Is a Unique Culture of Labour Migration Emerging in the Island Nations of Asia？

International audienceIn the space of three decades, three countries, the Philippines, Indonesia and Sri Lanka have become the main exporters of labor on a worldwide scale. Are island nations, such as the two archipelagos of the Philippines, Indonesia and the island of Sri Lanka, predisposed to the current large exodus of female migrant workers? Another record shared by these three countries: the very high percentage of women making up these migrant workers. This paper will analyze the principal factors of geography, population and the international labour market that explain this massive exportation of female migrant workers together with the state policies that are actively encouraging female migration. Beyond the determining geographical factor and the need to leave an overpopulated land to earn a living, we should indeed take into consideration the presence of a political will that contributed to the formation of a system of migration which is possibly particular to the island nations of Asia