1993 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1993 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Area
total area: 65,610 km2 land area: 64,740 km2 comparative area: slightly larger than West Virginia
Climate
tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)
Coastline
1,340 km
Environment
occasional cyclones, tornados; deforestation; soil erosion
International disputes
none
Irrigated land
5,600 km2 (1989 est.)
Land boundaries
0 km
Land use
arable land: 16% permanent crops: 17% meadows and pastures: 7% forest and woodland: 37% other: 23%
Location
South Asia, 29 km southeast of India across the Palk Strait in the Indian Ocean
Map references
Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims
contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or the edge of continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
Natural resources
limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay
Note
strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes
Terrain
mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior
People and Society
Birth rate
18.71 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate
5.84 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Ethnic divisions
Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda 1%
Infant mortality rate
22.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Labor force
6.6 million by occupation: agriculture 45.9%, mining and manufacturing 13.3%, trade and transport 12.4%, services and other 28.4% (1985 est.)
Languages
Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18% note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken by about 10% of the population
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 71.51 years male: 68.94 years female: 74.21 years (1993 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1990) total population: 88% male: 93% female: 84%
Nationality
noun: Sri Lankan(s) adjective: Sri Lankan
Net migration rate
-1.81 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Population
17,838,190 (July 1993 est.) note: since the outbreak of hostilities between the government and armed Tamil separatists in the mid 1980s, several hundred thousand Tamil civilians have fled the island; as of late 1992, nearly 115,000 were housed in refugee camps in south India, another 95,000 lived outside the Indian camps, and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought political asylum in the West; fewer than 10,000 Tamils have been successfully repatriated to Sri Lanka
Population growth rate
1.11% (1993 est.)
Religions
Buddhist 69%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 8%
Total fertility rate
2.13 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Government
Administrative divisions
8 provinces; Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western
Capital
Colombo
Chief of State
President Dingiri Banda WIJETUNGA (since 7 May 1993)
Constitution
31 August 1978
Digraph
CE
Diplomatic representation in US
chief of mission: Ambassador Ananda GURUGE chancery: 2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 483-4025 through 4028 consulate general: New York
Executive branch
president, prime minister, Cabinet
FAX
[94] (1) 43-73-45
Flag
yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other panel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding a sword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border that goes around the entire flag and extends between the two panels
Head of Government
Prime Minister Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (since 7 May 1993)
Independence
4 February 1948 (from UK)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court
Legal system
a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch
unicameral Parliament
Member of
AsDB, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-24, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Names
conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka conventional short form: Sri Lanka former: Ceylon
National holiday
Independence and National Day, 4 February (1948)
Other political or pressure groups
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and other smaller Tamil separatist groups; Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP or People's Liberation Front and several other radical chauvinist Sinhalese groups); Buddhist clergy; Sinhalese Buddhist lay groups; labor unions
Parliament
last held 15 February 1989 (next to be held by NA February 1995); results - UNP 51%, SLFP 32%, SLMC 4%, TULF 3%, USA 3%, EROS 3%, MEP 1%, other 3%; seats - (225 total) UNP 125, SLFP 67, other 33
Political parties and leaders
United National Party (UNP), Dingiri Banda WIJETUNGA; Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), Sirimavo BANDARANAIKE; Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), M. H. M. ASHRAFF; All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC), Kumar PONNAMBALAM; People's United Front (MEP, or Mahajana Eksath Peramuna), Dinesh GUNAWARDENE; Eelam Democratic Front (EDF), Edward SEBASTIAN PILLAI; Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), leader NA; Eelam Revolutionary Organization of Students (EROS), Velupillai BALAKUMARAN; New Socialist Party (NSSP, or Nava Sama Samaja Party), Vasudeva NANAYAKKARA; Lanka Socialist Party/Trotskyite (LSSP, or Lanka Sama Samaja Party), Colin R. DE SILVA; Sri Lanka People's Party (SLMP, or Sri Lanka Mahajana Party), Ossie ABEYGUNASEKERA; Communist Party, K. P. SILVA; Communist Party/Beijing (CP/B), N. SHANMUGATHASAN; Democratic United National Front (DUNF), Lalith ATHULATHMUDALI and Gamini DISSANAYAKE note: the United Socialist Alliance (USA) includes the NSSP, LSSP, SLMP, CP/M, and CP/B
President
last held 19 December 1988 (next to be held NA December 1994); results - Ranasinghe PREMADASA (UNP) 50%, Sirimavo BANDARANAIKE (SLFP) 45%, other 5%; note - following the assassination of President PREMADASA on 1 May 1993, Prime Minister WIJETUNGA became acting president; on 7 May 1993, he was confirmed by a vote of Parliament to finish out the term of the assassinated president
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Type
republic
US diplomatic representation
chief of mission: Ambassador Teresita C. SCHAFFER embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3 mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo telephone: [94] (1) 44-80-07
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for 26% of GDP and nearly half of labor force; most important staple crop is paddy rice; other field crops - sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseeds, roots, spices; cash crops - tea, rubber, coconuts; animal products - milk, eggs, hides, meat; not self-sufficient in rice production
Budget
revenues $2.0 billion; expenditures $3.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (1992)
Currency
1 Sri Lankan rupee (SLRe) = 100 cents
Economic aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $1.0 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1980-89), $5.1 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $169 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $369 million
Electricity
1,300,000 kW capacity; 3,600 million kWh produced, 200 kWh per capita (1992)
Exchange rates
Sri Lankan rupees (SLRes) per US$1 - 46.342 (January 1993), 43.687 (1992), 41.372 (1991), 40.063 (1990), 36.047 (1989), 31.807 (1988)
Exports
$2.0 billion (f.o.b., 1991) commodities: textiles and garments, teas, petroleum products, coconuts, rubber, other agricultural products, gems and jewelry, marine products, graphite partners: US 27.4%, Germany, Japan, UK, Belgium, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China
External debt
$5.7 billion (1991 est.)
Fiscal year
calendar year
Imports
$3.1 billion (c.i.f., 1991) commodities: food and beverages, textiles and textile materials, petroleum and petroleum products, machinery and equipment partners: Japan, Iran, US 5.7%, India, Taiwan, Singapore, Germany, UK
Industrial production
growth rate 7% (1991 est.); accounts for 20% of GDP
Industries
processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco, clothing
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
10% (1992)
National product
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $7.75 billion (1992 est.)
National product per capita
$440 (1992 est.)
National product real growth rate
4.5% (1992 est.)
Overview
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing dominate the economy, employing half of the labor force and accounting for one quarter of GDP. The plantation crops of tea, rubber, and coconuts provide about one-third of export earnings. The economy has been plagued by high rates of unemployment since the late 1970s. Economic growth, which has been depressed by ethnic unrest, accelerated in 1991-92 as domestic conditions began to improve and conditions for foreign investment brightened.
Unemployment rate
15% (1991 est.)
Communications
Airports
total: 14 usable: 13 with permanent-surface runways: 12 with runways over 3,659 m: with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 8
Highways
75,749 km total (1990); 27,637 km paved (mostly bituminous treated), 32,887 km crushed stone or gravel, 14,739 km improved earth or unimproved earth; several thousand km of mostly unmotorable tracks (1988 est.)
Inland waterways
430 km; navigable by shallow-draft craft
Merchant marine
27 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 276,074 GRT/443,266 DWT; includes 12 cargo, 6 refrigerated cargo, 3 container, 3 oil tanker, 3 bulk
Pipelines
crude oil and petroleum products 62 km (1987)
Ports
Colombo, Trincomalee
Railroads
1,948 km total (1990); all 1.868-meter broad gauge; 102 km double track; no electrification; government owned
Telecommunications
very inadequate domestic service, good international service; 114,000 telephones (1982); broadcast stations - 12 AM, 5 FM, 5 TV; submarine cables extend to Indonesia and Djibouti; 2 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth stations
Military and Security
Branches
Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Force
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $365 million, 4.7% of GDP (1992)
Manpower availability
males age 15-49 4,779,221; fit for military service 3,730,737; reach military age (18) annually 178,032 (1993 est.)