A National Challenge — and a National Solution
Every year, thousands of Sri Lankan men and women leave their families to work abroad. They go to the Middle East, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea, and beyond — in search of better incomes and better lives. But many of them face a serious challenge before they even arrive at their destination. They do not have the English skills their employer expects. This puts them at risk — of misunderstanding instructions, of being passed over for better roles, and in some cases, of workplace exploitation.

In 2013, three organisations came together to address this challenge directly.
The Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and HLS — Headway Learning Solutions — partnered to launch Sri Lanka’s largest Multimedia English Language Training Centre at Rathmalana. This was not simply the opening of a new classroom. It was the deployment of a proven, technology-based English Language Lab solution to a real national challenge — helping Sri Lankan workers become job-ready before they stepped on the plane.