Sri Lanka

Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka

republicIndependence 4 February 1948 (from UK)

Sri Lanka as the 1993 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 78 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalColombo

Area65,610 km2

LocationSouth Asia, 29 km southeast of India across the Palk Strait in the Indian

Populationas each edition published it

17.84 million July 1993 est. · 17.2m in 1990

Population growth% a year

1.11% 1993 est. · 0.22% in 2025

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 28.7 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

71.51 years 1993 est. · 76.8 yrs in 2025

Fertility ratechildren per woman

2.13 children per woman 1993 est. · 2.3 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

22.8 deaths per 1,000 live births 1993 est. · 31 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$440 1992 est. · $13,800 in 2025

GDP real growth% a year

4.5% 1992 est. · 5% in 2025

Geography

South Asia, 29 km southeast of India across the Palk Strait in the Indian | Ocean

14 fields

Land useshare of 65,610 km2

arable land 16%permanent crops 17%meadows and pastures 7%forest and woodland 37%other 23%irrigated 5,600 km2 (1989 est.)

Area

65,610km2

land area: 64,740 km2comparative area: slightly larger than West Virginia

Coastline

1,340km

land boundaries: 0 kmcontiguous zone: 24 nmcontinental shelf: 200 nm or the edge of continental marginexclusive economic zone: 200 nmterritorial sea: 12 nm

Location

South Asia, 29 km southeast of India across the Palk Strait in the Indian Ocean

Climate

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

Terrain

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

Natural resources

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

Environment

occasional cyclones, tornados;
deforestation;
soil erosion

Note

strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes

People

14 fields

Population

17,838,190

(July 1993 est.)growth rate: 1.11% (1993 est.)

Note

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

Per 1,000 population(1993 est.)

Birth

18.71Death

5.84Net migration

-1.81

Male · female(1993 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years71.51

68.94 · 74.21

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy88%

93% · 84%

MaleFemaleLiteracy age 15 and over can read and write (1990)

Religions

Buddhist 69%Hindu 15%Christian 8%Muslim 8%

Labor force

6.6million

by occupation: agriculture 45.9%, mining and manufacturing 13.3%, trade and transport 12.4%, services and other 28.4% (1985 est.)

Infant mortality rate

22.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.13 children born/woman (1993 est.)

Nationality

noun:: Sri Lankan(s)
adjective:: Sri Lankan

Ethnic divisions

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

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

Government

Republic

21 fields

Presidential electionpercent of vote

50%

Ranasinghe PREMADASA (UNP) 50%Sirimavo BANDARANAIKE (SLFP) 45%other 5%

Names

conventional long form:: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
conventional short form:: Sri Lanka
former:: Ceylon

Digraph

Type

republic

Capital

Colombo

Administrative divisions

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

Independence

4 February 1948 (from UK)

Constitution

31 August 1978

Legal system

a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

National holiday

Independence and National Day, 4 February (1948)

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

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

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Elections

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
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

Executive branch

president, prime minister, Cabinet

Legislative branch

unicameral Parliament

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Leaders

Chief of State:: President Dingiri Banda WIJETUNGA (since 7 May 1993)
Head of Government:: Prime Minister Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (since 7 May 1993)

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

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

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
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

Economy

18 fields

GDP per capita, PPP

$440

(1992 est.)

Real growth rate

4.5%

(1992 est.)industrial production growth: growth rate 7% (1991 est.); accounts for 20% of GDP

Inflation, consumer prices

10%

(1992)

Unemployment rate

15%

(1991 est.)

Budget

Revenues

$2.0 billionExpenditures

$3.7 billion

expenditures, including capital expenditures of $500 million (1992)

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.

National product

GDP - exchange rate conversion - $7.75 billion (1992 est.)

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

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

External debt

$5.7 billion (1991 est.)

Electricity

1,300,000 kW capacity; 3,600 million kWh produced, 200 kWh per capita (1992)

Industries

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

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

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

Currency

1 Sri Lankan rupee (SLRe) = 100 cents

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)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

8 fields

Merchant marine, 27 ships by typeone square, one ship

cargo 12refrigerated cargo 6container 3oil tanker 3bulk 327 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 276,074 GRT/443,266 DWT

Networkskm

Railroads

1,948Inland waterways

430

Railroads: (1990); all 1.868-meter broad gauge; 102 km double track; no electrification; government owned · Inland waterways: ; navigable by shallow-draft craft

Railroads

1,948 km total (1990);
all 1.868-meter broad gauge;
102 km double track;
no electrification;
government owned

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.)