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Compare Sri Lanka (2005) - Bangladesh (2004)

Compare Sri Lanka (2005) z Bangladesh (2004)

 Sri Lanka (2005)Bangladesh (2004)
 Sri LankaBangladesh
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 6 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, and Sylhet
Age structure 0-14 years: 24.5% (male 2,508,384/female 2,397,986)


15-64 years: 68.4% (male 6,658,765/female 7,059,468)


65 years and over: 7.2% (male 670,813/female 769,360) (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 33.5% (male 24,359,149; female 23,013,811)


15-64 years: 63.1% (male 45,557,963; female 43,626,950)


65 years and over: 3.4% (male 2,575,519; female 2,207,084) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes, tobacco, pulses, oilseeds, spices, fruit; beef, milk, poultry
Airports 14 (2004 est.) 16 (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: 15


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 3


1,524 to 2,437 m: 4


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 6 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
total: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Area total: 65,610 sq km


land: 64,740 sq km


water: 870 sq km
total: 144,000 sq km


land: 133,910 sq km


water: 10,090 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than West Virginia slightly smaller than Iowa
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. Bangladesh came into existence in 1971 when Bengali East Pakistan seceded from its union with West Pakistan. About a third of this extremely poor country floods annually during the monsoon rainy season, hampering economic development.
Birth rate 15.63 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) 30.03 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget revenues: $3.34 billion


expenditures: $4.686 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
revenues: $5.352 billion


expenditures: $7.55 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003)
Capital Colombo; note - Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte is the legislative capital Dhaka
Climate tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October) tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October)
Coastline 1,340 km 580 km
Constitution adopted 16 August 1978, certified 31 August 1978; new constitution proposed in 2002 4 November 1972, effective 16 December 1972, suspended following coup of 24 March 1982, restored 10 November 1986, amended many times
Country name conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka


conventional short form: Sri Lanka


former: Serendib, Ceylon
conventional long form: People's Republic of Bangladesh


conventional short form: Bangladesh


former: East Pakistan
Currency - taka (BDT)
Death rate 6.49 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) 8.52 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external $10.85 billion (2004 est.) $18.06 billion (2003)
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 Harry K. THOMAS, Jr.


embassy: Madani Avenue, Baridhara, Dhaka 1212


mailing address: G. P. O. Box 323, Dhaka 1000


telephone: [880] (2) 885-5500


FAX: [880] (2) 882-3744
Diplomatic representation in the US 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
chief of mission: Ambassador Syed Hasan AHMAD


chancery: 3510 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 244-0183


FAX: [1] (202) 244-5366


consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York
Disputes - international none discussions with India remain stalled to delimit a small section of river boundary, exchange 162 miniscule enclaves in both countries, allocate divided villages, and stop illegal cross-border trade, migration, and violence; Bangladesh protests India's attempts to fence off high-traffic sections of the porous boundary; dispute with India over New Moore/South Talpatty/Purbasha Island in the Bay of Bengal deters maritime boundary delimitation; Burmese Muslim refugees strain Bangladesh's meager resources
Economic aid - recipient $577 million (1998) $1.575 billion (2000 est.)
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 to 5.2% in both 2003 and 2004. 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. 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. Despite sustained domestic and international efforts to improve economic and demographic prospects, Bangladesh remains a poor, overpopulated, and ill-governed nation. Although half of GDP is generated through the service sector, nearly two-thirds of Bangladeshis are employed in the agriculture sector, with rice as the single-most-important product. Major impediments to growth include frequent cyclones and floods, inefficient state-owned enterprises, inadequate port facilities, a rapidly growing labor force that cannot be absorbed by agriculture, delays in exploiting energy resources (natural gas), insufficient power supplies, and slow implementation of economic reforms. Economic reform is stalled in many instances by political infighting and corruption at all levels of government. Progress also has been blocked by opposition from the bureaucracy, public sector unions, and other vested interest groups. The BNP government, led by Prime Minister Khaleda ZIA, has the parliamentary strength to push through needed reforms, but the party's political will to do so has been lacking in key areas. One encouraging note: growth has been a steady 5% for the past several years.
Electricity - consumption 6.228 billion kWh (2002) 14.25 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2002) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2002) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 6.697 billion kWh (2002) 15.33 billion kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m


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


highest point: Keokradong 1,230 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 many people are landless and forced to live on and cultivate flood-prone land; water-borne diseases prevalent in surface water; water pollution, especially of fishing areas, results from the use of commercial pesticides; ground water contaminated by naturally occurring arsenic; intermittent water shortages because of falling water tables in the northern and central parts of the country; soil degradation and erosion; deforestation; severe overpopulation
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, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups 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) Bengali 98%, tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims (1998)
Exchange rates Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 101.194 (2004), 96.521 (2003), 95.662 (2002), 89.383 (2001), 77.005 (2000) taka per US dollar - 58.15 (2003), 57.888 (2002), 55.8067 (2001), 52.1417 (2000), 49.0854 (1999)
Executive branch chief of state: 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


head of government: President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Mahinda RAJAPAKSE is the prime minister (since 6 April 2004); 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 Iajuddin AHMED (since 6 September 2002); note - the president's duties are normally ceremonial, but with the 13th amendment to the constitution ("Caretaker Government Amendment"), the president's role becomes significant at times when Parliament is dissolved and a caretaker government is installed - at presidential direction - to supervise the elections


head of government: Prime Minister Khaleda ZIA (since 10 October 2001)


cabinet: Cabinet selected by the prime minister and appointed by the president


elections: president elected by National Parliament for a five-year term; election scheduled for 16 September 2002 was not held since Iajuddin AHMED was the only presidential candidate; he was sworn in on 6 September 2002 (next election to be held by NA 2007); following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually appointed prime minister by the president


election results: Iajuddin AHMED declared by the Election Commission elected unopposed as president; percent of National Parliament vote - NA
Exports NA NA (2001)
Exports - commodities textiles and apparel; tea and spices; diamonds, emeralds, rubies; coconut products; rubber manufactures, fish garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and seafood (2001)
Exports - partners US 32.4%, UK 13.5%, India 6.8%, Germany 4.8% (2004) US 23.9%, Germany 13.6%, UK 9.7%, France 5.9% (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 green with a large red disk slightly to the hoist side of center; the red sun of freedom represents the blood shed to achieve independence; the green field symbolizes the lush countryside, and secondarily, the traditional color of Islam
GDP - purchasing power parity - $258.8 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 19.1%


industry: 26.2%


services: 54.7% (2004 est.)
agriculture: 21.7%


industry: 26.6%


services: 51.7% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2004 est.) purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 5.2% (2004 est.) 5.3% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates 7 00 N, 81 00 E 24 00 N, 90 00 E
Geography - note strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes most of the country is situated on deltas of large rivers flowing from the Himalayas: the Ganges unites with the Jamuna (main channel of the Brahmaputra) and later joins the Meghna to eventually empty into the Bay of Bengal
Highways total: 11,650 km


paved: 11,068 km


unpaved: 582 km (2002)
total: 207,486 km


paved: 19,773 km


unpaved: 187,713 km (1999)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3.5%


highest 10%: 28% (1995)
lowest 10%: 3.9%


highest 10%: 28.6% (1995-96 est.)
Illicit drugs - transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries
Imports NA NA (2001)
Imports - commodities textile fabrics, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and transportation equipment machinery and equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, foodstuffs, petroleum products, cement (2000)
Imports - partners India 18%, Singapore 8.7%, Hong Kong 7.7%, China 5.7%, Iran 5.2%, Japan 5.1%, Malaysia 4.1% (2004) India 15.4%, China 11.3%, Singapore 10.8%, Japan 5.9%, Hong Kong 4.5% (2003)
Independence 4 February 1948 (from UK) 16 December 1971 (from West Pakistan); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is known as Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh
Industrial production growth rate 7.1% (2004 est.) 1.9% (2003 est.)
Industries rubber processing, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; telecommunications, insurance, and banking; clothing, cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco cotton textiles, jute, garments, tea processing, paper newsprint, cement, chemical fertilizer, light engineering, sugar
Infant mortality rate total: 14.35 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 15.57 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 13.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
total: 64.32 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 65.41 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 63.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 5.8% (2004 est.) 5.6% (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 AsDB, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land 6,510 sq km (1998 est.) 38,440 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president Supreme Court (the chief justices and other judges are appointed by the president)
Labor force 7.26 million (2004 est.) 64.02 million


note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar, and Malaysia; workers' remittances estimated at $1.71 billion in 1998-99 (2003)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 38%, industry 17%, services 45% (1998 est.) agriculture 63%, industry 11%, services 26% (FY95/96)
Land boundaries 0 km total: 4,246 km


border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 km
Land use arable land: 13.86%


permanent crops: 15.7%


other: 70.44% (2001)
arable land: 62.11%


permanent crops: 3.07%


other: 34.82% (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
Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English
Legal system a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction based on English common 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 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 Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad; 300 seats elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies (the constitutional amendment reserving 30 seats for women over and above the 300 regular parliament seats expired in May 2001); members serve five-year terms


elections: last held 1 October 2001 (next to be held before October 2006)


election results: percent of vote by party - BNP and alliance partners 47%, AL 40%; seats by party - BNP 195, AL 58, JI 17, JP (Ershad faction) 14, IOJ 3, JP (Naziur) 4, other 9; note - the election of October 2001 brought a majority BNP government aligned with three other smaller parties - Jamaat-i-Islami, Islami Oikya Jote, and Jatiya Party (Manzur)
Life expectancy at birth total population: 73.17 years


male: 70.6 years


female: 75.86 years (2005 est.)
total population: 61.71 years


male: 61.8 years


female: 61.61 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: 43.1%


male: 53.9%


female: 31.8% (2003 est.)
Location Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India Southern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and India
Map references Asia Asia
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
territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 18 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: up to the outer limits of the continental margin
Merchant marine total: 23 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 120,924 GRT/173,604 DWT


by type: cargo 18, container 2, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2


foreign-owned: 10 (Germany 10)


registered in other countries: 1 (2005)
total: 40 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 319,897 GRT/440,575 DWT


by type: bulk 2, cargo 24, container 10, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 1


foreign-owned: China 1, Singapore 9


registered in other countries: 10 (2004 est.)
Military branches Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Force Army, Navy, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure $514.8 million (2004) $606.8 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.6% (2004) 1.2% (2003)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 39,523,128 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 23,441,482 (2004 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 4 February (1948) Independence Day, 26 March (1971); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh
Nationality noun: Sri Lankan(s)


adjective: Sri Lankan
noun: Bangladeshi(s)


adjective: Bangladeshi
Natural hazards occasional cyclones and tornadoes droughts, cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer monsoon season
Natural resources limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower natural gas, arable land, timber, coal
Net migration rate -1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) -0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines - gas 2,012 km (2004)
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 Heritage Party or JHU [Tilak KARUNARATNE]; National Unity Alliance or NUA [Ferial ASHRAFF]; 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 Awami League or AL [Sheikh HASINA]; Bangladesh Communist Party or BCP [Saifuddin Ahmed MANIK]; Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP [Khaleda ZIA, chairperson]; Islami Oikya Jote or IOJ [Mufti Fazlul Haq AMINI]; Jamaat-e-Islami or JI [Motiur Rahman NIZAMI]; Jatiya Party or JP (Ershad faction) [Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD]; Jatiya Party (Manzur faction) [Naziur Rahman MANZUR]
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 20,064,776


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 2005 est.)
141,340,476 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line 22% (1997 est.) 35.6% (FY95/96 est.)
Population growth rate 0.79% (2005 est.) 2.08% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors Colombo, Galle Chittagong, Dhaka, Mongla Port, Narayanganj
Radio broadcast stations AM 26, FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 12, FM 12, shortwave 2 (1999)
Railways total: 1,449 km


broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge (2004)
total: 2,706 km


broad gauge: 884 km 1.676-m gauge


narrow gauge: 1,822 km 1.000-m gauge (2003)
Religions Buddhist 69.1%, Muslim 7.6%, Hindu 7.1%, Christian 6.2%, unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data) Muslim 83%, Hindu 16%, other 1% (1998)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female


total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 1.17 male(s)/female


total population: 1.05 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: totally inadequate for a modern country


domestic: modernizing; introducing digital systems; trunk systems include VHF and UHF microwave radio relay links, and some fiber-optic cable in cities


international: country code - 880; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); international radiotelephone communications and landline service to neighboring countries (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use 881,400 (2002) 740,000 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular 931,600 (2002) 1.365 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations 21 (1997) 15 (1999)
Terrain mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast
Total fertility rate 1.85 children born/woman (2005 est.) 3.15 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate 7.8% (2004 est.) 40% (includes underemployment) (2002 est.)
Waterways 160 km (primarily on rivers in southwest) (2004) 8,372 km


note: includes 2,575 km main cargo routes (2004)
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