Guinea (2004) | Sri Lanka (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 33 prefectures and 1 special zone (zone special)*; Beyla, Boffa, Boke, Conakry*, Coyah, Dabola, Dalaba, Dinguiraye, Dubreka, Faranah, Forecariah, Fria, Gaoual, Gueckedou, Kankan, Kerouane, Kindia, Kissidougou, Koubia, Koundara, Kouroussa, Labe, Lelouma, Lola, Macenta, Mali, Mamou, Mandiana, Nzerekore, Pita, Siguiri, Telimele, Tougue, Yomou | 8 provinces; Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western
note: in October 2006, the Sri Lankan Supreme Court ruled voided a presidential directive merging the North and Eastern Provinces; many have defended the merger as a prerequisite for a negotiated settlement to the ethnic conflict; a parliamentary decision on the issue is pending |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 44.4% (male 2,075,652; female 2,032,936)
15-64 years: 52.4% (male 2,417,440; female 2,428,085) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 127,654; female 164,695) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 24.3% (male 2,596,295/female 2,495,949)
15-64 years: 67.9% (male 6,947,310/female 7,259,271) 65 years and over: 7.8% (male 765,507/female 861,983) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava (tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber | rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef; fish |
Airports | 16 (2003 est.) | 18 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 14
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 11
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
Area | total: 245,857 sq km
land: 245,857 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 65,610 sq km
land: 64,740 sq km water: 870 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly larger than West Virginia |
Background | Guinea has had only two presidents since gaining its independence from France in 1958. Lansana CONTE came to power in 1984, when the military seized the government after the death of the first president Sekou TOURE. Guinea did not hold democratic elections until 1993 when Gen. CONTE (head of the military government) was elected president of the civilian government. He was reelected in 1998 and again in 2003. Unrest in Sierra Leone and Liberia has spilled over into Guinea on several occasions over the past decade, threatening stability and creating humanitarian emergencies. | The first Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C. probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced 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 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 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. Tens of thousands have died in the ethnic conflict that continues to fester. 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 January 2008, the government officially withdrew from the ceasefire, and has begun engaging the LTTE in the northern portion of the country. |
Birth rate | 42.26 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 17 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $410.7 million
expenditures: $708.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $5.379 billion
expenditures: $7.611 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | Conakry | name: Colombo
geographic coordinates: 6 56 N, 79 51 E time difference: UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital) |
Climate | generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds | tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October) |
Coastline | 320 km | 1,340 km |
Constitution | 23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale) | adopted 16 August 1978, certified 31 August 1978 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Guinea
conventional short form: Guinea local long form: Republique de Guinee local short form: Guinee former: French Guinea |
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 former: Serendib, Ceylon |
Currency | Guinean franc (GNF) | - |
Death rate | 15.53 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.01 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.25 billion (2001 est.) | $13.52 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Barrie R. WALKLEY
embassy: Rue Ka 038, Conakry mailing address: B. P. 603, Conakry telephone: [224] 41 15 20, 41 15 21, 41 15 23 FAX: [224] 41 15 22 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Robert O. BLAKE, Jr.
embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3 mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo telephone: [94] (11) 249-8500 FAX: [94] (11) 243-7345 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Rafiou Alpha Oumar BARRY
chancery: 2112 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 986-4300 FAX: [1] (202) 478-3010 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Bernard GOONETILLEKE
chancery: 2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4025 (through 4028) FAX: [1] (202) 232-7181 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles consulate(s): New York |
Disputes - international | domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups in Guinea, domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone have created insurgencies, street violence, looting, arms trafficking, ethnic conflicts skirmishes, deaths, and refugees in border areas; in 2003, Guinea and Sierra Leone established a boundary commission to resolve a dispute over the town of Yenga | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $359.2 million (1998) | $1.189 billion (2005) |
Economy - overview | Guinea possesses major mineral, hydropower, and agricultural resources, yet remains an underdeveloped nation. The country possesses over 30% of the world's bauxite reserves and is the second-largest bauxite producer. The mining sector accounted for about 75% of exports in 1999. Long-run improvements in government fiscal arrangements, literacy, and the legal framework are needed if the country is to move out of poverty. Fighting along the Sierra Leonean and Liberian borders, as well as refugee movements, have caused major economic disruptions, including a loss in investor confidence. Foreign mining companies have reduced expatriate staff, while panic buying has created food shortages and inflation in local markets. Guinea is not receiving multilateral aid. The IMF and World Bank cut off most assistance in 2003. Growth should strengthen in 2004, however, because of a slowly improving security situation and increased investor confidence. | In 1977, Colombo abandoned statist economic policies and its import substitution trade policy for more market-oriented policies, export-oriented trade, and encouragement of foreign investment. Recent changes in government, however, have brought some policy reversals. Currently, the ruling Sri Lanka Freedom Party has a more statist economic approach, which 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 government has halted privatizations. Although suffering a brutal civil war that began in 1983, Sri Lanka saw GDP growth average 4.5% in the last 10 years with the exception of a recession in 2001. In late December 2004, a major tsunami took about 31,000 lives, left more than 6,300 missing and 443,000 displaced, and destroyed an estimated $1.5 billion worth of property. Government spending and reconstruction drove growth to more than 7% in 2006 but reduced agriculture output probably slowed growth to about 6 percent in 2007. Government spending and lose monetary policy drove inflation to 16% in 2007. Sri Lanka's most dynamic sectors now are food processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages, port construction, telecommunications, and insurance and banking. In 2006, plantation crops made up only about 15% of exports (compared with more than 90% in 1970), while textiles and garments accounted for more than 60%. About 800,000 Sri Lankans work abroad, 90% of them in the Middle East. They send home more than $1 billion a year. The struggle by the Tamil Tigers of the north and east for an independent homeland continues to cast a shadow over the economy. |
Electricity - consumption | 735.2 million kWh (2001) | 7.072 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 790.6 million kWh (2001) | 8.411 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Nimba 1,752 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification; soil contamination and erosion; overfishing, overpopulation in forest region; poor mining practices have led to environmental damage | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10% | 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) |
Exchange rates | Guinean francs per US dollar - NA (2003), 1,975.84 (2002), 1,950.56 (2001), 1,746.87 (2000), 1,387.4 (1999) | Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 110.78 (2007), 103.99 (2006), 100.498 (2005), 101.194 (2004), 96.521 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Lansana CONTE (head of military government since 5 April 1984, elected president 19 December 1993)
head of government: Prime Minister Cellou Dalein DIALLO (since 9 December 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; candidate must receive a majority of the votes cast to be elected president; election last held 21 December 2003 (next to be held NA December 2008); the prime minister is appointed by the president election results: Lansana CONTE reelected president; percent of vote - Lansana CONTE (PUP) 95.3%, Mamadou Boye BARRY (UPR) 4.6% |
chief of state: President Mahinda RAJAPAKSA (since 19 November 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; Ratnasiri WICKREMANAYAKE (since 21 November 2005) holds the largely ceremonial title of prime minister
head of government: President Mahinda 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 (eligible for a second term); election last held on 17 November 2005 (next to be held in 2011) election results: Mahinda RAJAPAKSA elected president; percent of vote - Mahinda RAJAPAKSA 50.3%, Ranil WICKREMESINGHE 48.4%, other 1.3% |
Exports | NA (2001) | 691.5 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products | textiles and apparel, tea and spices; diamonds, emeralds, rubies; coconut products, rubber manufactures, fish |
Exports - partners | South Korea 14.8%, Spain 10.7%, US 10.1%, France 9.2%, Russia 9%, Ireland 7.9%, Belgium 6.4%, Germany 5.6%, Ukraine 5.3% (2003) | US 27.6%, UK 11.3%, India 9.3%, Belgium 4.7%, Germany 4.3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $19.02 billion (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 24.9%
industry: 38.2% services: 36.9% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 16.3%
industry: 27% services: 56.6% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,100 (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2003 est.) | 6% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 11 00 N, 10 00 W | 7 00 N, 81 00 E |
Geography - note | the Niger and its important tributary the Milo have their sources in the Guinean highlands | strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes |
Highways | total: 30,500 km
paved: 5,033 km unpaved: 25,467 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 32% (1994) |
lowest 10%: 1.1%
highest 10%: 39.7% (FY03/04) |
Imports | NA (2001) | 82,390 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, metals, machinery, transport equipment, textiles, grain and other foodstuffs | textile fabrics, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and transportation equipment |
Imports - partners | France 16.8%, China 9.3%, Belgium 7.1%, Italy 6.6%, Netherlands 5.4%, UK 5.4%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.8%, US 4.5% (2003) | India 19.5%, China 10.4%, Singapore 8.7%, Iran 5.6%, Malaysia 5%, Hong Kong 4.2%, Japan 4% (2006) |
Independence | 2 October 1958 (from France) | 4 February 1948 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.2% (1994) | 6.4% (2007 est.) |
Industries | bauxite, gold, diamonds; alumina refining; light manufacturing and agricultural processing industries | processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, tobacco and other agricultural commodities; telecommunications, insurance, banking; clothing, textiles; cement, petroleum refining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 91.82 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 97.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 86.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 19.45 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 21.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14.8% (2003 est.) | 15.6% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ADB, 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, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 950 sq km (1998 est.) | 7,430 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president |
Labor force | 3 million (1999) | 7.67 million (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% (2000 est.) | agriculture: 34.3%
industry: 25.3% services: 40.4% (30 June 2006 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 3,399 km
border countries: Cote d'Ivoire 610 km, Guinea-Bissau 386 km, Liberia 563 km, Mali 858 km, Senegal 330 km, Sierra Leone 652 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.63%
permanent crops: 2.58% other: 93.79% (2001) |
arable land: 13.96%
permanent crops: 15.24% other: 70.8% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), each ethnic group has its own language | 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 |
Legal system | based on French civil law system, customary law, and decree; legal codes currently being revised; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Kandyan, and Jaffna Tamil law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral People's National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale Populaire (114 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 30 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PUP 61.6%, UPR 26.6%, other 11.8%; seats by party - PUP 85, UPR 20, other 9 |
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 2 April 2004 (next to be held by 2010) election results: percent of vote by party or electoral alliance - SLFP and JVP (no longer in formal UPFA alliance) 45.6%, UNP 37.8%, TNA 6.8%, JHU 6%, SLMC 2%, UPF 0.5%, EPDP 0.3%, other 1%; seats by party - UNP 68, SLFP 57, JVP 39, TNA 22, CWC 8, JHU 7, SLMC 6, SLMC dissidents 4, Communist Party 2, JHU dissidents 2, LSSP 2, MEP 2, NUA 2, UPF 2, EPDP 1, UNP dissident 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.7 years
male: 48.45 years female: 50.99 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 74.8 years
male: 72.81 years female: 76.88 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 35.9% male: 49.9% female: 21.9% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90.7% male: 92.3% female: 89.1% (2001 census) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone | Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India |
Map references | Africa | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
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 |
Merchant marine | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,344 GRT/5,003 DWT
by type: cargo 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: Iraq 1 (2003 est.) |
total: 24 ships (1000 GRT or over) 162,280 GRT/227,478 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 18, container 2, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: 6 (Germany 6) registered in other countries: 3 (Panama 3) (2007) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Republican Guard, Presidential Guard, National Gendarmerie, General Directorate of National Police | Sri Lankan Army, Sri Lankan Navy, Sri Lankan Air Force (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $58.5 million (2003) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (2003) | 2.6% (2006) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,108,948 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,064,965 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 2 October (1958) | Independence Day, 4 February (1948) |
Nationality | noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
noun: Sri Lankan(s)
adjective: Sri Lankan |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season | occasional cyclones and tornadoes |
Natural resources | bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish | limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -3.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: as a result of conflict in neighboring countries, Guinea is host to approximately 150,000 Liberian and Sierra Leonean refugees (2004 est.) |
-1.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party of Guinea-African Democratic Rally or PDG-RDA [El Hadj Ismael Mohamed Gassim GUSHEIN]; National Union for Progress or UPN [Mamadou Bhoye BARRY]; Party for Unity and Progress or PUP [Lansana CONTE] - the governing party; People's Party of Guinea or PPG [Pascal TOLNO]; Rally for the Guinean People or RPG [Alpha CONDE]; Union for Progress and Renewal or UPR [Siradiou DIALLO]; Union for Progress of Guinea or UPG [Jean-Marie DORE, secretary-general]; Union of Republican Forces or UFR [Sidya TOURE] | All Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC [G.PONNAMBALAM]; Ceylon Workers Congress or CWC [Arumugam THONDAMAN]; Communist Party or CP [D. GUNASEKERA]; 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 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 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 [P. CHANDRASEKARAN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | 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; Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP) or "Karuna group" [Vinayagamurthi MURALITHARAN] (paramilitary breakaway from LTTE and fighting LTTE) |
Population | 9,246,462 (July 2004 est.) | 20,926,315
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 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 40% (2003 est.) | 22% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.37% (2004 est.) | 0.982% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Boke, Conakry, Kamsar | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4 (one station is inactive), FM 1 (plus 7 repeaters), shortwave 3 (2001) | AM 15, FM 52, shortwave 4 (2007) |
Railways | total: 837 km
standard gauge: 175 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 662 km 1.000-m gauge (2003) |
total: 1,449 km
broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7% | Buddhist 69.1%, Muslim 7.6%, Hindu 7.1%, Christian 6.2%, unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.957 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.888 male(s)/female total population: 0.971 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: poor to fair system of open-wire lines, small radiotelephone communication stations, and new microwave radio relay system
domestic: microwave radio relay and radiotelephone communication international: country code - 224; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: telephone services have improved significantly and are available in most parts of the country
domestic: national trunk network consists mostly of digital microwave radio relay; fiber-optic links now in use in Colombo area and 2 fixed wireless local loops have been installed; competition is strong in mobile cellular systems and mobile cellular subscribership is increasing; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular telephone density is about 50 per 100 inhabitants international: country code - 94; the SEA-ME-WE-3 and SEA-ME-WE-4 submarine cables provide connectivity to Asia, Australia, Middle East, Europe, US; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 26,200 (2003) | 2.742 million (2007) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 111,500 (2003) | 7.983 million (2007) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 low-power stations (2001) | 14 (2006) |
Terrain | generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior | mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior |
Total fertility rate | 5.87 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.05 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA (2002 est.) | 6.3% (2007 est.) |
Waterways | 1,295 km (navigable by shallow-draft native craft) (2003) | 160 km (primarily on rivers in southwest) (2006) |