Compare Syria (2004) - Sri Lanka (2007)

Compare Syria (2004) z Sri Lanka (2007)

	Syria (2004)	Sri Lanka (2007)

Administrative divisions	14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus	8 provinces; Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western note: in October 2006, the Sri Lankan Supreme Court ruled voided a presidential directive merging the North and Eastern Provinces; many have defended the merger as a prerequisite for a negotiated settlement to the ethnic conflict; a parliamentary decision on the issue is pending
Age structure	0-14 years: 38% (male 3,524,406; female 3,319,323) 15-64 years: 58.7% (male 5,421,133; female 5,163,669) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 281,795; female 306,548) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 24.3% (male 2,596,295/female 2,495,949) 15-64 years: 67.9% (male 6,947,310/female 7,259,271) 65 years and over: 7.8% (male 765,507/female 861,983) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk	rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef; fish
Airports	93 (2003 est.)	18 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 26 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)	total: 14 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 66 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 54 (2004 est.)	total: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2007)
Area	total: 185,180 sq km land: 184,050 sq km water: 1,130 sq km note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory	total: 65,610 sq km land: 64,740 sq km water: 870 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than North Dakota	slightly larger than West Virginia
Background	Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, Syria was administered by the French until independence in 1946. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. Since 1976, Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon, ostensibly in a peacekeeping capacity. Over the past decade, Syria and Israel have held occasional peace talks over the return of the Golan Heights.	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 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, but neither side has formally withdrawn from the cease-fire.
Birth rate	28.93 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	17 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $6.106 billion expenditures: $7.397 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.6 billion (2003 est.)	revenues: $4.883 billion expenditures: $6.827 billion (2006 est.)
Capital	Damascus	name: Colombo geographic coordinates: 6 56 N, 79 51 E time difference: UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital)
Climate	mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus	tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)
Coastline	193 km	1,340 km
Constitution	13 March 1973	adopted 16 August 1978, certified 31 August 1978
Country name	conventional long form: Syrian Arab Republic conventional short form: Syria local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah local short form: Suriyah former: United Arab Republic (with Egypt)	conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka conventional short form: Sri Lanka local long form: Shri Lamka Prajatantrika Samajaya di Janarajaya/Ilankai Jananayaka Choshalichak Kutiyarachu local short form: Shri Lamka/Ilankai former: Serendib, Ceylon
Currency	Syrian pound (SYP)	-
Death rate	4.96 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	6.01 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$21.55 billion (2003 est.)	$12.16 billion (2006 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Margaret SCOBEY embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansur Street, No. 2, Damascus mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus telephone: [963] (11) 333-1342 FAX: [963] (11) 331-9678	chief of mission: Ambassador Robert O. BLAKE, Jr. embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3 mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo telephone: [94] (11) 249-8500 FAX: [94] (11) 243-7345
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Imad MUSTAFA chancery: 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6313 FAX: [1] (202) 234-9548	chief of mission: Ambassador Bernard GOONETILLEKE chancery: 2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4025 (through 4028) FAX: [1] (202) 232-7181 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles consulate(s): New York
Disputes - international	Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied; Lebanon claims Shaba'a farms in Golan Heights; Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon since October 1976; Syria protests Turkish hydrological projects regulating upper Euphrates waters; settled border dispute with Jordan in 2004	none
Economic aid - recipient	$199 million (1997 est.)	$1.189 billion (2005)
Economy - overview	Syria's predominantly statist economy lately has been growing more slowly than its 2.4% annual population growth rate. Recent legislation allows private banks to operate in Syria, although a private banking sector will take years and further government cooperation to develop. Factors, including the war between the US-led coalition and Iraq, probably drove real annual GDP growth levels back below 1% in 2003 following growth of 3.5% in 2001 and 4.5% in 2002. A long-run economic constraint is the pressure on water supplies caused by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and increased water pollution.	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 most 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. Growth, partly spurred by reconstruction, reached 5% in 2005 and more than 6% in 2006. Sri Lanka's most dynamic sectors now are food processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages, port construction, telecommunications, and insurance and banking. In 2005, 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% in the Middle East. They send home more than $1 billion a year. The struggle by the Tamil Tigers of the north and east for an independent homeland continues to cast a shadow over the economy.
Electricity - consumption	21.63 billion kWh (2001)	7.072 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	23.26 billion kWh (2001)	8.411 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water	deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by poaching and urbanization; coastal degradation from mining activities and increased pollution; freshwater resources being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff; waste disposal; air pollution in Colombo
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups	Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%	Sinhalese 73.8%, Sri Lankan Moors 7.2%, Indian Tamil 4.6%, Sri Lankan Tamil 3.9%, other 0.5%, unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data)
Exchange rates	Syrian pounds per US dollar - (Official rate): 11.225 (2003), 11.225 (2002), 11.225 (2001), 11.225 (2000), 11.225 (1999), (Free market rate): 49.65 (2001), 49.4 (2000), 51.7 (1999)	Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 103.99 (2006), 100.498 (2005), 101.194 (2004), 96.521 (2003), 95.662 (2002)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice Presidents Abd al-Halim ibn Said KHADDAM (since 11 March 1984) and Muhammad Zuhayr MASHARIQA (since 11 March 1984) head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-UTRI (since 10 September 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; referendum/election last held 10 July 2000 - after the death of President Hafiz al-ASAD, father of Bashar al-ASAD - (next to be held 2007); vice presidents appointed by the president; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.29% note: Hafiz al-ASAD died on 10 June 2000; on 20 June 2000, the Ba'th Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name to the People's Council on 25 June 2000	chief of state: President Mahinda RAJAPAKSA (since 19 November 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; Ratnasiri WICKREMANAYAKE (since 21 November 2005) holds the largely ceremonial title of prime minister head of government: President Mahinda RAJAPAKSA (since 19 November 2005) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 17 November 2005 (next to be held in 2011) election results: Mahinda RAJAPAKSA elected president; percent of vote - Mahinda RAJAPAKSA 50.3%, Ranil WICKREMESINGHE 48.4%, other 1.3%
Exports	NA (2001)	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	crude oil, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat	textiles and apparel, tea and spices; diamonds, emeralds, rubies; coconut products, rubber manufactures, fish
Exports - partners	Germany 20.9%, Italy 12.6%, UAE 7.6%, Lebanon 6.2%, Turkey 6%, France 5.4%, Croatia 4.8%, US 4.1% (2003)	US 27.6%, UK 11.3%, India 9.3%, Belgium 4.7% (2006)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, colors associated with the Arab Liberation flag; two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; former flag of the United Arab Republic where the two stars represented the constituent states of Syria and Egypt; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band, and that of Egypt, which has a gold Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band; the current design dates to 1980	yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other panel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding a sword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border around the entire flag and extends between the two panels
GDP	purchasing power parity - $58.01 billion (2003 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 28.5% industry: 29.4% services: 42.1% (2003 est.)	agriculture: 16.5% industry: 27.1% services: 56.5% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $3,300 (2003 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	0.9% (2003 est.)	7.4% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	35 00 N, 38 00 E	7 00 N, 81 00 E
Geography - note	there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (February 2002 est.)	strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes
Heliports	7 (2003 est.)	-
Highways	total: 43,381 km paved: 10,021 km (including 877 km of expressways) unpaved: 33,360 km (1999)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA	lowest 10%: 1.1% highest 10%: 39.7% (FY03/04)
Illicit drugs	a transit point for opiates and hashish bound for regional and Western markets; weak anti-money-laundering controls, bank privatization may leave it vulnerable to money-laundering	-
Imports	NA (2001)	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, electric power machinery, food and livestock, metal and metal products, chemicals and chemical products, plastics, yarn, paper	textile fabrics, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and transportation equipment
Imports - partners	Germany 7.2%, Italy 7.1%, China 6.3%, France 5.9%, Turkey 5.4% (2003)	India 19.6%, China 10.5%, Singapore 8.7%, Iran 5.7%, Malaysia 5.1%, Hong Kong 4.2%, Japan 4.1% (2006)
Independence	17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)	4 February 1948 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	NA	6.2% (2006 est.)
Industries	petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining	processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, tobacco and other agricultural commodities; telecommunications, insurance, banking; clothing, textiles; cement, petroleum refining
Infant mortality rate	total: 30.6 deaths/1,000 live births male: 30.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 30.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	total: 19.45 deaths/1,000 live births male: 21.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.5% (2003 est.)	13.7% (2006 est.)
International organization participation	ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO	AsDB, 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, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land	12,130 sq km (1998 est.)	7,430 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Constitutional Court (justices are appointed for four-year terms by the president); High Judicial Council; Court of Cassation; State Security Courts	Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president
Labor force	4.97 million (2003 est.)	7.602 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture, industry, services NA	agriculture: 34.3% industry: 25.3% services: 40.4% (30 June 2006 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 2,253 km border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 25.22% permanent crops: 4.43% other: 70.35% (2001)	arable land: 13.96% permanent crops: 15.24% other: 70.8% (2005)
Languages	Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood	Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18%, other 8% note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken competently by about 10% of the population
Legal system	based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Islamic, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral People's Council or Majlis al-shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 2-3 March 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NPF 67%, independents 33%; seats by party - NPF 167, independents 83; note - the constitution guarantees that the Ba'th Party (part of the NPF alliance) receives one-half of the seats	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 on 2 April 2004 (next to be held by 2010) election results: percent of vote by party or electoral alliance - SLFP and JVP (no longer in formal UPFA alliance) 45.6%, UNP 37.8%, TNA 6.8%, JHU 6%, SLMC 2%, UPF 0.5%, EPDP 0.3%, other 1%; seats by party - UNP 68, SLFP 57, JVP 39, TNA 22, CWC 8, JHU 7, SLMC 6, SLMC dissidents 4, Communist Party 2, JHU dissidents 2, LSSP 2, MEP 2, NUA 2, UPF 2, EPDP 1, UNP dissident 1
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 69.71 years male: 68.47 years female: 71.02 years (2004 est.)	total population: 74.8 years male: 72.81 years female: 76.88 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 76.9% male: 89.7% female: 64% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 90.7% male: 92.3% female: 89.1% (2001 census)
Location	Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey	Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India
Map references	Middle East	Asia
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 41 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine	total: 122 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 446,981 GRT/636,620 DWT by type: bulk 12, cargo 101, container 2, livestock carrier 4, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: Egypt 1, Germany 1, Greece 1, Italy 1, Lebanon 10, Romania 1 registered in other countries: 83 (2004 est.)	total: 24 ships (1000 GRT or over) 162,280 GRT/227,478 DWT by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 18, container 2, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: 6 (Germany 6) registered in other countries: 3 (Panama 3) (2007)
Military branches	Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force (including Air Defense Command), Police and Security Force	Sri Lankan Army, Sri Lankan Navy, Sri Lankan Air Force (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$858 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	5.9% (FY00)	2.6% (2006)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 4,876,040 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 2,716,054 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 216,077 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 17 April (1946)	Independence Day, 4 February (1948)
Nationality	noun: Syrian(s) adjective: Syrian	noun: Sri Lankan(s) adjective: Sri Lankan
Natural hazards	dust storms, sandstorms	occasional cyclones and tornadoes
Natural resources	petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower	limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-1.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	gas 2,300 km; oil 2,183 km (2004)	-
Political parties and leaders	National Progressive Front or NPF (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party; the governing party) [President Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general]; Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Fadlallal Nasr Al-DIN]; Syrian Communist Party (two branches) [Wissal Farha BAKDASH, Yuusuf Rashid FAYSAL]; Unionist Socialist Party [Fayez ISMAIL]; Arab Socialist Unionist Movement [Ahmed al-AHMED]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan QUDSI]); Syrian Social National Party [Jubran URAYJI]	All Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC [A. VINAYAKAMOORTHY]; Ceylon Workers Congress or CWC [Arumugam THONDAMAN]; Communist Party or CP [D. GUNASEKERA]; Democratic United National (Lalith) Front or DUNLF [T.N.S. NANAYAKKARA]; Eelam People's Democratic Party or EPDP [Douglas DEVANANDA]; Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF [Suresh PREMACHANDRAN]; Janatha Vimukthi Perumuna 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]; Sri Lanka Progressive Front or SLPF [P. Nelson PERERA]; 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]; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented in either Parliament or provincial councils
Political pressure groups and leaders	conservative religious leaders; Kurdish Democratic Alliance [leader NA]; Kurdish Democratic Front [lader NA]; Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in London) [Ali Badr Eddine al-BAYANOUNI]; National Democratic Front [Hassan Abd al-AZIM]	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 Eela Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal, TMVP or "Karuna group" [Vinayagamurthi MURALITHARAN] (paramilitary breakaway from LTTE and fighting against LTTE)
Population	18,016,874 note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2004 est.)	20,926,315 note: since the outbreak of hostilities between the government and armed Tamil separatists in the mid-1980s, several hundred thousand Tamil civilians have fled the island and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought refuge in the West (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	20% (2003 est.)	22% (2002 est.)
Population growth rate	2.4% (2004 est.)	0.982% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors	Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)	34 (station types NA) (2006)
Railways	total: 2,711 km standard gauge: 2,460 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 251 km 1.050-m gauge (2003)	total: 1,449 km broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge (2006)
Religions	Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)	Buddhist 69.1%, Muslim 7.6%, Hindu 7.1%, Christian 6.2%, unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.957 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.888 male(s)/female total population: 0.971 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: fair system currently undergoing significant improvement and digital upgrades, including fiber-optic technology domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay network international: country code - 963; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 1 submarine cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey; participant in Medarabtel	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; telephone density remains low international: country code - 94; submarine cables to Indonesia, Djibouti, India and Maldives; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	2,099,300 (2002)	2.087 million (2007)
Telephones - mobile cellular	400,000 (2002)	5.959 million (2007)
Television broadcast stations	44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995)	14 (2006)
Terrain	primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west	mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior
Total fertility rate	3.61 children born/woman (2004 est.)	2.05 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	20% (2002 est.)	7.6% (2006 est.)
Waterways	900 km (not economically significant) (2002)	160 km (primarily on rivers in southwest) (2006)

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