ABSTRACT
This final chapter pulls together the component threads of analysis presented throughout the course of the book to argue that, for Sri Lanka, temporary labour migration has amounted to an experience of migration-underdevelopment. It summarises the main theoretical departures this argument takes from prevailing migration-development discourse, emphasising that a combination of multiscalar analysis, attention to contextually specific practices and a rethinking of remittance capital have facilitated conclusions starkly at odds with the triple-win thesis. It concludes by reflecting on the disconnect between the policy rhetoric and available evidence surrounding the relationship between temporary labour migration and economic development, with a view to contextualising the real challenges that lie ahead for Sri Lanka and other ‘remittance economies’ trapped in a cycle of non-inclusive development.
