Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling and Psychosocial Support – Academic Year 2024/25 (Weekday Batch) Field Visit 18th and 19th July 2025

The purpose of this field tour was to investigate the Psychosocial Impact of Labour Migration to the Middle East on Families and Communities in Rural Sri Lanka, with a case study centered on the Rabewa and Nuwaragam Palatha (Paniyankadawala) Central Divisional Secretariats, in collaboration with the SAFE Foundation, Anuradhapura.

It examines the problem from multiple perspectives: at the individual level, the psychological and social effects on both pre-departure and returnee migrant workers; and at the family level, the psychological, physical, and social consequences experienced by spouses, children, and elderly caregivers.

Students were also able to identify the perspectives of government officials at the Divisional Secretariat, Anuradhapura, and community leaders, examining their responsibilities in assisting migrant families and developing policies, services, and community-level responses to labour migration.