About Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Introduction
The majority of the peoples of Sri Lanka trace their origins to India. 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 the LTTE 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.
Geography
Location
Location: Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India
Geographic Coordinates: 7 00 N, 81 00 E
Area
Total Area: 65,610 sq km Rank: 121
Land Area: 64,630 sq km
Water Area: 980 sq km
Comparison: slightly larger than West Virginia
Land Boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 1,340 km
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
Elevations
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)
Renewable Water Resources: 50 cu km (1999)
Total Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural): 12.61 cu km/yr (2%/2%/95%)
Freshwater Withdrawal Per Capita: 608 cu m/yr (2000)
Environment
Natural Hazards: occasional cyclones and tornadoes
Environmental Issues: 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
Environmental 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
Geography Notes
strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes
People
Population: 21,324,791 Rank: 54
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 and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought refuge in the West (July 2010 est.)
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) (2010 est.)
Median Age: 30.3 years
Population Growth
Growth Rate: 0.904% (2010 est.) Rank: 136
Birth Rate: 16.26 births/1,000 population (2010 est.) Rank: 130
Death Rate: 6.13 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.) Rank: 157
Net Migration Rate: -1.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.) Rank: 119
Urbanization
Urban Population: 15% of total population (2008)
Rate of Urbanization: 0.5% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Life and Death
Infant Mortality Rate: 18.57 deaths/1,000 live births Rank: 108
Life Expectancy at Birth: 75.14 years Rank: 85
Fertility Rate: 1.96 children born/woman (2010 est.) Rank: 131
Health and Disease
HIV/AIDS - Adult Prevalence Rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.) Rank: 157
People living with HIV/AIDS: 3,800 (2007 est.) Rank: 127
HIV/AIDS Deaths: fewer than 200 (2003 est.) Rank: 117
Degree of Risk for Major Infectious Diseases: high
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea and hepatitis A
Vectorborne disease: dengue fever and chikungunya
Water Contact Diseases: leptospirosis
Animal Contact Diseases: rabies (2009)
Nationality and Culture
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)
Religion: 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%
Education
Literacy (Meaning, age 15 and over can read and write): 90.7% Male: 92.3% Female: 89.1% (2001 census)
Education expenditures: NA
Government
Country Name
Conventional Long Form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Conventional Short Form: Sri Lanka
Local Long Form: Shri Lamka Prajatantrika Samajaya di Janarajaya/Ilankai Jananayaka Choshalichak Kutiyarachu
Local Short Form: Shri Lamka/Ilankai
Formerly: Serendib, Ceylon
Government Type: republic
Capital: Colombo Geographic Coordinates: 6 56 N, 79 51 E
Note: Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital)
Administrative divisions
9 provinces; Central, Eastern, North Central, Northern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western
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; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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; Dissanayake Mudiyanselage JAYARATNE holds the largely ceremonial title of prime minister (since 21 April 2010)
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 reelected president for second term; percent of vote - Mahinda RAJAPAKSA 57.88%, Sarath FONSEKA 40.15%, other 1.97%
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)
Elections: last held on 8 April 2010 with a repoll in two electorates held on 20 April 2010 (next to be held in April 2016)
Election Results: percent of vote by alliance or party - United People's Freedom Alliance 60.93%, United National Party 29.34%, Democratic National Alliance 5.49%, Tamil National Alliance 2.9%, other 1.94%; seats by alliance or party - United People's Freedom Alliance 144, United National Party 60, Tamil National Alliance 14, Democratic National Alliance 7
Judicial branch
Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president
Politics
Political Parties and Leaders: All Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC [G.PONNAMBALAM]; Ceylon Workers Congress or CWC [Arumugam THONDAMAN]; Communist Party or CP [D. GUNASEKERA]; Democratic People's Front [Mano GANESAN]; Eelam People's Democratic Party or EPDP [Douglas DEVANANDA]; Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF [Suresh PREMACHANDRAN]; 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 Freedom Party or SLFP [Mahinda RAJAPAKSA]; 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
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; the lion represents Sinhalese ethnicity, the strength of the nation, and bravery; the sword demonstrates the sovereignty of the nation; the four bo leaves - symbolizing Buddhism and its influence on the country - stand for the four virtues of kindness, friendliness, happiness, and equanimity; orange signifies Sri Lankan Tamils, green the Sri Lankan Moors; dark red represents the European Burghers, but also refers to the rich colonial background of the country; yellow denotes other ethnic groups; also referred to as the Lion Flag
Economy
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 around 6-7% per year in 2006-08. Growth was 3.5% in 2009, still high despite the world recession. 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.
Gross Domestic Product
GDP (purchasing power parity): $96.6 billion (2009 est.) Rank: 69
GDP - real growth rate: 3.5% (2009 est.) Rank: 54
GDP - per capita (PPP): $4,500 (2009 est.) Rank: 150
GDP - Composition by Sector: Agriculture: 12.6% Industry: 29.7% Services: 57.7% (2009 est.)
Labor Force
Labor Force: 7.572 million Rank: 58
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.) Rank: 54
Poverty
Population below poverty line: 23% (2008 est.)
Transnational Issues
International Disputes: none
