Mass scale Sri Lankan labour export starting in late 1970s has become the main source of foreign exchange earnings. With over 250,000 persons migrating annually and the total estimated labour migrants from Sri Lanka being 1.8 million, labour migrants will continue to be an economically vital sector. Women migrants' proportion which peaked to 64% in 2003 and regressed to 52% by 2009, continues to be a vital group economically and socially as most women migrants have left children behind. In the absence of mother, the father, grandmother or close family relative becomes the substitute carer, resulting in children being move out of the family home or the substitute carer/s moving in, thus altering family composition. Left-behind children bear the brunt of subsequent alterations in family functioning, sometimes facing abuse and neglect. In addition to neglect, emotional and physical abuse, sexual abuse by fathers or male relatives has been reported. This is worsened by inadequate quality time spent by fathers with these children, which would otherwise have dampened effects of the mother's absence. Studies show that children left behind by migrating mothers have poorer mental health status compared to those whose mothers are employed in Sri Lanka. Source: Left-behind children of migrant women: Difficulties encountered and strengths demonstrated