ABSTRACT
Since the late 1970s the possibility of going to the Middle East has provided some economic breathing space in the shanty. In the densely populated slum areas of Colombo, the phenomenon spread quickly with the help of active recruiting agents who promised salaries that far exceeded the level any of the household members could possibly achieve in Sri Lanka Once this traffic started in an area a vast number of women left for the Gulf after a fairly short while. In 1980 Alutmahawatha was selected by the Norwegian nongovernmental organizations Redd Barna as the target of a housing scheme cum community development programme. Vestwyke Avenue was selected in 1983. The largest share of the Hambantota sample was picked in Muslim fishing communities in the township of Hambantota itself. The township of Hambantota is the largest densely populated area near the large eastern national park of Yale.
