Sri Lanka

The first Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C. probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced in about the mid-third century B.C., and a great civilization developed at the cities of Anuradhapura (kingdom from circa 200 B.C. to circa A.D. 1000) and Polonnaruwa (from about 1070 to 1200). In the 14th century, a south Indian dynasty established a Tamil kingdom in northern Sri Lanka.

The coastal areas of the island were controlled by the Portuguese in the 16th century and by the Dutch in the 17th century. The island was ceded to the British in 1796, became a crown colony in 1802, and was united under British rule by 1815. As Ceylon, it became independent in 1948; its name was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972. Tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted into war in 1983. After two decades of fighting, the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) formalized a cease-fire in February 2002 with Norway brokering peace negotiations. Violence between theLTTE and government forces intensified in 2006 and the government regained control of the Eastern Province in 2007.


In May 2009, the government announced that its military had finally defeated the remnants of the LTTE and that its leader, Velupillai PRABHAKARAN, had been killed.

Location:	Field info displayed for all countries in alpha order. Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India
Geographic coordinates:	7 00 N, 81 00 E
Area:	total: 65,610 sq km country comparison to the world: 121 land: 64,630 sq km water: 980 sq km
Area - comparative:	slightly larger than West Virginia, Denmark, ....
Coastline:	1,340 km
Maritime claims:	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
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
Elevation extremes:	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m
Natural resources:	limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower
Land use:	arable land: 13.96% permanent crops: 15.24% other: 70.8% (2005)
Irrigated land:	7,430 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:	50 cu km (1999)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):	total: 12.61 cu km/yr (2%/2%/95%) per capita: 608 cu m/yr (2000)
Environment - international agreements:	Party to:Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands Signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation

Population:	21,324,791 country comparison to the world: 54
Age structure:	0-14 years: 23.9% (male 2,594,815/female 2,493,002) 15-64 years: 68% (male 7,089,307/female 7,418,123) 65 years and over: 8.1% (male 803,172/female 926,372) (2009 est.)
Median age:	total: 30.9 years male: 29.9 years female: 31.8 years (2009 est.)
Population growth rate:	0.904% (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 136
Birth rate:	16.26 births/1,000 population (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 130
Death rate:	6.13 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 157
Net migration rate:	-1.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 119
Urbanization	urban population: 15% of total population (2008) rate of urbanization: 0.5% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio:	at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate:	total: 18.57 deaths/1,000 live births country comparison to the world: 108 male: 20.33 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:	total population: 75.14 years country comparison to the world: 85 male: 73.08 years female: 77.28 years (2009 est.)
Total fertility rate:	1.99 children born/woman (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 131
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:	less than 0.1% (2001 est.) country comparison to the world: 164
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:	3,800 (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 127
HIV/AIDS - deaths:	fewer than 200 (2003 est.) country comparison to the world: 124
Major infectious diseases:	degree of risk: high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea and hepatitis A vectorborne disease: dengue fever and chikungunya water contact disease: leptospirosis animal contact disease: rabies (2009)
Nationality:	noun: Sri Lankan(s) adjective: Sri Lankan
Ethnic groups:	Sinhalese 73.8%, Sri Lankan Moors 7.2%, Indian Tamil 4.6%, Sri Lankan Tamil 3.9%, other 0.5%, unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data)
Religions:	Buddhist 69.1%, Muslim 7.6%, Hindu 7.1%, Christian 6.2%, unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data)
Languages:	Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18%, other 8% note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken competently by about 10% of the population
Literacy:	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 90.7% male: 92.3% female: 89.1% (2001 census)

Country name:	conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka conventional short form: Sri Lanka former: Serendib, Ceylon
Government type:	republic
Capital:	name: Colombo geographic coordinates: 6 56 N, 79 51 E time difference: UTC+5.5 note: Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital)
Administrative divisions:	8 provinces; Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western note: in October 2006, a Sri Lankan Supreme Court ruling voided a presidential directive merging the North and Eastern Provinces; a parliamentary decision on the issue is pending
Independence:	4 February 1948 (from the UK)
National holiday:	Independence Day, 4 February (1948)
Constitution:	adopted 16 August 1978, certified 31 August 1978; amended 20 December 2001
Legal system:	a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Kandyan, and Jaffna Tamil law.
Suffrage:	18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:	chief of state: President Mahinda Percy RAJAPAKSA (since 19 November 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; Ratnasiri WICKREMANAYAKE (since 21 November 2005) holds the largely ceremonial title of prime minister head of government: President Mahinda Percy RAJAPAKSA (since 19 November 2005) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term (two-term limit); election last held on 26 January 2010 (next to be held in 2016) election results: Mahinda RAJAPAKSA elected president; percent of vote - Mahinda RAJAPAKSA 57.9%, Sarath FONSEKA 40.2%, other 1.9%
Legislative branch:	unicameral Parliament (225 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of an open-list, proportional representation system by electoral district to serve six-year terms)
Judicial branch:	Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president
Political parties and leaders:	Sri Lanka Freedom Party or SLFP [Mahinda RAJAPAKSA]; Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna or JVP [Somawansa AMARASINGHE]; Lanka Sama Samaja Party or LSSP [Tissa VITHARANA]; Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (People's United Front) or MEP [D. GUNAWARDENE]; National Freedom Front [Wimal WEERAWANSA]; National Heritage Party or JHU [Ellawala METHANANDA]; National Unity Alliance or NUA [Ferial ASHRAFF]; People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam or PLOTE [D. SIDHARTHAN]; Sri Lanka Muslim Congress or SLMC [Rauff HAKEEM]; Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization or TELO [Selvam ADAIKALANATHAN]; Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal or TMVP [Chandrakanthan SIVANESATHURAI, aka "PILLAIYAN"] (paramilitary breakaway from LTTE operating as a political party); Tamil National Alliance or TNA [R. SAMPANTHAN]; Tamil United Liberation Front or TULF [V. ANANDASANGAREE]; United National Party or UNP [Ranil WICKREMASINGHE]; Up-country People's Front or UPF All Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC [G.PONNAMBALAM]; Ceylon Workers Congress or CWC [Arumugam THONDAMAN]; Communist Party or CP [D. GUNASEKERA]; Eelam People's Democratic Party or EPDP [Douglas DEVANANDA]; Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF [Suresh PREMACHANDRAN];
Political pressure groups and leaders:	Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or LTTE [P. SIVAPARAN, Chief of International Secretariat; V. RUDRAKUMARAN, legal advisor]; note - this insurgent group suffered military defeat in May 2009; some cadres remain scattered throughout country; other: Buddhist clergy; labor unions; radical chauvinist Sinhalese groups such as the National Movement Against Terrorism; Sinhalese Buddhist lay groups
International organization participation:	ADB, ARF, BIMSTEC, C, CP, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Flag description:	yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other larger panel depicts a yellow lion holding a sword on a dark red rectangular field that also displays a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border around the entire flag and extends between the two panels

Economy - overview:	In 1977, Colombo abandoned statist- and import substitution-policies for more market- and export-oriented policies, including encouragement of foreign investment. Sri Lanka suffered through a brutal civil war from 1983 to 2009. Despite the war, Sri Lanka saw GDP growth average nearly 5% in the last 10 years. Government spending on development and fighting the LTTE drove GDP growth to about 7% per year in 2006-08. Growth was around 3.5% in 2009. Sri Lanka's most dynamic sectors are now food processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages, port construction, telecommunications, and insurance and banking. About 1.5 million Sri Lankans work abroad, 90% of them in the Middle East. They send home more than $3 billion a year. President RAJAPAKSA's reelection in 2010 means that the Government of Sri Lanka will likely continue its more statist economic approach, that seeks to reduce poverty by steering investment to disadvantaged areas, developing small and medium enterprises, promoting agriculture, and expanding the already enormous civil service. The end of the 26-year conflict with the LTTE has opened the door for reconstruction and development projects in the north and east. Funding these projects will be difficult, as the government already is faced with high debt interest payments, a bloated civil service, and high budget deficits. The 2008-09 global financial crisis and recession exposed Sri Lanka's economic vulnerabilities and nearly caused a balance of payments crisis, which was alleviated by a $2.6 billion IMF standby agreement in July 2009. But the end of the civil war and the IMF loan restored investors' confidence. The Sri Lankan stock market gained over 100% in 2009, one of the best performing markets in the world. Official foreign reserves improved to more than $5 billion by November 2009, providing over 6 months of imports cover.
GDP (purchasing power parity):	$96.46 billion (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 69 $93.19 billion (2008 est.) $87.92 billion (2007 est.) note: data are in 2009 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):	$41.32 billion (2009 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:	3.5% (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 48 6% (2008 est.) 6.8% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):	$4,500 (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 148 $4,400 (2008 est.) $4,200 (2007 est.) note: data are in 2009 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector:	agriculture: 12.8% industry: 29.2% services: 58% (2009 est.)
Labor force:	8.1 million country comparison to the world: 57 note: excludes northern and eastern provinces (2009 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:	agriculture: 32.7% industry: 26.3% services: 41% (December 2008 est.)
Unemployment rate:	5.9% (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 53 5.5% (2008 est.)
Population below poverty line:	23% (2008 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:	lowest 10%: 1.1% highest 10%: 39.7% (2004)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:	49 (2007) country comparison to the world: 27 46 (1995)
Investment (gross fixed):	23.1% of GDP (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 57
Budget:	revenues: $6.224 billion expenditures: $9.801 billion (2009 est.)
Public debt:	82.9% of GDP (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 13 76.7% of GDP (2008 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):	3.4% (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 107 22.6% (2008)
Central bank discount rate:	7.5% (31 December 2009) country comparison to the world: 34 10.5% (31 December 2008)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:	10.91% (31 December 2009)
Stock of money:	$2.441 billion (31 December 2008) country comparison to the world: 74 $2.465 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money:	$11.15 billion (31 December 2008) country comparison to the world: 53 $10.46 billion (31 December 2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares:	$9.541 billion (31 December 2009) country comparison to the world: 89 $4.326 billion (31 December 2008) $7.553 billion (31 December 2007)
Agriculture - products:	rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, vegetables, fruit, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef; fish
Industries:	processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, tobacco and other agricultural commodities; telecommunications, insurance, banking; tourism, shipping; clothing, textiles; cement, petroleum refining, information technology services, construction
Industrial production growth rate:	-0.9% (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 75
Electricity - production:	9.901 billion kWh (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 92
Electricity - consumption:	8.417 billion kWh (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 93
Oil - consumption:	89,000 bbl/day (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 80
Oil - exports:	968 bbl/day (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 124
Oil - imports:	87,690 bbl/day (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 67
Current account balance:	$100 million (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 53 -$3.876 billion (2008 est.)
Exports:	$7 billion (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 91 $8.137 billion (2008 est.)
Exports - commodities:	textiles and apparel, tea and spices; diamonds, emeralds, rubies; coconut products, rubber manufactures, fish
Exports - partners:	US 22.1%, UK 12.1%, Germany 5.2%, Belgium 4.9%, Italy 4.8%, India 4.5% (2008)
Imports:	$9.6 billion (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 87 $14.08 billion (2008 est.)
Imports - commodities:	textile fabrics, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and transportation equipment
Imports - partners:	India 18.9%, China 12.4%, Iran 7.7%, Singapore 7.5%, South Korea 4.8% (2008)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:	$5.2 billion (30 November 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 65 $2.655 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Debt - external:	$19.45 billion (31 December 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 66 $16.78 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Exchange rates:	Sri Lankan rupees (LKR) per US dollar - 115 (2009), 108.33 (2008), 110.78 (2007), 103.99 (2006), 100.498 (2005)

Telephones - main lines in use:	3.446 million (2008) country comparison to the world: 44
Telephone system:	general assessment: telephone services have improved significantly and are available in most parts of the country domestic: national trunk network consists mostly of digital microwave radio relay; fiber-optic links now in use in Colombo area and fixed wireless local loops have been installed; competition is strong in mobile cellular systems and mobile cellular subscribership is increasing international: country code - 94; the SEA-ME-WE-3 and SEA-ME-WE-4 submarine cables provide connectivity to Asia, Australia, Middle East, Europe, US; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations:	AM 15, FM 52, shortwave 4 (2007)
Television broadcast stations:	12 (2009)
Internet country code:	.lk
Internet hosts:	6,090 (2009) country comparison to the world: 134
Internet users:	1.164 million (2008) country comparison to the world: 83

Number of Airports (include military):	18 (2009) country comparison to the world: 138
Airports - with paved runways (include military):	total: 14 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2009)
Airports - with unpaved runways:	total: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2009)
Railways:	total: 1,449 km country comparison to the world: 82 broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge (2007)
Roadways:	total: 97,286 km country comparison to the world: 44 paved: 78,802 km unpaved: 18,484 km (2003)
Waterways:	160 km (primarily on rivers in southwest) (2008) country comparison to the world: 101
Merchant marine:	total: 26 country comparison to the world: 89 by type: bulk carrier 4, cargo 18, chemical tanker 1, container 1, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: 5 (Germany 5) registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2008)