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Background:
|
 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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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:
13.43%
permanent crops: 15.78%
other: 70.79% (1998 est.) |
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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 (2003
est.)
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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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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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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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 - $73.49 billion (2003 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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5.2%
(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:
19.2%
industry: 25.3%
services: 55.5% (2002) |
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Population below poverty line:
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22%
(1997 est.) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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9%
(2003 est.) |
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Labor force:
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6.6
million (1998) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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services
45%, agriculture 38%, industry 17% (1998 est.) |
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Unemployment rate:
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8%
(2003) |
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Budget:
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revenues:
$2.8 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital
expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
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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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7.6%
(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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Agriculture - products:
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rice,
sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber,
coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef |
|
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
37.7%, UK 12.6%, Germany 4.3% (2002) |
|
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
13.8%, Hong Kong 8.1%, Singapore 7.2%, Japan 5.9%, South Korea
5%, Taiwan 4.8%, UAE 4.5%, UK 4.3%, China 4.3% (2002) |
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Debt - external:
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$10.1
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 - 96.52 (2003), 95.66 (2002),
89.38 (2001), 77.01 (2000), 70.64 (1999) |
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Fiscal year:
|
calendar
year |
|
Telephones - main lines in use:
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883,100 (2002) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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931,600 (2002) |
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Telephone system:
|
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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Television broadcast stations:
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21 (1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.lk |
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Internet hosts:
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2,335 (2002) |
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Internet users:
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200,000 (2002) |
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Railways:
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total:
1,508 km
broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge
narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge (2002) |
|
Highways:
|
total:
96,695 km
paved: 91,860 km
unpaved: 4,835 km (1999) |
|
Waterways:
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430 km (navigable
by shallow-draft craft) |
|
Pipelines:
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crude oil and
petroleum products 62 km (1987) |
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Ports and harbors:
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Colombo, Galle,
Jaffna, Trincomalee |
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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:
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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:
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total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.) |
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Military branches:
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Army,
Navy, Air Force, Police Force |
|
Military manpower - military age:
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18
years of age (2004 est.) |
|
Military manpower - availability:
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males
age 15-49: 5,418,496 (2004 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service:
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males
age 15-49: 4,195,736 (2004 est.) |
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Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
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males:
179,869 (2004 est.) |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
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$518
million (2003) |
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Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
|
3.2% (2003) |
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Disputes - international:
|
none |
This page was last updated on 11 May, 2004
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