Statistical information Sri Lanka 1992

Sri Lanka in the World
top of pageBackground: 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.
top of pageLocationGeographic coordinatesMap referenceAreaTotal: 65,610 km²
Land: 64,740 km²
Comparative: slightly larger than West Virginia
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 1,340 km
Maritime claimsContiguous zone: 24 nm
Continental shelf: edge of continental margin or 200 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Disputes: none
Climate: tropical; monsoonal; northeast monsoon (December to March; southwest monsoon (June to October)
Terrain: mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior
ElevationNatural resources: limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay
Land use: arable land: 16%; permanent crops: 17%; meadows and pastures 7%; forest and woodland 37%; other 23%; includes irrigated 8%
Irrigated landMajor riversMajor watersheds area km²Total water withdrawalTotal renewable water resourcesNatural hazardsGeographytop of pagePopulation: 17,631,528 (July 1992), growth rate 1.2% (1992; note - about 120,000 people fled to India in 1991 because of fighting between government forces and Tamil insurgents; about 200,000 Tamils will be repatriated in 1992
Nationality: noun - Sri Lankan(s; adjective - Sri Lankan
Ethnic groups:
Sinhalese 74%; Tamil 18%; Moor 7%; Burgher, Malay, and
Veddha 1%
Languages: Sinhala (official; Sinhala and Tamil listed as national languages; Sinhala spoken by about 74% of population, Tamil spoken by about 18%; English commonly used in government and spoken by about 10% of the population
Religions: Buddhist 69%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 8%
Demographic profileAge structureDependency ratiosMedian agePopulation growth rateBirth rate: 20 births/1000 population (1992)
Death rate: 6 deaths/1000 population (1992)
Net migration rate: -2 migrants/1000 population (1992)
Population distributionUrbanizationMajor urban areasEnvironmentCurrent issues: occasional cyclones, tornados; deforestation; soil erosion
Current issues note:only 29 km from India across the Palk Strait; near major Indian
Ocean sea lanes
Air pollutantsSex ratioMothers mean age at first birthMaternal mortality ratioInfant mortality rate: 21 deaths/1000 live births (1992)
Life expectancy at birth: 69 years male, 74 years female (1992)
Total fertility rate: 2.2 children born/woman (1992)
Contraceptive prevalence rateDrinking water sourceCurrent health expenditurePhysicians densityHospital bed densitySanitation facility accessHiv/AidsMajor infectious diseasesObesity adult prevalence rateAlcohol consumptionTobacco useChildren under the age of 5 years underweightEducation expendituresLiteracy: 86% (male 91%, female 81%) age 15 and over can read and write (1981)
School life expectancy primary to tertiary educationYouth unemploymenttop of pageCountry nameConventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Government type: republic
Capital: Colombo
Administrative divisions:
the administrative structure now includes 9 provinces - Central, Eastern, North, North Central, North Western,
Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, and Western and 24 districts - Amparai,
Anuradhapura, Badulla, Batticaloa, Colombo, Galle, Gampaha, Hambantota,
Jaffna, Kalutara, Kandy, Kegalla, Kurunegala, Mannar, Matale, Matara,
Moneragala, Mullaittivu, Nuwara Eliya, Polonnaruwa, Puttalam, Ratnapura,
Trincomalee, Vavuniya; note - in the future there may be only 8 provinces (combining the two provinces of North and Eastern into one province of North
Eastern) and 25 districts (adding Kilinochchi to the existing districts)
Dependent areasIndependence: 4 February 1948 (from UK; formerly Ceylon)
National holiday: Independence and National Day, 4 February (1948)
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
International law organization participationCitizenshipSuffrage: universal at age 18
President: last held 19 December 1988 (next to be held NA December 1994); results - Ranasinghe PREMADASA (UNP) 50%, Sirimavo BANDARANAIKE (SLFP) 45%, other 5%
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
Political parties and leadersInternational organization participation:
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, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador W. Susanta De ALWIS; Chancery at 2,148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,008; telephone (202) 483-4,025 through 4,028; there is a Sri Lankan Consulate in New York
US:Ambassador Marion V. CREEKMORE, Jr.; Embassy at 210 Galle Road,
Colombo 3 (mailing address is P. O. Box 106, Colombo); telephone 94 (1) 44,180,107, FAX 94 (1) 43-73-45
Diplomatic representationFlag 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
National symbolsNational anthemNational heritagetop of pageEconomy 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 as domestic conditions began to improve.
GDP: exchange rate conversion - $7.2 billion, per capita $410; real growth rate 5.0% (1991 est.)
Real gdp purchasing power parityReal gdp growth rateReal gdp per capitaGross national savingGdp composition by sector of origin
Gdp composition by end useGdp composition by sector of originAgriculture products: 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
Industries: processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco, clothing
Industrial production growth rate:
growth rate 8% (1991 est.); accounts for 20% of
GDP
Labor force: 6,600,000; agriculture 45.9%, mining and manufacturing 13.3%, trade and transport 12.4%, services and other 28.4% (1985 est.)
Organized labor: about 30% of labor force, over 50% of which are employed on tea, rubber, and coconut estates
Unemployment rate: 14% (1991 est.)
Youth unemploymentPopulation below poverty lineGini indexHousehold income or consumption by percentage shareDistribution of family income gini indexBudget: revenues $2.0 billion; expenditures $3.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (1992)
Taxes and other revenuesPublic debtRevenueFiscal year: calendar year
Inflation rate consumer pricesCentral bank discount rateCommercial bank prime lending rateStock of narrow moneyStock of broad moneyStock of domestic creditMarket value of publicly traded sharesCurrent account balanceExports: $2.3 billion (f.o.b., 1991)
Commodoties: textiles and garment, teas, petroleum products, coconut, rubber, agricultural products, gems and jewelry, marine products
Partners: US 25%, FRG, Japan, UK, Belgium, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China
Imports: $3.0 billion (c.i.f., 1991)
Commodoties: food and beverages, textiles and textile materials, petroleum, machinery and equipment
Partners: Japan, Iran, US 7.7%, India, Taiwan, Singapore, FRG, UK
Reserves of foreign exchange and goldDebt externalStock of direct foreign investment at homeStock of direct foreign investment abroadExchange rates: Sri Lankan rupees (SLRes) per US$1 - 43.112 (March 1992), 41.372 (1991), 40.063 (1990), 36.047 (1989), 31.807 (1988), 29.445 (1987)
top of pageElectricityProduction: 1,300,000 kW capacity; 4,200 million kWh produced, 240 kWh per capita (1990)
CoalPetroleumCrude oilRefined petroleumNatural gasCarbon dioxide emissionsEnergy consumption per capitatop of pageTelephonesTelephone systemBroadcast mediaInternetBroadband fixed subscriptionstop of pageMilitary expendituresPercent of gdp: exchange rate conversion - $432 million, 6% of GDP (1991)
Military and security forcesMilitary service age and obligationSpace programTerrorist groupstop of pageNational air transport systemCivil aircraft registration country code prefixAirports:
14 total, 13 usable; 12 with permanent-surface runways; none
with runways over 3,659 m; 1
with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 7
with runways 1,220-2,439 m
HeliportsPipelines: crude oil and petroleum products 62 km (1987)
RailwaysRoadwaysWaterways: 430 km; navigable by shallow-draft craft
Merchant marine:
30 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 310,173
GRT/489,378 DWT; includes 13 cargo, 6 refrigerated cargo, 5 container, 3 petroleum tanker, 3 bulk
Civil air: 8 major transport (including 1 leased)
Ports and terminalstop of pageDisputes internationalRefugees and internally displaced personsIllicit drugs