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Compare Sri Lanka (2002) - British Virgin Islands (2005)
Compare Sri Lanka (2002) z British Virgin Islands (2005)
| Sri Lanka (2002) | British Virgin Islands (2005) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 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 | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 25.6% (male 2,559,246; female 2,446,393)
15-64 years: 67.7% (male 6,446,320; female 6,802,515) 65 years and over: 6.7% (male 628,398; female 693,911) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 21% (male 2,400/female 2,358)
15-64 years: 73.9% (male 8,607/female 8,115) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 614/female 549) (2005 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef | fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish |
| Airports | 15 (2001) | 3 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 14
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 6 (2002) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total: 65,610 sq km
land: 64,740 sq km water: 870 sq km |
total: 153 sq km
land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the island of Anegada |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC |
| 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-3rd century B.C. and a great civilization developed at such cities as Anuradhapura (kingdom from c. 200 B.C. to c. 1000 A.D.) and Polonnaruwa (c. 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 and became a crown colony in 1802. As Ceylon it became independent in 1948; its name was changed in 1972. Tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted in violence in the mid-1980s. Tens of thousands have died in an ethnic war that continues to fester. | First settled by the Dutch in 1648, the islands were annexed in 1672 by the English. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. |
| Birth rate | 16.36 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 14.96 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $2.8 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $121.5 million
expenditures: $115.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1997) |
| Capital | Colombo; note - Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte is the legislative capital | Road Town |
| Climate | tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October) | subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds |
| Coastline | 1,340 km | 80 km |
| Constitution | adopted 16 August 1978 | 1 June 1977 |
| Country name | conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
conventional short form: Sri Lanka former: Serendib, Ceylon |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI |
| Currency | Sri Lankan rupee (LKR) | - |
| Death rate | 6.45 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Debt - external | $9.9 billion (2000) | $36.1 million (1997) |
| Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador E. Ashley WILLS
embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3 mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo telephone: [94] (1) 448007 FAX: [94] (1) 437345 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Devinda R. SUBASINGHE
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 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Disputes - international | none | none |
| Economic aid - recipient | $577 million (1998) (1998) | NA |
| Economy - overview | 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. By 1996 plantation crops made up only 20% of exports (compared with 93% in 1970), while textiles and garments accounted for 63%. GDP grew at an average annual rate of 5.5% throughout the 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, due to a combination of power shortages, severe budgetary problems, the global slowdown, and continuing civil strife. | The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 350,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 1998. Tourism suffered in 2002 because of the lackluster US economy. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, is expected to make the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the dollar as its currency since 1959. |
| Electricity - consumption | 6.156 billion kWh (2000) | 33.74 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production | 6.619 billion kWh (2000) | 36.28 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 32%
hydro: 68% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
| Environment - current 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 | limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments) |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
- |
| Ethnic groups | Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda 1% | black 83%, white, Indian, Asian and mixed |
| Exchange rates | Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 93.383 (January 2002), 89.383 (2001), 77.005 (2000), 70.635 (1999), 64.450 (1998), 58.995 (1997) | the US dollar is used |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (since 9 December 2001) is the prime minister; in Sri Lanka the president is considered both the chief of state and head of government, in contrast to the more common practice of dividing the roles between the president and the prime minister when both offices exist
head of government: President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (since 9 December 2001) is the prime minister; in Sri Lanka the president is considered both the chief of state and head of government, in contrast to the more common practice of dividing the roles between the president and the prime minister when both offices exist 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 (PA) 51%, Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (UNP) 42%, other 7% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Tom MACAN (since 14 October 2002)
head of government: Chief Minister Orlando D. SMITH (since 17 June 2003) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
| Exports | $4.9 billion f.o.b. (2001) | NA |
| Exports - commodities | textiles and apparel 15%, tea, diamonds, coconut products, petroleum products | rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand |
| Exports - partners | US 39%, UK 13%, Middle East 8%, Germany 4%, Japan 4% (2000) | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
| Flag description | yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other panel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding a sword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border around the entire flag and extends between the two panels | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful) |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $62.7 billion (2001 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 21%
industry: 27% services: 52% (2000) |
agriculture: 1.8%
industry: 6.2% services: 92% (1996 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,250 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $38,500 (2004 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | -1% (2001 est.) | 1% (2002 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 7 00 N, 81 00 E | 18 30 N, 64 30 W |
| Geography - note | strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes | strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico |
| Highways | total: 11,285 km
paved: 10,721 km unpaved: 564 km (1998 est.) |
total: 177 km
paved: 177 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 28% (1995) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
| Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering |
| Imports | $6 billion f.o.b. (2001) | NA |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, textiles, petroleum, foodstuffs | building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery |
| Imports - partners | Japan 9%, India 8%, Hong Kong 7%, Singapore 7%, South Korea 5% (2000) | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US |
| Independence | 4 February 1948 (from UK) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 1.4% (2001) | NA% |
| Industries | rubber processing, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; clothing, cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco | tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center |
| Infant mortality rate | 15.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 18.05 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 21.02 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14.2% (2001 est.) | 2.5% (2003) |
| International organization participation | AsDB, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate), UPU |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 5 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | 6,510 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction |
| Labor force | 6.6 million (1998) | 12,770 (2004) |
| Labor force - by occupation | services 45%, agriculture 38%, industry 17% (1998 est.) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
| Land use | arable land: 13.43%
permanent crops: 15.78% other: 70.79% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (2001) |
| Languages | 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 |
English (official) |
| Legal system | a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | English law |
| Legislative branch | 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 7 December 2001 (next to be held NA December 2007) election results: percent of vote by party or electoral alliance - UNP, SLMC and CWC 46.8%, PA and EPDP 38%, JVP 9.1%, Tamil National Alliance 3.89%, PLOTE 0.19%; seats by party or electoral alliance - UNP, SLMC and CWC 114, PA and EPDP 79, JVP 16, Tamil National Alliance 15, PLOTE 1 |
unicameral Legislative Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote, one member from each of 9 electoral districts, four at-large members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 16 May 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NDP 8, VIP 5 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.35 years
male: 69.83 years female: 75 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 76.49 years
male: 75.41 years female: 77.62 years (2005 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90.2% male: 93.4% female: 87.2% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
| Location | Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India | Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico |
| Map references | Asia | Central America and the Caribbean |
| Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
| Merchant marine | total: 18 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 137,321 GRT/233,367 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 15, container 1, petroleum tanker 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 9, Hong Kong 1, United Arab Emirates 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 83,825 GRT/155,909 DWT
by type: cargo 1 registered in other countries: 7 (2005) |
| Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
| Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Force | - |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $719 million (FY98) | - |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.2% (FY98) | - |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 5,347,153 (2002 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 4,148,825 (2002 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 193,522 (2002 est.) | - |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 4 February (1948) | Territory Day, 1 July |
| Nationality | noun: Sri Lankan(s)
adjective: Sri Lankan |
noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
| Natural hazards | occasional cyclones and tornadoes | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October) |
| Natural resources | limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower | NEGL |
| Net migration rate | -1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Pipelines | crude oil and petroleum products 62 km (1987) | - |
| Political parties and leaders | 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 Peramuna or JVP [Tilvan SILVA]; National Unity Alliance or NUA [Ferial ASHRAFF]; People's Alliance or PA [Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA]; 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]; Upcountry People's Front or UPF [P. CHANDRASEKARAN]; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented in either Parliament or provincial councils | Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | 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 | NA |
| Population | 19,576,783
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 mid-1999, approximately 66,000 were housed in 133 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 2002 est.) |
22,643 (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 22% (1997 est.) | NA |
| Population growth rate | 0.85% (2002 est.) | 2.06% (2005 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Colombo, Galle, Jaffna, Trincomalee | Road Town |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 26, FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004) |
| Radios | 3.85 million (1997) | - |
| Railways | total: 1,463 km
broad gauge: 1,404 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge (2001) |
- |
| Religions | Buddhist 70%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 7% (1999) | Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, none 2%, other 2% (1991) |
| Sex ratio | 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: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.12 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| 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: submarine cables to Indonesia and Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (1999) |
general assessment: worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-284; submarine cable to Bermuda |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 494,509 (1998) | 11,700 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 228,604 (1999) | 8,000 (2002) |
| Television broadcast stations | 21 (1997) | 1 (plus one cable company) (1997) |
| Terrain | mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior | coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly |
| Total fertility rate | 1.93 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.72 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 7.7% (2001) | 3% (1995) |
| Waterways | 430 km (navigable by shallow-draft craft) | - |
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