jegajeevan, the director at the Central Bank’s Economic Research Department said the country is lacking skilled middle level staff.
“That could have an impact on productivity because the junior level (staff) has to catch up with the speed. Until such time, there will be an impact on the labour productivity and that could impact on the growth recovery momentum,” she said. (Colombo/February 14/2025)