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Compare Sri Lanka (2008) - Germany (2005)

Compare Sri Lanka (2008) z Germany (2005)

 Sri Lanka (2008)Germany (2005)
 Sri LankaGermany
Administrative divisions 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
13 states (Laender, singular - Land) and 3 free states* (Freistaaten, singular - Freistaat); Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern*, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen*, Sachsen-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen*
Age structure 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.)
0-14 years: 14.4% (male 6,078,885/female 5,766,065)


15-64 years: 66.7% (male 28,006,268/female 27,003,958)


65 years and over: 18.9% (male 6,359,776/female 9,216,438) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef; fish potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry
Airports 18 (2007) 550 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total: 14


over 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 6


914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2007)
total: 331


over 3,047 m: 13


2,438 to 3,047 m: 51


1,524 to 2,437 m: 62


914 to 1,523 m: 71


under 914 m: 134 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 4


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 3 (2007)
total: 219


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 31


under 914 m: 185 (2004 est.)
Area total: 65,610 sq km


land: 64,740 sq km


water: 870 sq km
total: 357,021 sq km


land: 349,223 sq km


water: 7,798 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than West Virginia slightly smaller than Montana
Background 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. As Europe's largest economy and most populous nation, Germany remains a key member of the continent's economic, political, and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed Germany in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC, which became the EU, and NATO, while the Communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then, Germany has expended considerable funds to bring Eastern productivity and wages up to Western standards. In January 1999, Germany and 10 other EU countries introduced a common European exchange currency, the euro.
Birth rate 17 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 8.33 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget revenues: $5.379 billion


expenditures: $7.611 billion (2007 est.)
revenues: $1.2 trillion


expenditures: $1.3 trillion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Capital 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)
Berlin
Climate tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October) temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind
Coastline 1,340 km 2,389 km
Constitution adopted 16 August 1978, certified 31 August 1978 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990
Country name 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
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany


conventional short form: Germany


local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland


local short form: Deutschland


former: German Empire, German Republic, German Reich
Death rate 6.01 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 10.55 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external $13.52 billion (31 December 2007 est.) NA
Diplomatic representation from the US 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
chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel R. COATS


embassy: Neustaedtische Kirchstrasse 4-5, 10117 Berlin; note - a new embassy will be built near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin; ground was broken in October 2004 and completion is scheduled for 2008


mailing address: PSC 120, Box 1000, APO AE 09265


telephone: [49] (030) 8305-0


FAX: [49] (030) 8305-1215


consulate(s) general: Duesseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich
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 Wolfgang Friedrich ISCHINGER


chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007


telephone: [1] (202) 298-8140


FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249


consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco
Disputes - international none none
Economic aid - donor - ODA, $5.6 billion (1998)
Economic aid - recipient $1.189 billion (2005) -
Economy - overview 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. Germany's affluent and technologically powerful economy - the fifth largest in the world - has become one of the slowest growing economies in the euro zone. A quick turnaround is not in the offing in the foreseeable future. Growth in 2001-03 fell short of 1%, rising to 1.7% in 2004. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy continues to be a costly long-term process, with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $70 billion. Germany's aging population, combined with high unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions from workers. Structural rigidities in the labor market - including strict regulations on laying off workers and the setting of wages on a national basis - have made unemployment a chronic problem. Corporate restructuring and growing capital markets are setting the foundations that could allow Germany to meet the long-term challenges of European economic integration and globalization, particularly if labor market rigidities are further addressed. In the short run, however, the fall in government revenues and the rise in expenditures have raised the deficit above the EU's 3% debt limit.
Electricity - consumption 7.072 billion kWh (2005) 519.5 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2005) 53.8 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2005) 45.8 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production 8.411 billion kWh (2005) 560 billion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m


highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m
lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m


highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 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 emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal; government established a mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power over the next 15 years; government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive
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: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling


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) German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made up largely of Greek, Italian, Polish, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish)
Exchange rates Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 110.78 (2007), 103.99 (2006), 100.498 (2005), 101.194 (2004), 96.521 (2003) euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000)
Executive branch 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%
chief of state: President Horst KOEHLER (since 1 July 2004)


head of government: Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER (since 27 October 1998); Vice Chancellor Joschka FISCHER (since 17 October 1998)


cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor


elections: president elected for a five-year term by a Federal Convention including all members of the Federal Assembly and an equal number of delegates elected by the state parliaments; election last held 23 May 2004 (next to be held 23 May 2009); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; election last held 22 September 2002 (next to be held September 2006)


election results: Horst KOEHLER elected president; received 604 votes of the Federal Convention against 589 for Gesine SCHWAN; Gerhard SCHROEDER elected chancellor; percent of Federal Assembly vote 50.7%
Exports 691.5 bbl/day (2004) 12,990 bbl/day (2003)
Exports - commodities textiles and apparel, tea and spices; diamonds, emeralds, rubies; coconut products, rubber manufactures, fish machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles
Exports - partners US 27.6%, UK 11.3%, India 9.3%, Belgium 4.7%, Germany 4.3% (2006) France 10.3%, US 8.8%, UK 8.3%, Italy 7.2%, Netherlands 6.2%, Belgium 5.6%, Austria 5.4%, Spain 5% (2004)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
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 three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 16.3%


industry: 27%


services: 56.6% (2007 est.)
agriculture: 1%


industry: 31%


services: 68% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $28,700 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 6% (2007 est.) 1.7% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates 7 00 N, 81 00 E 51 00 N, 9 00 E
Geography - note strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea
Heliports - 34 (2004 est.)
Highways - total: 230,735 km


paved: 230,735 km (including 11,515 km of expressways)


unpaved: 0 km (1999)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 1.1%


highest 10%: 39.7% (FY03/04)
lowest 10%: 3.6%


highest 10%: 25.1% (1997)
Illicit drugs - source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and European-produced synthetic drugs; major financial center
Imports 82,390 bbl/day (2004) 2.135 million bbl/day (2003)
Imports - commodities textile fabrics, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and transportation equipment machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals
Imports - partners India 19.5%, China 10.4%, Singapore 8.7%, Iran 5.6%, Malaysia 5%, Hong Kong 4.2%, Japan 4% (2006) France 9%, Netherlands 8.3%, US 7%, Italy 6.1%, UK 5.9%, China 5.6%, Belgium 4.9%, Austria 4.2% (2004)
Independence 4 February 1948 (from UK) 18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later, France) in 1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone; unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3 October 1990; all four powers formally relinquished rights 15 March 1991
Industrial production growth rate 6.4% (2007 est.) 2.2% (2004 est.)
Industries processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, tobacco and other agricultural commodities; telecommunications, insurance, banking; clothing, textiles; cement, petroleum refining among the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages; shipbuilding; textiles
Infant mortality rate 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.)
total: 4.16 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 4.61 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 3.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 15.6% (2007 est.) 1.6% (2004 est.)
International organization participation 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 AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land 7,430 sq km (2003) 4,850 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat)
Labor force 7.67 million (2007 est.) 42.63 million (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 34.3%


industry: 25.3%


services: 40.4% (30 June 2006 est.)
agriculture 2.8%, industry 33.4%, services 63.8% (1999)
Land boundaries 0 km total: 3,621 km


border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646 km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577 km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km
Land use arable land: 13.96%


permanent crops: 15.24%


other: 70.8% (2005)
arable land: 33.85%


permanent crops: 0.59%


other: 65.56% (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
German
Legal system a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Kandyan, and Jaffna Tamil law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch 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
bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (613 seats; elected by popular vote under a system combining direct and proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain representation; members serve four-year terms) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments are directly represented by votes; each has 3 to 6 votes depending on population and are required to vote as a block)


elections: Federal Assembly - last held 18 September 2005 (next to be held September 2009); note - there are no elections for the Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election


election results: Federal Assembly - percent of vote by party - CDU/CSU 35.2%, SPD 34.3%, FDP 9.8%, Left 8.7%, Greens 8.1%; seats by party - CDU/CSU 225, SPD 222, FDP 61, Left 54, Greens 51; Federal Council - current composition - NA
Life expectancy at birth total population: 74.8 years


male: 72.81 years


female: 76.88 years (2007 est.)
total population: 78.65 years


male: 75.66 years


female: 81.81 years (2005 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 90.7%


male: 92.3%


female: 89.1% (2001 census)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99% (1997 est.)


male: NA%


female: NA%
Location Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark
Map references Asia Europe
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


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Merchant marine 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)
total: 332 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,721,495 GRT/6,810,631 DWT


by type: cargo 69, chemical tanker 13, container 208, liquefied gas 3, passenger 7, passenger/cargo 25, petroleum tanker 3, roll on/roll off 4


foreign-owned: 5 (Finland 2, Netherlands 1, Switzerland 1, UAE 1)


registered in other countries: 2,289 (2005)
Military branches Sri Lankan Army, Sri Lankan Navy, Sri Lankan Air Force (2006) Federal Armed Forces (Bundeswehr): Army (Heer), Navy (Deutsche Marine, includes naval air arm), Air Force (Luftwaffe), Joint Support Service, Central Medical Service
Military expenditures - dollar figure - $35.063 billion (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.6% (2006) 1.5% (2003)
National holiday Independence Day, 4 February (1948) Unity Day, 3 October (1990)
Nationality noun: Sri Lankan(s)


adjective: Sri Lankan
noun: German(s)


adjective: German
Natural hazards occasional cyclones and tornadoes flooding
Natural resources limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower coal, lignite, natural gas, iron ore, copper, nickel, uranium, potash, salt, construction materials, timber, arable land
Net migration rate -1.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines - condensate 325 km; gas 25,293 km; oil 3,540 km; refined products 3,827 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders 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] Alliance '90/Greens [Angelika BEER and Reinhard BUETIKOFER]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Edmund STOIBER, chairman]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido WESTERWELLE, chairman]; Left Party or PDS/WASG [Oskar LAFONTAINE and Gregor GYSI]; Party of Democratic Socialism or PDS [Lothar BISKY]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Franz MUENTEFERING]
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; Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP) or "Karuna group" [Vinayagamurthi MURALITHARAN] (paramilitary breakaway from LTTE and fighting LTTE) business associations, employers' organizations; expellee, refugee, trade unions, and veterans groups
Population 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.)
82,431,390 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line 22% (2002 est.) NA
Population growth rate 0.982% (2007 est.) 0% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors - Bremen, Bremerhaven, Brunsbuttel, Duisburg, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Mainz, Rostock, Wilhemshaven
Radio broadcast stations AM 15, FM 52, shortwave 4 (2007) AM 51, FM 787, shortwave 4 (1998)
Railways total: 1,449 km


broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge (2006)
total: 46,142 km (20,100 km electrified)


standard gauge: 45,928 km 1.435-m gauge (20,084 km electrified)


narrow gauge: 214 km 1.000-m gauge (16 km electrified); 24 km 0.750-m gauge (2004)
Religions Buddhist 69.1%, Muslim 7.6%, Hindu 7.1%, Christian 6.2%, unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data) Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 3.7%, unaffiliated or other 28.3%
Sex ratio 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.)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


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


65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female


total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system 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)
general assessment: Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part


domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to many foreign countries


international: country code - 49; Germany's international service is excellent worldwide, consisting of extensive land and undersea cable facilities as well as earth stations in the Inmarsat, Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik satellite systems (2001)
Telephones - main lines in use 2.742 million (2007) 54.35 million (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular 7.983 million (2007) 64.8 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations 14 (2006) 373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south
Total fertility rate 2.05 children born/woman (2007 est.) 1.39 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate 6.3% (2007 est.) 10.6% (2004 est.)
Waterways 160 km (primarily on rivers in southwest) (2006) 7,300 km


note: Rhine River carries most goods; Main-Danube Canal links North Sea and Black Sea (2004)
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