Sri Lanka

Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka

republicIndependence 4 February 1948 (from UK)

Sri Lanka as the 1996 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 88 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

Position7 00 N, 81 00 E

Area65,610 sq km

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

Populationas each edition published it

18.55 million July 1996 est. · 17.2m in 1990

Population growth% a year

1.13% 1996 est. · 1.11% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 28.7 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

72.35 years 1996 est. · 71.51 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

2.05 children per woman 1996 est. · 2.3 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

20.8 deaths per 1,000 live births 1996 est. · 31 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$3,600 1995 est. · $440 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

5% 1995 est. · 4.5% in 1993

Geography

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

15 fields

Land useshare of 65,610 sq km

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

Area

65,610sq km

land area: 64,740 sq kmcomparative area: slightly larger than West Virginia

Coastline

1,340km

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

Location

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

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

lowest point:: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point:: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m

Natural resources

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

Environment

current issues:: deforestation;
soil erosion;
wildlife populations threatened by poaching;
coastal degradation from mining activities and increased pollution;
freshwater resources being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff
natural hazards:: occasional cyclones and tornadoes
international agreements:: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling;
signed, but not ratified - Marine Life Conservation

Geographic note

strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes

People

15 fields

Population

18,553,074

(July 1996 est.)growth rate: 1.13% (1996 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

Per 1,000 population(1996 est.)

Birth

17.89Death

5.8Net migration

-0.78

Male · female(1996 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years72.35

69.77 · 75.06

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy90.2%

93.4% · 87.2%

MaleFemaleLiteracy age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)

Religions

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

Age structure

0-14 years:: 28% (male 2,673,943; female 2,559,569)
15-64 years:: 66% (male 6,023,759; female 6,171,964)
65 years and over:: 6% (male 553,940; female 569,899) (July 1996 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth:: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years:: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years:: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over:: 0.97 male(s)/female
all ages:: 1 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant mortality rate

20.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.05 children born/woman (1996 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

22 fields

Presidential electionpercent of vote

62%

Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (People's Alliance) 62%Srima DISSANAYAKE (United National Party) 37%other 1%

Legislature, 225 seatsone dot, one seat

PA 105UNP 94EPDP 9SLMC 7TULF 5PLOTE 3SLPF 1UPF 1

Name of country

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

Data code

Type of government

republic

Capital

Colombo

Administrative divisions

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

Independence

4 February 1948 (from UK)

National holiday

Independence and National Day, 4 February (1948)

Constitution

adopted 16 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

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state and head of government:: President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994) was elected for a six-year term by popular vote;
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 last held 9 November 1994 (next to be held NA November 2000);
results - Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (People's Alliance) 62%, Srima DISSANAYAKE (United National Party) 37%, other 1%
cabinet:: Cabinet was appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister

Legislative branch

unicameral

Parliament

elections last held 16 August 1994 (next to be held by August 2000);
results - 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 - (225 total) PA 105, UNP 94, EPDP 9, SLMC 7, TULF 5, PLOTE 3, SLPF 1, UPF 1

Judicial branch

Supreme Court, judges are appointed by the Judicial Service Commission

Political parties and leaders

All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC), C. G. Kumar PONNAMBALAM;
Ceylon Workers Congress (CLDC), S. THONDAMAN;
Communist Party, K. P. SILVA;
Communist Party/Beijing (CP/B), N. SHANMUGATHASAN;
Democratic People's Liberation Front (DPLF), leader NA;
Democratic United National Front (DUNF), G. M. PREMACHANDRA;
Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP), Douglas DEVANANDA;
Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRL), Suresh PREMACHANDRAN;
Eelam Revolutionary Organization of Students (EROS), Shankar RAJI;
Lanka Socialist Party/Trotskyite (LSSP, or Lanka Sama Samaja Party), Colin R. DE SILVA;
Liberal Party (LP), Chanaka AMARATUNGA;
New Socialist Party (NSSP, or Nava Sama Samaja Party), Vasudeva NANAYAKKARA;
People's Alliance (PA), Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA;
People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), Dharmalingam SIDARTHAN;
People's United Front (MEP, or Mahajana Eksath Peramuna), Dinesh GUNAWARDENE;
Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), Sirimavo BANDARANAIKE;
Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), M. H. M. ASHRAFF;
Sri Lanka People's Party (SLMP, or Sri Lanka Mahajana Party), Ossie ABEYGUNASEKERA;
Sri Lanka Progressive Front (SLPF), leader NA;
Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization (TELO), leader NA;
Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), M. SIVASITHAMBARAM;
United National Party (UNP), Dingiri Banda WIJETUNGA;
Upcountry People's Front (UPF), leader NA;
several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented in either parliament or provincial councils

note: the United Socialist Alliance (USA), which was formed in 1987 and included the NSSP, LSSP, SLMP, CP/M, and CP/B, was defunct as of 1993, following the formation of the People's Alliance Party (PA)

Other political or pressure groups

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and other smaller Tamil separatist groups;
other radical chauvinist Sinhalese groups;
Buddhist clergy;
Sinhalese Buddhist lay groups;
labor unions

International organization participation

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

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission:: Ambassador Jayantha Cudah Bandara DHANAPALA
chancery:: 2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:: [1] (202) 483-4025 through 4028

FAX

[1] (202) 232-7181; consulate(s): New York

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission:: Ambassador A. Peter BURLEIGH
embassy:: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3
mailing address:: P. O. Box 106, Colombo
telephone:: [94] (1) 448007

FAX

[94] (1) 437345

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

Industry - dominated by the fast-growing | apparel industry - has surpassed agriculture as the main source of | export earnings.

20 fields

GDP per capita, PPP

$3,600

(1995 est.)

Real growth rate

(1995 est.)industrial production growth: 9% (1994 est.)

Inflation, consumer prices

8.4%

(1994 est.)

Unemployment rate

13%

(1994 est.)

GDP composition by sector(1994 est.)

agriculture 24%industry 24%services 52% (1994 est.)

Budget

Revenues

$2.7 billionExpenditures

$3.7 billion (1995)

expenditures including capital expenditures of $851 million

Installed generating capacity, 1,410,000 kW

Electricity production

3.2 billionElectricity consumption per capita

168 (1993)

Economic overview

Industry - dominated by the fast-growing apparel industry - has surpassed agriculture as the main source of export earnings. The economy has been plagued by high rates of unemployment since the late 1970s. Economic growth accelerated in 1991-94 as domestic conditions began to improve and conditions for foreign investment brightened.

In 1995, however, the government's emphasis on populist measures and its preoccupation with the stepped-up Tamil insurgency have clouded Sri Lanka's economic prospects and discouraged foreign investors. A further problem for 1996 is the need to curb government overspending.

GDP

purchasing power parity - $65.6 billion (1995 est.)

Labor force

6.1 million; by occupation: agriculture 45%, services 37%, industry 18% (1993 est.)

Industries

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

Agriculture

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

Exports

$3.2 billion (f.o.b., 1994)

commodities:: garments and textiles, teas, diamonds, other gems, petroleum products, rubber products, other agricultural products, marine products, graphite
partners:: US 34.7%, UK, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, France (1994)

Imports

$4.8 billion (c.i.f., 1994)

commodities:: textiles and textile materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, food, petroleum, building materials
partners:: Japan, India, UK, Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, China (1994)

External debt

$8.8 billion (1994 est.)

Economic aid

recipient: ODA, $423 million (1993)

Currency

1 Sri Lankan rupee (SLRe) = 100 cents

Exchange rates

Sri Lankan rupees (SLRes) per US$1 - 54.158 (January 1996), 51.252 (1995), 49.415 (1994), 48.322 (1993), 43.830 (1992), 41.372 (1991)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Transportation

7 fields

Airports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right · 13 in all

over 3 047 m

1 524 to 2 437 m

914 to 1 523 m

PavedUnpaved

Networkskm

Highways

94,651Railways

1,484Waterways

430

Highways: paved: 25,749 km · unpaved: 68,902 km (1990) · Railways: broad gauge: 1,459 km 1.676-m gauge · narrow gauge: 25 km .762-m gauge (1995) · Waterways: ; navigable by shallow-draft craft

Railways

total:: 1,484 km
broad gauge:: 1,459 km 1.676-m gauge
narrow gauge:: 25 km .762-m gauge (1995)

Highways

total:: 94,651 km
paved:: 25,749 km
unpaved:: 68,902 km (1990)

total:: 26 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 220,508 GRT/329,410 DWT
ships by type:: bulk 2, cargo 13, container 1, oil tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 8 (1995 est.)