Sri Lanka has seen a brain drain after it declared bankruptcy in 2022. Although many young people have fled for better opportunities abroad, some told DW they want to help rebuild the country.
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00:00I don't want to sit somewhere in a very cosy life and still my mind will be thinking about
00:08this untapped potential and what I could have done for that. I never wanted to leave this
00:12country because I have endebted to this country.
00:24Limited opportunities, political instability and higher salaries abroad are pushing many
00:29Sri Lankans to go overseas. Since the island nation went bankrupt in 2022, many have left
00:35the country to work or study abroad. While immigration is not new to Sri Lanka, the current
00:41wave has led to a significant brain drain. In 2022, a record 311,056 have left to work
00:48abroad, an all-time high. But some, like Arul Kogilan, are determined to stay. Despite being
00:55a medical graduate, he is now getting into politics to try to change the country.
01:24Sri Lankans don't have to pay for school from kindergarten to university. Many want
01:29to make sure the country benefits from the free education they received. Some who have
01:34left, plan to come back and help rebuild the country.
01:50I have to come back. I need to come back. I need to work together. I need to work together
02:03Reminding myself that I got all these opportunities because of all this free education in Sri
02:09Lanka and I should be here and serve the country.
02:14However, the government is encouraging immigration to boost foreign remittances and sustain the
02:19domestic economy.
02:20In any country, the human asset is more valuable than all the assets. Therefore, in Sri Lanka,
02:26also, we have 23 million, about 23 million people in the small, small nation. And our
02:31real asset is the people, not other resources. When the people are moving from this country
02:36to other country, so the brine drains, yes, obviously brine drains, there should be impact.
02:40But as long term, when you look at that, so those people definitely become like an investor
02:46for this country. So then we can have trustworthy investors.
02:50But many say that the Sri Lankan government should create more opportunities domestically
02:55rather than exporting young people.