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 |
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Background:
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The
Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th
century B.C., probably from northern India. Buddhism
was introduced beginning 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 1000 A.D.) and Polonnaruwa (from about
1070 to 1200). In the 14th century, a south Indian
dynasty seized power in the north and established a
Tamil kingdom. Occupied 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 in violence in the mid-1980s.
Tens of thousands have died in an ethnic war that
continues to fester. After two decades of fighting,
the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
began a ceasefire in December 2001, with Norway
brokering peace negotiations. |
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Location:
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Southern
Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India |
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Geographic coordinates:
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7 00 N,
81 00 E |
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Map references:
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Asia |
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Area:
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total:
65,610 sq km
water: 870 sq km
land: 64,740 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly
larger than West Virginia |
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Land boundaries:
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0 km |
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Coastline:
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1,340
km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial
sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of
the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm |
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Climate:
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tropical
monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March);
southwest monsoon (June to October) |
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Terrain:
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mostly
low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in
south-central interior |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m |
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Natural resources:
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limestone,
graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay,
hydropower |
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Land use:
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arable
land: 13.86%
permanent crops: 15.7%
other: 70.44% (2001) |
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Irrigated land:
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6,510
sq km (1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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occasional
cyclones and tornadoes |
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Environment - current issues:
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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 |
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Environment - international agreements:
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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 |
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Geography - note:
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strategic
location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes
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Population:
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19,905,165
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 yearend 2000,
approximately 65,000 were housed in 131 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 2004 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 24.8% (male 2,526,143; female 2,414,876)
15-64 years: 68.2% (male 6,589,438; female
6,976,487)
65 years and over: 7% (male 655,636; female
742,585) (2004 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
29.1 years
male: 28 years
female: 30.1 years (2004 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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0.81%
(2004 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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15.88
births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Death rate:
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6.47
deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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-1.31
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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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: 0.88 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004
est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
14.78 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 13.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2004
est.)
male: 16.01 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 72.89 years
male: 70.34 years
female: 75.57 years (2004 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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1.88
children born/woman (2004 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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less
than 0.1% (2001 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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4,800
(2001 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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250
(2001 est.) |
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Nationality:
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noun:
Sri Lankan(s)
adjective: Sri Lankan |
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Ethnic groups:
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Sinhalese
74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda
1% |
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Religions:
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Buddhist
70%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 7% (1999) |
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Languages:
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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 |
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Literacy:
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definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.3%
male: 94.8%
female: 90% (2003 est.)
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Country name:
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conventional
long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri
Lanka
conventional short form: Sri Lanka
former: Serendib, Ceylon |
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Government type:
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republic |
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Capital:
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Colombo;
note - Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte is the legislative
capital |
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Administrative divisions:
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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 |
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Independence:
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4
February 1948 (from UK) |
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National holiday:
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Independence
Day, 4 February (1948) |
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Constitution:
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adopted
16 August 1978 |
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Legal system:
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a
highly complex mixture of English common law,
Roman-Dutch, Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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Suffrage:
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18
years of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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chief
of state: President Chandrika Bandaranaike
KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Mahinda
RAJAPAKSE (since 6 April 2004)i s the prime
minister; the president is considered both the chief
of state and head of government
head of government: President Chandrika
Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994);
note - Mahinda RAJAPAKSE (since 6 April 2004) is the
prime minister; the president is considered both the
chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
in consultation with the prime minister
elections: president elected by popular vote
for a six-year term; election last held 21 December
1999 (next to be held NA December 2005)
election results: Chandrika Bandaranaike
KUMARATUNGA reelected president; percent of vote -
Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA 51%, Ranil
WICKREMASINGHE 42%, other 7% |
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Legislative branch:
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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)
elections: last held 2 April 2004 (next to be
held by 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party or
electoral alliance - SLFP and JVP 45.6%, UNP 37.83%,
TNA 6.84%, JHU 5.97%, SLMC 2.02%, UPF 0.54%, EPDP
0.27%, others 0.93%; seats by party or electoral
alliance - SLFP and JVP 105, UNP 82, TNA 22, JHU 9,
SLMC 5, UPF 1, EPDP 1 |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme
Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are
appointed by the president |
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Political parties and leaders:
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All
Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC [KUMARGURUPARAM];
Ceylon Workers Congress or CWC [Arumugam THONDAMAN];
Communist Party or CP [D. GUNASEKERA]; Democratic
United National (Lalith) Front or DUNLF [Shrimani
ATULATHMUDALI]; Eelam People's Democratic Party or
EPDP [Douglas DEVANANDA]; Eelam People's
Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF [Suresh
PREMACHANDRAN]; Janatha Vimukthi Perumuna or JVP [Tilvan
SILVA]; National Unity Alliance or NUA [Ferial
ASHRAFF]; National Heritage Party or JHU [Uduwe
DHAMMALOKA]; People's Liberation Organization of
Tamil Eelam or PLOTE [leader NA]; Sihala Urumaya or
SU [Tilak KARUNARATNE]; Sri Lanka Freedom Party or
SLFP [Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA]; Sri Lanka
Muslim Congress or SLMC [Rauff HAKEEM]; Sri Lanka
Progressive Front or SLPF [P. Nelson PERERA]; Tamil
Eelam Liberation Organization or TELO [SABARATNAM];
Tamil National Alliance or TNA [Nadarajah RAVIRAJ];
Tamil United Liberation Front or TULF [R. SAMPATHAN];
United National Party or UNP [Ranil WICKREMASINGHE];
Up-country People's Front or UPF [P. CHANDRASEKARAN];
several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented
in either Parliament or provincial councils |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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Buddhist
clergy; labor unions; Liberation Tigers of Tamil
Eelam or LTTE [Velupillai PRABHAKARAN](insurgent
group fighting for a separate state); radical
chauvinist Sinhalese groups such as the National
Movement Against Terrorism; Sinhalese Buddhist lay
groups |
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International organization participation:
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AsDB,
C, CP, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC,
ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF,
IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC,
NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
WToO, WTrO |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief
of mission: Ambassador Devinda R. SUBASINGHE
consulate(s): New York
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
FAX: [1] (202) 232-7181
telephone: [1] (202) 483-4025 (through 4028)
chancery: 2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington,
DC 20008 |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief
of mission: Ambassador Jeffrey J. LUNSTEAD
embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3
mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo
telephone: [94] (1) 448007
FAX: [94] (1) 437345 |
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Flag description:
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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 around the entire flag and
extends between the two panels
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Economy - overview:
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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 sectors now are food
processing, textiles and apparel, food and
beverages, telecommunications, and insurance and
banking. In 2003, plantation crops made up only 15%
of exports (compared with 93% in 1970), while
textiles and garments accounted for 63%. GDP grew at
an average annual rate of 5.5% in the early 1990s
until a drought and a deteriorating security
situation lowered growth to 3.8% in 1996. The
economy rebounded in 1997-2000 with average growth
of 5.3%, but 2001 saw the first contraction in the
country's history, -1.4%, due to a combination of
power shortages, severe budgetary problems, the
global slowdown, and continuing civil strife. Growth
recovered to 4.0% in 2002 and 5.2% in 2003. About
800,000 Sri Lankans work abroad, 90% in the Middle
East. They send home about $1 billion a year. The
struggle by the Tamil Tigers of the north and east
for a largely independent homeland continues to cast
a shadow over the economy. |
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GDP:
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purchasing
power parity - $73.7 billion (2003 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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5.5%
(2003 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing
power parity - $3,700 (2003 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture:
19.9%
industry: 26.3%
services: 53.8% (2003) |
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Investment (gross fixed):
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22.7%
of GDP (2003) |
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Population below poverty line:
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22%
(1997 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage
share:
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lowest
10%: 3.5%
highest 10%: 28% (1995) |
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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34.4
(1995) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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6.3%
(2003 est.) |
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Labor force:
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7.17
million (2003) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture
38%, industry 17%, services 45% (1998 est.) |
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Unemployment rate:
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8.4%
(2003) |
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Budget:
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revenues:
$3.229 billion
expenditures: $4.526 billion, including
capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
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Public debt:
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105.1%
of GDP (2003) |
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Agriculture - products:
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rice,
sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea,
rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef |
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Industries:
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rubber
processing, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural
commodities; clothing, cement, petroleum refining,
textiles, tobacco |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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5.8%
(2003) |
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Electricity - production:
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6.36
billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil
fuel: 51.7%
hydro: 48.3%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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5.915
billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh
(2001) |
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Electricity - imports:
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0 kWh
(2001) |
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Oil - production:
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0
bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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75,000
bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
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NA
(2001) |
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Oil - imports:
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NA
(2001) |
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Current account balance:
|
$-278
million (2003) |
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Exports:
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$5.269
billion f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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textiles
and apparel, tea, diamonds, coconut products,
petroleum products |
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Exports - partners:
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US
33.4%, UK 11.6%, Germany 4.4%, Belgium 4.1%, India
4.1% (2003 est.) |
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Imports:
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$6.626
billion f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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textiles,
mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery
and equipment |
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Imports - partners:
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India
13.3%, China 7.3%, Singapore 7.1%, Hong Kong 5.9%,
Japan 5.5%, South Korea 4.9%, Taiwan 4.6%, UAE 4.5%
(2003 est.) |
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Reserves of foreign exchange & gold:
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$2.273
billion (2003) |
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Debt - external:
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$10.52
billion (2003) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$577
million (1998) |
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Currency:
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Sri
Lankan rupee (LKR) |
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Currency code:
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LKR |
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Exchange rates:
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Sri
Lankan rupees per US dollar - 96.521 (2003), 95.6621
(2002), 89.383 (2001), 77.0051 (2000), 70.6354
(1999) |
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Fiscal year:
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calendar
year
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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881,400
(2002) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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931,600
(2002) |
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Telephone system:
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general
assessment: very inadequate domestic service,
particularly in rural areas; likely 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: country code - 94; submarine
cables to Indonesia and Djibouti; satellite earth
stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (1999) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 26,
FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998) |
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Radios:
|
3.85
million (1997) |
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Television broadcast stations:
|
21
(1997) |
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Televisions:
|
1.53
million (1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.lk |
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Internet hosts:
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1,882
(2003) |
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Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
|
5
(2000) |
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Internet users:
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200,000
(2002)
|
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Railways:
|
total:
1,449 km
broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge (2003) |
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Highways:
|
total:
96,695 km
paved: 91,860 km
unpaved: 4,835 km (1999) |
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Waterways:
|
430 km
(navigable by shallow-draft craft) |
|
Pipelines:
|
crude
oil and petroleum products 62 km (1987) |
|
Ports and harbors:
|
Colombo,
Galle, Jaffna, Trincomalee |
|
Merchant marine:
|
total:
18 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 120,924 GRT/173,604 DWT
by type: cargo 14, container 2, petroleum
tanker 2
registered in other countries: 4 (2003 est.)
foreign-owned: Germany 8, Singapore 1 |
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Airports:
|
14
(2003 est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
|
total:
13
over 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6
914 to 1,523 m: 6 (2003 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
|
total:
1
under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.)
|
|
Military branches:
|
Army,
Navy, Air Force, Police Force |
|
Military manpower - military age:
|
18
years of age (2004 est.) |
|
Military manpower - availability:
|
males
age 15-49: 5,418,496 (2004 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service:
|
males
age 15-49: 4,195,736 (2004 est.) |
|
Military manpower - reaching military age
annually:
|
males:
179,869 (2004 est.) |
|
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
|
$518
million (2003) |
|
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
|
3.2%
(2003)
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| Transnational
Issues |
Sri
Lanka |
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Disputes - international:
|
none
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