Sri Lanka

total: 1,781,530 (2020 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 8 (2020 est.)

government operates 5 TV channels and 19 radio channels; multi-channel satellite and cable TV subscription services available; 25 private TV stations and about 43 radio stations; 6 non-profit TV stations and 4 radio stations

.lk

total: 14.74 million (2021 est.) percent of population: 67% (2021 est.)

general assessment: Sri Lanka s fixed-line telephony market was one of the very few in the world to experience a significant upsurge in subscriptions in 2020; while the country suffers from a relatively poor fixed-line infrastructure and a correspondingly strong mobile sector, demand for traditional phone services increased 14% in 2020; preliminary results suggest a further jump of up to 13% can also be expected in 2021; this will take Sri Lanka s fixed-line penetration to levels not seen since 2013; the most reason behind the market s reversal of fortunes is the Covid-19 crisis and Sri Lanka s ensuring lock downs; these forced much of the population back inside and reverting to traditional methods of communication for both voice and data services; the fixed broadband market was equally robust, growing 20% in 2020 alone; Sri Lanka possesses a relatively low number of computers per household so the fixed broadband market s success comes off a small base; the one area of the telecommunications market that experienced a fall was the mobile segment; up until the start of the pandemic, Sri Lanka had a very high mobile penetration rate of 155%; this near-saturation level reflected the preponderance for subscribers to carry multiple SIM cards to take advantage of cheaper on-net call rates; the reduction in demand and traffic because of the pandemic led to a sharp drop in the number of active subscriptions, down to just 135% a 17% decline in just one year; the market is expected to bounce back quickly, as soon as the country eases back on its lock down measures and reduces travel restrictions; it will also be boosted, come 2022, by the anticipated launch of commercial 5G mobile services (2021) domestic: fixed-line is 13 per 100 and mobile-cellular is 141 per 100 (2021) international: country code - 94; landing points for the SeaMeWe -3,-5, Dhiraagu-SLT Submarine Cable Network, WARF Submarine Cable, Bharat Lanka Cable System and the Bay of Bengal Gateway submarine cables providing connectivity to Asia, Africa, Southeast Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and Europe; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (2019)

total subscriptions: 2,869,186 (2021 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 13 (2021 est.)

total subscriptions: 30,764,134 (2021 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 141 (2021 est.)

rice, coconuts, sugar cane, plantains, milk, tea, cassava, maize, poultry, coir

on food: 28% of household expenditures (2018 est.) on alcohol and tobacco: 2% of household expenditures (2018 est.)

revenues: $10.623 billion (2019 est.) expenditures: $17.496 billion (2019 est.)

-5.5% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Fitch rating: CCC (2020) Moody's rating: Caa1 (2020) Standard & Poors rating: CCC+ (2020) note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.

-$1.083 billion (2020 est.) -$1.843 billion (2019 est.) -$2.799 billion (2018 est.)

$55.332 billion (2019 est.) $52.567 billion (2018 est.)

lower middle-income South Asian island economy; extremely high public debts; rapid inflation; facing domestic food, fuel, and medicine shortages; tourism industry disrupted by COVID-19; known garment and commodities exporter; low foreign exchange reserves

Sri Lankan rupees (LKR) per US dollar - 198.764 (2021 est.) 185.593 (2020 est.) 178.745 (2019 est.) 162.465 (2018 est.) 152.446 (2017 est.)

$13.083 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars $19.414 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars $20.264 billion (2018 est.)

clothing and apparel, tea, used tires, rubber products, precious stones, cinnamon (2019)

United States 24%, India 8%, United Kingdom 7%, Germany 7% (2019)

calendar year

$84.016 billion (2019 est.)

household consumption: 62% (2017 est.) government consumption: 8.5% (2017 est.) investment in fixed capital: 26.3% (2017 est.) investment in inventories: 10.2% (2017 est.) exports of goods and services: 21.9% (2017 est.) imports of goods and services: -29.1% (2017 est.)

agriculture: 7.8% (2017 est.) industry: 30.5% (2017 est.) services: 61.7% (2017 est.)

39.3 (2016 est.)

lowest 10%: 3% highest 10%: 32.2% (2012 est.)

$18.271 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars $24.562 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars $26.841 billion (2018 est.)

refined petroleum, textiles, gold, cars, broadcasting equipment (2019)

India 24%, China 23%, Singapore 7%, United Arab Emirates 6%, Malaysia 5% (2019)

5.62% (2021 est.)

processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, tobacco and other agricultural commodities; telecommunications, insurance, banking; tourism, shipping; clothing, textiles; cement, petroleum refining, information technology services, construction

7.01% (2021 est.) 6.15% (2020 est.) 3.53% (2019 est.)

8.268 million (2021 est.)

4.1% (2016 est.)

79.1% of GDP (2017 est.) 79.6% of GDP (2016 est.) note: covers central government debt and excludes debt instruments directly owned by government entities other than the treasury (e.g. commercial bank borrowings of a government corporation); the data includes treasury debt held by foreign entities as well as intragovernmental debt; intragovernmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement; sub-national entities are usually not permitted to sell debt instruments

$296.595 billion (2021 est.) $287.046 billion (2020 est.) $297.372 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in 2017 dollars

3.33% (2021 est.) -3.47% (2020 est.) -0.22% (2019 est.)

$13,400 (2021 est.) $13,100 (2020 est.) $13,600 (2019 est.) note: data are in 2017 dollars

$3.137 billion (31 December 2021 est.) $5.664 billion (31 December 2020 est.) $7.648 billion (31 December 2019 est.)

7.68% (of GDP) (2020 est.)

5.39% (2021 est.) 5.88% (2020 est.) 4.35% (2019 est.)

total: 26.1% (2021 est.) male: 21.1% female: 35.6%

23.939 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.) from coal and metallurgical coke: 5.546 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.) from petroleum and other liquids: 18.393 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.) from consumed natural gas: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)

production: 0 metric tons (2020 est.) consumption: 2.237 million metric tons (2020 est.) exports: 0 metric tons (2020 est.) imports: 2.586 million metric tons (2020 est.) proven reserves: 0 metric tons (2019 est.)

installed generating capacity: 4.527 million kW (2020 est.) consumption: 13,991,420,000 kWh (2019 est.) exports: 0 kWh (2020 est.) imports: 0 kWh (2020 est.) transmission/distribution losses: 1.337 billion kWh (2019 est.)

electrification - total population: 100% (2021)

fossil fuels: 64% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) solar: 0.7% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) wind: 2.3% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) hydroelectricity: 32.2% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) geothermal: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) biomass and waste: 0.8% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)

17.268 million Btu/person (2019 est.)

production: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.) consumption: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.) exports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.) imports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.) proven reserves: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2021 est.) refined petroleum consumption: 131,100 bbl/day (2019 est.) crude oil and lease condensate exports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.) crude oil and lease condensate imports: 35,300 bbl/day (2018 est.) crude oil estimated reserves: 0 barrels (2021 est.)

3,871 bbl/day (2015 est.)

66,280 bbl/day (2015 est.)

34,210 bbl/day (2017 est.)

particulate matter emissions: 23.88 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.) carbon dioxide emissions: 23.36 megatons (2016 est.) methane emissions: 10.95 megatons (2020 est.)

tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)

deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by poaching and urbanization; coastal degradation from mining activities and increased pollution; coral reef destruction; freshwater resources being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff; waste disposal; air pollution in Colombo

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Marine Life Conservation

widespread lack of access: due to unfavorable prospects for 2023 agricultural output and high prices of key food items - the 2023 cereal production is forecast below the five-year average, mostly reflecting constraints on farmers access to agricultural inputs; elevated prices of key food items are also constraining economic access to food for a large number of households (2023)

agricultural land: 43.5% (2018 est.) arable land: 20.7% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 15.8% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 7% (2018 est.) forest: 29.4% (2018 est.) other: 27.1% (2018 est.)

0% of GDP (2018 est.)

0.06% of GDP (2018 est.)

52.8 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)

municipal: 810 million cubic meters (2020 est.) industrial: 830 million cubic meters (2020 est.) agricultural: 11.31 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)

urban population: 19.2% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 1.22% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

municipal solid waste generated annually: 2,631,650 tons (2016 est.) municipal solid waste recycled annually: 336,588 tons (2016 est.) percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 12.8% (2016 est.)

total: 65,610 sq km land: 64,630 sq km water: 980 sq km

slightly larger than West Virginia

tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)

1,340 km

highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m mean elevation: 228 m

7 00 N, 81 00 E

strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes; Adam's Bridge is a chain of limestone shoals between the southeastern coast of India and the northwestern coast of Sri Lanka; geological evidence suggests that this 50-km long Bridge once connected India and Sri Lanka; ancient records seem to indicate that a foot passage was possible between the two land masses until the 15th century when the land bridge broke up in a cyclone

5,700 sq km (2012)

total: 0 km

agricultural land: 43.5% (2018 est.) arable land: 20.7% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 15.8% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 7% (2018 est.) forest: 29.4% (2018 est.) other: 27.1% (2018 est.)

Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India

Asia

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

occasional cyclones and tornadoes

limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower, arable land

the population is primarily concentrated within a broad wet zone in the southwest, urban centers along the eastern coast, and on the Jaffna Peninsula in the north

mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior

9 provinces; Central, Eastern, North Central, Northern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western

name: Colombo (commercial capital); Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital) geographic coordinates: 6 55 N, 79 50 E time difference: UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: Colombo may derive from the Sinhala "kolon thota," meaning "port on the river" (referring to the Kelani River that empties into the Indian Ocean at Colombo); alternatively, the name may derive from the Sinhala "kola amba thota" meaning "harbor with mango trees"; it is also possible that the Portuguese named the city after Christopher COLUMBUS, who lived in Portugal for many years (as Cristovao COLOMBO) before discovering the Americas for the Spanish crown in 1492 - not long before the Portuguese made their way to Sri Lanka in 1505; Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte translates as "Resplendent City of Growing Victory" in Sinhala

citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Sri Lanka dual citizenship recognized: no, except in cases where the government rules it is to the benefit of Sri Lanka residency requirement for naturalization: 7 years

history: several previous; latest adopted 16 August 1978, certified 31 August 1978 amendments: proposed by Parliament; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote of its total membership, certification by the president of the republic or the Parliament speaker, and in some cases approval in a referendum by absolute majority of valid votes; amended many times, last in 2020

conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka conventional short form: Sri Lanka local long form: Shri Lanka Prajatantrika Samajavadi Janarajaya (Sinhala)/ Ilankai Jananayaka Choshalichak Kutiyarachu (Tamil) local short form: Shri Lanka (Sinhala)/ Ilankai (Tamil) former: Serendib, Ceylon etymology: the name means "resplendent island" in Sanskrit

chief of mission: Ambassador Julie J. CHUNG (since 17 February 2022) embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 03 mailing address: 6100 Colombo Place, Washington DC 20521-6100 telephone: [94] (11) 249-8500 FAX: [94] (11) 243-7345 email address and website: colomboacs@state.gov https://lk.usembassy.gov/

chief of mission: Ambassador Mahinda SAMARASINGHE (since 13 January 2022) chancery: 3025 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4025 FAX: [1] (202) 232-7181 email address and website: slembassy@slembassyusa.org https://slembassyusa.org/new/ consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York

chief of state: President Ranil WICKREMESINGHE (since 20 July 2022); the president is both chief of state and head of government; Prime Minister Dinesh GUNAWARDENA (since 22 July 2022) head of government: President Ranil WICKREMESINGHE (since 20 July 2022) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister elections/appointments: president directly elected by preferential majority popular vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 16 November 2019 (next to be held in 2024); prime minister appointed by the president from among members of Parliament for a 5-year term) election results: Ranil WICKREMESINGHE elected president by Parliament on 20 July 2022; Parliament vote - WICKREMESINGHE (UNP) 134, Dullas ALAHAPPERUNA (SLPP) 82 Note : amid public protests which began in March 2022, President Gotabaya RAJAPAKSE fled the country on 13 July and Ranil WICKREMESINGHE became acting president; RAJAPAKSE announced his resignation on the 14th, which was accepted by the speaker of Parliament the following day

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 maroon 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 Sri Lankan Moors, and maroon the Sinhalese majority; yellow denotes other ethnic groups; also referred to as the Lion Flag

presidential republic

4 February 1948 (from the UK)

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

ABEDA, ADB, ARF, BIMSTEC, C, CD, CICA (observer), CP, FAO, G-11, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, SCO (dialogue member), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNISFA, UNMISS, UNOOSA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

highest court(s): Supreme Court of the Republic (consists of the chief justice and 9 justices); note - the court has exclusive jurisdiction to review legislation judge selection and term of office: chief justice nominated by the Constitutional Council (CC), a 9-member high-level advisory body, and appointed by the president; other justices nominated by the CC and appointed by the president on the advice of the chief justice; all justices can serve until age 65 subordinate courts: Court of Appeals; High Courts; Magistrates' Courts; municipal and primary courts

mixed legal system of Roman-Dutch civil law, English common law, Jaffna Tamil customary law, and Muslim personal law

description: unicameral Parliament (225 seats; 196 members directly elected in multi-seat district constituencies by proportional representation vote using a preferential method in which voters select 3 candidates in order of preference; remaining 29 seats, referred to as the "national list" are allocated by each party secretary according to the island wide proportional vote the party obtains; members serve 5-year terms) elections: last held on 5 August 2020 (next to be held in August 2025) election results: percent of vote by coalition/party - SLFPA 59.1%, SJB 23.9%, JVP 3.8%, TNA 2.8%, UNP 2.2%, TNPF 0.6%, EPDP 0.5%, other 7.1%; seats by coalition/party - SLFPA 145, SJB 54, TNA 10, JVP 3, other 13; composition - men 213, women 12, percent of women 5.3%

name: "Sri Lanka Matha" (Mother Sri Lanka) lyrics/music: Ananda SAMARKONE note: adopted 1951

total World Heritage Sites: 8 (6 cultural, 2 natural) selected World Heritage Site locales: Ancient City of Polonnaruwa (c); Ancient City of Sigiriya (c); Sacred City of Anuradhapura (c); Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications (c); Sacred City of Kandy (c); Sinharaja Forest Reserve (n); Rangiri Dambulla Cave Temple (c); Central Highlands of Sri Lanka (n)

Independence Day (National Day), 4 February (1948)

lion, water lily; national colors: maroon, yellow

Crusaders for Democracy or CFD [Ganeshalingam CHANDRALINGAM] Eelam People's Democratic Party or EPDP [Douglas DEVANANDA] Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF [Suresh PREMACHANDRAN] Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi or ITAK [Mavai SENATHIRAJAH] Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna or JVP [Anura Kumara DISSANAYAKE] Jathika Hela Urumaya or JHU [Udaya GAMMANPILA] National People's Power or NPP (also known as Jathika Jana Balawegaya or JJB) [Anura Kumara DISSANAYAKE] People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam or PLOTE [Dharmalingam SIDDARTHAN] Samagi Jana Balawegaya or SJB [Sajith PREMADASA] Sri Lanka Freedom Party or SLFP [Maithripala SIRISENA] Sri Lanka Muslim Congress or SLMC [Rauff HAKEEM] Sri Lanka People's Freedom Alliance or SLPFA [Mahinda RAJAPAKSA] (includes SLPFP, SLPP, and several smaller parties) Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (Sri Lanka's People's Front) or SLPP [Gamini Lakshman PEIRIS] Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization or TELO [Selvam ADAIKALANATHAN] Tamil National Alliance or TNA [Rajavarothiam SAMPANTHAN] (includes ITAK, PLOTE, TELO) Tamil National People's Front or TNPF [Gajendrakumar PONNAMBALAM] Tamil People's National Alliance or TPNA [Canagasabapathy Visuvalingam VIGNESWARAN] United National Front for Good Governance or UNFGG [Ranil WICKREMESINGHE] (coalition includes JHU, UNP) United National Party or UNP [Ranil WICKREMESINGHE]

18 years of age; universal

The first Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C., probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced circa 250 B.C., and the first kingdoms developed at the cities of Anuradhapura (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 Portuguese controlled the coastal areas of the island in the 16th century followed by the Dutch in the 17th century. The island was ceded to the British in 1796, became a crown colony in 1802, and was formally united under British rule by 1815. As Ceylon, it became independent in 1948; its name was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972. Prevailing tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted into war in July 1983. Fighting between the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) continued for over a quarter century. Although Norway brokered peace negotiations that led to a cease-fire in 2002, the fighting slowly resumed and was again in full force by 2006. The government defeated the LTTE in May 2009. During the post-conflict years under then-President Mahinda RAJAPAKSA, the government initiated infrastructure development projects, many of which were financed by loans from China. His regime faced significant allegations of human rights violations and a shrinking democratic space for civil society. In 2015, a new coalition government headed by then-President Maithripala SIRISENA of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and then-Prime Minister Ranil WICKREMESINGHE of the United National Party came to power with pledges to advance economic, governance, anti-corruption, reconciliation, justice, and accountability reforms. However, implementation of these reforms was uneven. In November 2019, Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA won the presidential election and appointed his brother, Mahinda, prime minister. Following Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA s election, civil society raised concerns about his administration s commitment to pursuing justice, human rights, and accountability reforms, as well as the risks to foreign creditors that Sri Lanka faces given its ongoing economic crisis. A combination of factors including the impact of the worldwide COVID pandemic; severe shortages of food, medicine, and fuel; and power outages triggered increasingly violent protests in Columbo beginning in March 2022. In May 2022, longtime parliamentarian and former five-time prime minister, Ranil WICKREMESINGHE replaced Mahinda RAJAPASKA as prime-minister and then in July 2022, Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA fled from office in response to protests, and parliament subsequently elected WICKREMESINGHE president. Later that month, WICKREMESINGHE appointed Dinesh GUNAWARDENA to replace him as prime minister.

the military is responsible for external defense and may be called upon to handle specifically delineated domestic security responsibilities that generally do not include arrest authority; it has sent small numbers of personnel on UN peacekeeping missions; from 1983 to 2009, it fought against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a conflict that involved both guerrilla and conventional warfare, as well as acts of terrorism and human rights abuses, and cost the military nearly 30,000 killed; since the end of the war, a large portion of the Army reportedly remains deployed in the majority Tamil-populated northern and eastern provinces; the military over the past decade also has increased its role in a range of commercial sectors including agriculture, hotels, leisure, and restaurants the Army did not downsize following the LTTE war and continues to have about 20 infantry divisions, plus several independent brigades and regiments; however, in 2023 the Sri Lankan Government announced that because of the country s financial crisis, it would slash the size of the Army 40% by 2024 with deeper cuts planned by 2030; the Navy has a frigate transferred from China in 2019 and several offshore patrol ships acquired from India and the US to patrol its territorial waters; it also has a large force of small in-shore patrol and fast attack boats, largely acquired to combat the LTTE; the Air Force is small and much of its inventory is aging; it has a handful of operational fighter aircraft and a few dozen attack and multi-role helicopters Sri Lanka traditionally has had close security ties to India; India participated in the LTTE war in 1987-1991 and lost over 1,000 soldiers; the Sri Lankan and Indian militaries continue to conduct exercises together, and India trains over 1,000 Sri Lankan soldiers per year; in recent years, Sri Lanka has increased military ties with China, including acquiring military equipment, hosting naval port calls, and sending personnel to China for training (2023)

Sri Lanka Armed Forces: Sri Lanka Army (includes National Guard and the Volunteer Force), Sri Lanka Navy (includes Marine Corps), Sri Lanka Air Force, Sri Lanka Coast Guard; Civil Security Department (Home Guard) Ministry of Public Security: Sri Lanka National Police (2023) note 1: the Civil Security Department, also known as the Civil Defense Force, is an auxiliary force administered by the Ministry of Defense note 2: the Sri Lanka Police includes the Special Task Force, a paramilitary unit responsible for counterterrorism and counterinsurgency operations; it coordinates internal security operations with the military

approximately 260,000 total personnel (200,000 Army; 30,000 Navy; 30,000 Air Force); approximately 11,000 Special Task Force personnel (2023) note: in January 2023, Sri Lanka s Ministry of Defense announced plans to decrease the size of the Army to 135,000 by 2024 and 100,000 by 2030

100 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 125 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 240 Mali (MINUSMA) (2023)

the military's inventory consists mostly of Chinese and Russian-origin equipment with a smaller mix of material from countries such as India and the US (2023)

1.7% of GDP (2022 est.) 1.9% of GDP (2021 est.) 2% of GDP (2020 est.) 2% of GDP (2019 est.) 1.9% of GDP (2018 est.)

18-22 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women; no conscription (2023)

0-14 years: 21.95% (male 2,609,642/female 2,511,570) 15-64 years: 66.22% (male 7,609,573/female 7,836,480) 65 years and over: 11.83% (2023 est.) (male 1,156,637/female 1,602,370)

total: 2.58 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) beer: 0.22 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) wine: 0.01 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) spirits: 2.32 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) other alcohols: 0.03 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

14.6 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

women married by age 15: 0.9% women married by age 18: 9.8% (2016 est.)

20.5% (2016)

64.6% (2016)

4.1% of GDP (2020)

65.1% (2023 est.)

7.4 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

total dependency ratio: 53.7 youth dependency ratio: 35.4 elderly dependency ratio: 17 potential support ratio: 5.9 (2021 est.)

improved: urban: 99.7% of population rural: 91.2% of population total: 92.8% of population unimproved: urban: 0.3% of population rural: 8.8% of population total: 7.2% of population (2020 est.)

1.9% of GDP (2019 est.)

Sinhalese 74.9%, Sri Lankan Tamil 11.2%, Sri Lankan Moors 9.2%, Indian Tamil 4.2%, other 0.5% (2012 est.)

1.05 (2023 est.)

4.2 beds/1,000 population (2017)

total: 6.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.) male: 7.5 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.1 deaths/1,000 live births

Sinhala (official and national language) 87%, Tamil (official and national language) 28.5%, English 23.8% (2012 est.) note: data represent main languages spoken by the population aged 10 years and older; shares sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census; English is commonly used in government and is referred to as the "link language" in the constitution

total population: 76.6 years (2023 est.) male: 73.6 years female: 79.8 years

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 92.3% male: 93% female: 91.6% (2019)

degree of risk: intermediate (2023) vectorborne diseases: dengue fever water contact diseases: leptospirosis animal contact diseases: rabies

103,000 Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital) (2018), 633,000 COLOMBO (capital) (2023)

29 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

total: 33.9 years (2023 est.) male: 32.1 years female: 35.6 years

25.6 years (2016 est.) note: data represents median age at first birth among women 30-34

noun: Sri Lankan(s) adjective: Sri Lankan

-1.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

5.2% (2016)

1.23 physicians/1,000 population (2020)

23,326,272 (2023 est.)

the population is primarily concentrated within a broad wet zone in the southwest, urban centers along the eastern coast, and on the Jaffna Peninsula in the north

0.56% (2023 est.)

Buddhist (official) 70.2%, Hindu 12.6%, Muslim 9.7%, Roman Catholic 6.1%, other Christian 1.3%, other 0.05% (2012 est.)

improved: urban: 96.6% of population rural: 97.9% of population total: 97.6% of population unimproved: urban: 3.4% of population rural: 2.1% of population total: 2.4% of population (2020 est.)

total: 14 years male: 14 years female: 14 years (2018)

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2023 est.)

total: 22% (2020 est.) male: 41.4% (2020 est.) female: 2.6% (2020 est.)

2.14 children born/woman (2023 est.)

urban population: 19.2% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 1.22% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Sri Lanka Aeronautics and Space Agency (SLASA; established 2019); Space Applications Division of the Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Modern Technologies (ACCIMT; created 1984) (2023)

has a small space program focused on acquiring satellites and conducting research and development in space-related technologies, such as electronics, telecommunications, information technology, and robotics; has cooperated with the space agencies or industries of China, France, India, Japan, and the US (2023) note: further details about the key activities, programs, and milestones of the country s space program, as well as government spending estimates on the space sector, appear in Appendix S

Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS); Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix-T

none identified

IDPs: 12,000 (civil war; more than half displaced prior to 2008; many of the more than 480,000 IDPs registered as returnees have not reached durable solutions) (2022) stateless persons: 35 (2022)

18 (2021)

11 note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the typical length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)

7 note: unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control

4R

1 (2021)

total: 92 (2022) by type: bulk carrier 5, general cargo 13, oil tanker 11, other 63

number of registered air carriers: 3 (2020) inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 34 annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 5,882,376 (2018) annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 436.2 million (2018) mt-km

7 km refined products

major seaport(s): Colombo container port(s) (TEUs): Colombo (7,250,000) (2021)

total: 1,562 km (2016) broad gauge: 1,562 km (2016) 1.676-m gauge

total: 114,093 km (2010) paved: 16,977 km (2010) unpaved: 97,116 km (2010)

160 km (2012) (primarily on rivers in southwest)