Sri Lanka (2004) | Uganda (2004) | |
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 | 56 districts; Adjumani, Apac, Arua, Bugiri, Bundibugyo, Bushenyi, Busia, Gulu, Hoima, Iganga, Jinja, Kabale, Kabarole, Kaberamaido, Kalangala, Kampala, Kamuli, Kamwenge, Kanungu, Kapchorwa, Kasese, Katakwi, Kayunga, Kibale, Kiboga, Kisoro, Kitgum, Kotido, Kumi, Kyenjojo, Lira, Luwero, Masaka, Masindi, Mayuge, Mbale, Mbarara, Moroto, Moyo, Mpigi, Mubende, Mukono, Nakapiripirit, Nakasongola, Nebbi, Ntungamo, Pader, Pallisa, Rakai, Rukungiri, Sembabule, Sironko, Soroti, Tororo, Wakiso, Yumbe |
Age structure | 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.) |
0-14 years: 50.6% (male 6,696,193; female 6,653,764)
15-64 years: 47.1% (male 6,199,732; female 6,233,678) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 269,990; female 351,186) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef | coffee, tea, cotton, tobacco, cassava (tapioca), potatoes, corn, millet, pulses; beef, goat meat, milk, poultry, cut flowers |
Airports | 14 (2003 est.) | 27 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 13
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 6 (2004 est.) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 25
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 7 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 65,610 sq km
land: 64,740 sq km water: 870 sq km |
total: 236,040 sq km
land: 199,710 sq km water: 36,330 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly smaller than Oregon |
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 A.D. 1000) 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 into war in 1983. Tens of thousands have died in an ethnic conflict that continues to fester. After two decades of fighting, the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam formalized a cease-fire in February 2002, with Norway brokering peace negotiations. | Uganda achieved independence from the UK in 1962. The dictatorial regime of Idi AMIN (1971-79) was responsible for the deaths of some 300,000 opponents; guerrilla war and human rights abuses under Milton OBOTE (1980-85) claimed at least another 100,000 lives. During the 1990s, the government promulgated non-party presidential and legislative elections. |
Birth rate | 15.88 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 46.31 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $3.229 billion
expenditures: $4.526 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues: $1.123 billion
expenditures: $1.433 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) (2003) |
Capital | Colombo; note - Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte is the legislative capital | Kampala |
Climate | tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October) | tropical; generally rainy with two dry seasons (December to February, June to August); semiarid in northeast |
Coastline | 1,340 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | adopted 16 August 1978 | 8 October 1995; adopted by the interim, 284-member Constituent Assembly, charged with debating the draft constitution that had been proposed in May 1993; the Constituent Assembly was dissolved upon the promulgation of the constitution in October 1995 |
Country name | conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
conventional short form: Sri Lanka former: Serendib, Ceylon |
conventional long form: Republic of Uganda
conventional short form: Uganda |
Currency | Sri Lankan rupee (LKR) | Ugandan shilling (UGX) |
Death rate | 6.47 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 16.61 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $10.52 billion (2003) | $3.818 billion (2003 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jeffrey J. LUNSTEAD
embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3 mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo telephone: [94] (11) 244-8007 FAX: [94] (11) 243-7345 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Jimmy KOLKER
embassy: 1577 Ggaba Rd., Kampala mailing address: P. O. Box 7007, Kampala telephone: [256] (41) 234-142 FAX: [256] (41) 258-451 |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Edith Grace SSEMPALA
chancery: 5911 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-7100 through 7102, 0416 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1727 |
Disputes - international | none | Tutsi, Hutu, Lendu, Hema, and other ethnic groups, associated political rebels, armed gangs, militias, and various government forces continue fighting in the Great Lakes region, transcending the boundaries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda to gain control over populated areas and natural resources; government heads pledge to end conflict, but localized violence continues despite UN peacekeeping efforts; civil conflict in Sudan has extended Sudanese rebel forces and refugees into Uganda and given shelter to Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army soldiers in Sudan; Kenya and Uganda are working together to stem cattle rustling and violence by Lord's Resistance Army along the border |
Economic aid - recipient | $577 million (1998) | $1.4 billion (2000) |
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. 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. | Uganda has substantial natural resources, including fertile soils, regular rainfall, and sizable mineral deposits of copper and cobalt. Agriculture is the most important sector of the economy, employing over 80% of the work force. Coffee accounts for the bulk of export revenues. Since 1986, the government - with the support of foreign countries and international agencies - has acted to rehabilitate and stabilize the economy by undertaking currency reform, raising producer prices on export crops, increasing prices of petroleum products, and improving civil service wages. The policy changes are especially aimed at dampening inflation and boosting production and export earnings. During 1990-2001, the economy turned in a solid performance based on continued investment in the rehabilitation of infrastructure, improved incentives for production and exports, reduced inflation, gradually improved domestic security, and the return of exiled Indian-Ugandan entrepreneurs. Corruption within the government and slippage in the government's determination to press reforms raise doubts about the continuation of strong growth. In 2000, Uganda qualified for enhanced Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt relief worth $1.3 billion and Paris Club debt relief worth $145 million. These amounts combined with the original HIPC debt relief added up to about $2 billion. Growth for 2001-02 was solid despite continued decline in the price of coffee, Uganda's principal export. Solid growth in 2003 reflected an upturn in Uganda's export markets. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.915 billion kWh (2001) | 1.62 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 174 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 6.36 billion kWh (2001) | 1.928 billion kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m |
lowest point: Lake Albert 621 m
highest point: Margherita Peak on Mount Stanley 5,110 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 | draining of wetlands for agricultural use; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; water hyacinth infestation in Lake Victoria; poaching is widespread |
Environment - international 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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda 1% | Baganda 17%, Ankole 8%, Basoga 8%, Iteso 8%, Bakiga 7%, Langi 6%, Rwanda 6%, Bagisu 5%, Acholi 4%, Lugbara 4%, Batoro 3%, Bunyoro 3%, Alur 2%, Bagwere 2%, Bakonjo 2%, Jopodhola 2%, Karamojong 2%, Rundi 2%, non-African (European, Asian, Arab) 1%, other 8% |
Exchange rates | Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 96.521 (2003), 95.6621 (2002), 89.383 (2001), 77.0051 (2000), 70.6354 (1999) | Ugandan shillings per US dollar - 1,963.72 (2003), 1,797.55 (2002), 1,755.66 (2001), 1,644.48 (2000), 1,454.83 (1999) |
Executive branch | 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% |
chief of state: President Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI (since seizing power 26 January 1986); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI (since seizing power 29 January 1986); Prime Minister Apollo NSIBAMBI (since 5 April 1999); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government; the prime minister assists the president in the supervision of the cabinet cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among elected legislators elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 12 March 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); note - first popular election for president since independence in 1962 was held in 1996; prime minister appointed by the president election results: Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI elected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI 69.3%, Kizza BESIGYE 27.8% |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | textiles and apparel, tea, diamonds, coconut products, petroleum products | coffee, fish and fish products, tea; gold, cotton, flowers, horticultural products |
Exports - partners | US 34.6%, UK 12.5%, India 4.8%, Germany 4.5% (2003) | Kenya 14.7%, Switzerland 13.7%, Netherlands 9.2%, UK 6.4%, South Africa 5.6% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | six equal horizontal bands of black (top), yellow, red, black, yellow, and red; a white disk is superimposed at the center and depicts a red-crested crane (the national symbol) facing the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $73.7 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $36.1 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 19.9%
industry: 26.3% services: 53.8% (2003) |
agriculture: 36.1%
industry: 21.2% services: 42.8% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.5% (2003 est.) | 4.4% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 7 00 N, 81 00 E | 1 00 N, 32 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes | landlocked; fertile, well-watered country with many lakes and rivers |
Highways | total: 96,695 km
paved: 91,860 km unpaved: 4,835 km (1999) |
total: 27,000 km
paved: 1,809 km unpaved: 25,191 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.5%
highest 10%: 28% (1995) |
lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 21% (2000) |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | textiles, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and equipment | capital equipment, vehicles, petroleum, medical supplies; cereals |
Imports - partners | India 16.1%, Hong Kong 8.4%, Singapore 7.8%, Japan 6.7%, China 4.9%, South Korea 4.2%, Taiwan 4.2%, UK 4.1%, Malaysia 4% (2003) | Kenya 26%, India 7.4%, South Africa 7.2%, Japan 6.6%, UK 6.3%, UAE 5.8%, US 5.7%, China 5.1% (2003) |
Independence | 4 February 1948 (from UK) | 9 October 1962 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.8% (2003) | 5% (2003 est.) |
Industries | rubber processing, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; clothing, cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco | sugar, brewing, tobacco, cotton textiles, cement |
Infant mortality rate | total: 14.78 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.01 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 86.15 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 93.58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 78.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.3% (2003 est.) | 7.9% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | AsDB, C, CP, 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, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), ONUB, OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, EADB, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 6,510 sq km (1998 est.) | 90 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president | Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the president and approved by the legislature); High Court (judges are appointed by the president) |
Labor force | 7.17 million (2003) | 12.09 million (2003 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 38%, industry 17%, services 45% (1998 est.) | agriculture 82%, industry 5%, services 13% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,698 km
border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 765 km, Kenya 933 km, Rwanda 169 km, Sudan 435 km, Tanzania 396 km |
Land use | arable land: 13.86%
permanent crops: 15.7% other: 70.44% (2001) |
arable land: 25.88%
permanent crops: 10.65% other: 63.47% (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 national language, taught in grade schools, used in courts of law and by most newspapers and some radio broadcasts), Ganda or Luganda (most widely used of the Niger-Congo languages, preferred for native language publications in the capital and may be taught in school), other Niger-Congo languages, Nilo-Saharan languages, Swahili, Arabic |
Legal system | a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | in 1995, the government restored the legal system to one based on English common law and customary law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
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 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 |
unicameral National Assembly (303 members - 214 directly elected by popular vote, 81 nominated by legally established special interest groups [women 56, army 10, disabled 5, youth 5, labor 5], 8 ex officio members; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 26 June 2001 (next to be held May or June 2006); election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; note - election campaigning by party was not permitted |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.89 years
male: 70.34 years female: 75.57 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 45.28 years
male: 43.76 years female: 46.83 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.3% male: 94.8% female: 90% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 69.9% male: 79.5% female: 60.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India | Eastern Africa, west of Kenya |
Map references | Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | 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 |
none (landlocked) |
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 foreign-owned: Germany 8, Singapore 1 registered in other countries: 4 (2004 est.) |
total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,091 GRT/5,943 DWT
by type: roll on/roll off 3 (2003 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Force | Ugandan Peoples' Defense Force (UPDF): Army, Marine Unit, Air Wing |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $518 million (2003) | $128.2 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.2% (2003) | 2.1% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 5,418,496 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 5,678,649 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 4,195,736 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 3,085,053 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 179,869 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 4 February (1948) | Independence Day, 9 October (1962) |
Nationality | noun: Sri Lankan(s)
adjective: Sri Lankan |
noun: Ugandan(s)
adjective: Ugandan |
Natural hazards | occasional cyclones and tornadoes | NA |
Natural resources | limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower | copper, cobalt, hydropower, limestone, salt, arable land |
Net migration rate | -1.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: according to the UNHCR, by the end of 2001, Uganda was host to 178,815 refugees from a number of neighboring countries, including: Sudan 155,996, Rwanda 14,375, and Democratic Republic of the Congo 7,459 (2004 est.) |
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 Perumuna or JVP [Tilvan SILVA]; National Unity Alliance or NUA [Ferial ASHRAFF]; National Heritage Party or JHU [Tilak KARUNARATNE]; People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam or PLOTE [leader NA]; Sihala Urumaya or SU [leader NA]; 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 [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]; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented in either Parliament or provincial councils | only one political organization, the Movement (formerly the NRM)[President MUSEVENI, chairman] is allowed to operate unfettered; note - the president maintains that the Movement is not a political party, but a mass organization, which claims the loyalty of all Ugandans
note: the constitution requires the suspension of political parties while the Movement organization is in governance; of the political parties that exist but are prohibited from sponsoring candidates, the most important are the Ugandan People's Congress or UPC [Milton OBOTE]; Democratic Party or DP [Paul SSEMOGERERE]; Conservative Party or CP [Ken LUKYAMUZI]; Justice Forum [Muhammad Kibirige MAYANJA]; and National Democrats Forum [Chapaa KARUHANGA] |
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 | Popular Resistance Against a Life President or PRALP |
Population | 19,905,165
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.) |
26,404,543
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 22% (1997 est.) | 35% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.81% (2004 est.) | 2.97% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Colombo, Galle, Jaffna, Trincomalee | Entebbe, Jinja, Port Bell |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 26, FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 7, FM 33, shortwave 2 (2001) |
Railways | total: 1,449 km
broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge (2003) |
total: 1,241 km
narrow gauge: 1,241 km 1.000-m gauge (2003) |
Religions | Buddhist 70%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 7% (1999) | Roman Catholic 33%, Protestant 33%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 18% |
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: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 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: country code - 94; submarine cables to Indonesia and Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (1999) |
general assessment: seriously inadequate; two cellular systems have been introduced, but a sharp increase in the number of main lines is essential; e-mail and Internet services are available
domestic: intercity traffic by wire, microwave radio relay, and radiotelephone communication stations, fixed and mobile cellular systems for short-range traffic international: country code - 256; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat; analog links to Kenya and Tanzania |
Telephones - main lines in use | 881,400 (2002) | 61,000 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 931,600 (2002) | 776,200 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 21 (1997) | 8 (plus one low-power repeater) (2001) |
Terrain | mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior | mostly plateau with rim of mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.88 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 6.64 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 8.4% (2003) | NA (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 160 km (primarily on rivers in southwest) (2004) | 300 km (on Lake Victoria, 200 km on Lake Albert, Lake Kyoga, and parts of Albert Nile) (2004 est.) |