2000 Edition

Background

Occupied by the Portuguese in the 16th century and the Dutch in the 17th century, the island was ceded to the British in 1802. As Ceylon it became independent in 1948; its name was changed in 1972. Tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted in violence in the mid-1980s. Tens of thousands have died in an ethnic war that continues to fester.

Area

land

64,740 sq km

total

65,610 sq km

water

870 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly larger than West Virginia

Climate

tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)

Coastline

1,340 km

Elevation extremes

highest point

Pidurutalagala 2,524 m

lowest point

Indian Ocean 0 m

Environment - current issues

deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by poaching and urbanization; coastal degradation from mining activities and increased pollution; freshwater resources being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff; waste disposal; air pollution in Colombo

Environment - international agreements

party to

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation

Geographic coordinates

7 00 N, 81 00 E

Geography - note

strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes

Irrigated land

5,500 sq km (1993 est.)

Land boundaries

0 km

Land use

arable land

14%

forests and woodland

32%

other

32% (1993 est.)

permanent crops

15%

permanent pastures

7%

Location

Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India

Map references

Asia

Maritime claims

contiguous zone

24 nm

continental shelf

200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

exclusive economic zone

200 nm

territorial sea

12 nm

Natural hazards

occasional cyclones and tornadoes

Natural resources

limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower

Terrain

mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior

Age structure

0-14 years: 26% (male 2,605,251; female 2,490,416) 15-64 years: 67% (male 6,285,118; female 6,606,196) 65 years and over: 7% (male 602,470; female 649,124) (2000 est.)

Birth rate

16.78 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate

6.43 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Ethnic groups

Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda 1%

Infant mortality rate

16.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)

Languages

Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18%

note

English is commonly used in government and is spoken competently by about 10% of the population

Life expectancy at birth

female

74.45 years (2000 est.)

male

69.33 years

total population

71.83 years

Literacy

definition

age 15 and over can read and write

female

87.2% (1995 est.)

male

93.4%

total population

90.2%

Nationality

adjective

Sri Lankan

noun

Sri Lankan(s)

Net migration rate

-1.47 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Population

19,238,575

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 mid-1999, approximately 66,000 were housed in 133 refugee camps in south India, another 40,000 lived outside the Indian camps, and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought refuge in the West (July 2000 est.)

Population growth rate

0.89% (2000 est.)

Religions

Buddhist 70%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 7% (1999)

Sex ratio

at birth

1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female

total population

0.97 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.98 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Administrative divisions

8 provinces; Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western

note

North Eastern province may have been divided in two - Northern and Eastern

Capital

Colombo

Constitution

adopted 16 August 1978

Country name

conventional long form

Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka

conventional short form

Sri Lanka

former

Ceylon

Data code

CE

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission

Ambassador Shaun E. DONNELLY

embassy

210 Galle Road, Colombo 3

mailing address

P. O. Box 106, Colombo

telephone

(1) 448007

Diplomatic representation in the US

chancery

2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

chief of mission

Ambassador Warnasena RASAPUTRAM

telephone

(202) 483-4025 through 4028

Executive branch

cabinet

Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister

chief of state

President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Sirimavo BANDARANAIKE is the prime minister; in Sri Lanka the president is considered to be both the chief of state and the head of the government, this is in contrast to the more common practice of dividing the roles between the president and the prime minister when both offices exist

election results

Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA reelected president; percent of vote - Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (PA) 51%, Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (UNP) 42%, other 7%

elections

president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 21 December 1999 (next to be held NA December 2005)

head of government

President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Sirimavo BANDARANAIKE is the prime minister; in Sri Lanka the president is considered to be both the chief of state and the head of the government, this is in contrast to the more common practice of dividing the roles between the president and the prime minister when both offices exist

FAX

(202) 232-7181

(1) 437345, 446013

consulate(s)

New York

consulate(s) general

Los Angeles

Flag description

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

Government type

republic

Independence

4 February 1948 (from UK)

International organization participation

AsDB, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Judicial branch

Supreme Court, judges are appointed by the president; Court of Appeals, judges are appointed by the president

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 (225 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of a modified proportional representation system by district to serve six-year terms)

election results

percent of vote by party - PA 49.0%, UNP 44.0%, SLMC 1.8%, TULF 1.7%, SLPF 1.1%, EPDP 0.3%, UPF 0.3%, PLOTE 0.1%, other 1.7%; seats by party - PA 105, UNP 94, EPDP 9, SLMC 7, TULF 5, PLOTE 3, SLPF 1, UPF 1

elections

last held 16 August 1994 (next to be held by August 2000)

National holiday

Independence and National Day, 4 February (1948)

Political parties and leaders

All Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC ; Ceylon Workers Congress or CLDC ; Communist Party ; Communist Party/Beijing or CP/B ; Democratic People's Liberation Front or DPLF ; Democratic United National (Lalith) Front or DUNLF ; Desha Vimukthi Janatha Party or DVJP ; Eelam People's Democratic Party or EPDP ; Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF ; Eelam Revolutionary Organization of Students or EROS ; Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna or JVP ; Lanka Socialist Party/Trotskyite or LSSP (Lanka Sama Samaja Party) [leader NA]; Liberal Party or LP ; New Socialist Party or NSSP (Nava Sama Samaja Party) ; People's Alliance or PA ; People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam or PLOTE ; People's United Front or MEP (Mahajana Eksath Peramuna) ; Sri Lanka Freedom Party or SLFP ; Sri Lanka Muslim Congress or SLMC ; Sri Lanka People's Party or SLMP (Sri Lanka Mahajana Party) ; Sri Lanka Progressive Front or SLPF ; Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization or TELO ; Tamil United Liberation Front or TULF ; United National Party or UNP ; Upcountry People's Front or UPF ; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented in either parliament or provincial councils

Political pressure groups and leaders

Buddhist clergy; labor unions; Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or LTTE (insurgent group fighting for a separate state); radical chauvinist Sinhalese groups such as the National Movement Against Terrorism; Sinhalese Buddhist lay groups

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Agriculture - products

rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef

Budget

expenditures

$4.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.1 billion (1998 est.)

revenues

$2.7 billion

Currency

1 Sri Lankan rupee (SLRe) = 100 cents

Debt - external

$8.4 billion (1998)

Economic aid - recipient

$577 million (1998)

Economy - overview

In 1977, Colombo abandoned statist economic policies and its import substitution trade policy for market-oriented policies and export-oriented trade. Sri Lanka's most dynamic industries now are food processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages, telecommunications, and insurance and banking. By 1996 plantation crops made up only 20% of exports (compared with 93% in 1970), while textiles and garments accounted for 63%. GDP grew at an annual average rate of 5.5% throughout the 1990s until a drought and a deteriorating security situation lowered growth to 3.8% in 1996. The economy rebounded in 1997-98 with growth of 6.4% and 4.7% - but slowed to 3.7% in 1999. For the next round of reforms, the central bank of Sri Lanka recommends that Colombo expand market mechanisms in nonplantation agriculture, dismantle the government's monopoly on wheat imports, and promote more competition in the financial sector. A continuing cloud over the economy is the fighting between the Sinhalese and the minority Tamils, which has cost 50,000 lives in the past 15 years.

Electricity - consumption

5.12 billion kWh (1998)

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (1998)

Electricity - imports

0 kWh (1998)

Electricity - production

5.505 billion kWh (1998)

Electricity - production by source

fossil fuel

30.97%

hydro

69.03%

nuclear

0%

other

0% (1998)

Exchange rates

Sri Lankan rupees (SLRe) per US$1 - 72.364 (January 2000), 70.402 (1999), 64.593 (1998), 58.995 (1997), 55.271 (1996), 51.252 (1995)

Exports

$4.7 billion (f.o.b., 1998)

Exports - commodities

textiles and apparel, tea, diamonds, coconut products, petroleum products (1998)

Exports - partners

US 40%, UK 11%, Middle East 9%, Germany 5%, Japan 4% (1998)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $50.5 billion (1999 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture

21%

industry

19%

services

60% (1998)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $2,600 (1999 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

3.7% (1999 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 1.8% highest 10%: 39.7% (1995-96 est.)

Imports

$5.3 billion (f.o.b., 1998)

Imports - commodities

machinery and equipment, textiles, petroleum, foodstuffs (1998)

Imports - partners

India 10%, Japan 10%, South Korea 8%, Hong Kong 7%, Taiwan 6% (1998)

Industrial production growth rate

6.3% (1998)

Industries

processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; clothing, cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

6% (1999 est.)

Labor force

6.6 million (1998)

Labor force - by occupation

services 45%, agriculture 38%, industry 17% (1998 est.)

Population below poverty line

22% (1997 est.)

Unemployment rate

9.5% (1998 est.)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

4 (1999)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 26, FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998)

Radios

3.85 million (1997)

Telephone system

very inadequate domestic service, particularly in rural areas; some hope for improvement with privatization of national telephone company and encouragement to private investment; good international service (1999)

domestic

national trunk network consists mostly of digital microwave radio relay; fiber-optic links now in use in Colombo area and two fixed wireless local loops have been installed; competition is strong in mobile cellular systems; telephone density remains low at 2.6 main lines per 100 persons (1999)

international

submarine cables to Indonesia and Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (1999)

Telephones - main lines in use

494,509 (1998)

Telephones - mobile cellular

228,604 (1999)

Television broadcast stations

21 (1997)

Televisions

1.53 million (1997)

Airports

14 (1999 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total

12 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 6 (1999 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total

2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (1999 est.)

Highways

paved

10,721 km

total

11,285 km

unpaved

564 km (1998 est.)

Merchant marine

ships by type

bulk 1, cargo 16, container 1, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 5 (1999 est.)

total

24 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 192,190 GRT/293,832 DWT

Pipelines

crude oil and petroleum products 62 km (1987)

Ports and harbors

Colombo, Galle, Jaffna, Trincomalee

Railways

broad gauge

1,404 km 1.676-m gauge

narrow gauge

59 km 0.762-m gauge (1996)

total

1,463 km

Waterways

430 km; navigable by shallow-draft craft

Military branches

Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Force

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$719 million (FY98)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

4.2% (FY98)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 5,251,045 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 4,081,742 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - military age

18 years of age

Military manpower - reaching military age annually

males

196,584 (2000 est.)

Disputes - international

none

SUDAN