Official Name:

Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka

Government Type:

Republic

Location :

Latitude 5° 55. to 9° 50. north, Longitude 79° 42. to 81° 52., 650km north of the equator

Dimensions :

430km North to South, 225km East to West

Coastline :

1,340km

Area :

65,525km

Currency (code):

Sri Lankan Rupee (LKR)

Independence:

4 February 1948

Administrative Capital :

Sri Jayewardenepura

Commercial Capital :

Colombo

Administrative Divisions:

Typically tropical, with anortheast monsoon (December to March) bringing unsettled weather to the north and east, and a southwest monsoon (June to October) bringing bad weather to the south and west

Terrain:

Mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior

Highest Mountain :

Pidurutalagala, 2,524m

Highest Waterfall :

National Anthem:

Bambarakanda, 263m

"Sri Lanka Matha" composed by late Mr. Ananda Samarakoon.

National Flower:

National Tree:

National Bird:

The Blue Water Lily (Nymphaea stellata).

The Ironwood (Na Tree), botanically known as ”Mesua Nagassarium”

Sri Lanka Jungle Fowl – Very colourful ground bird

National Parks and Nature Reserves Area :

8,000sq.km

Population:

21,128,773

Pop. Growth Rate:

1.3%

Population Density:

309 people per sq km

Life Expectancy at Birth

74 female, 64 male

Literacy Rate :

Female 87.9 Male 92.5

Ethnic Groups:

Sinhalese, 74%; Tamil, 18%; Muslim 7%; Burgher (descendants of Dutch and Portuguese colonist) and others 1%

Languages:

Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18%, other 8%
Note: English (a link language commonly) is used in government and spoken competently by about 10% of the population

Religion:

Buddhism 70%; Hinduism 16%; Christianity 7%; Islam 7%

Time Zone :

Sri Lanka Standard Time isfive and a half hours ahead of GMT. (Allowance should be made for summer-time changes in Europe.)

International Dialing :

+94

Electricity :

230. 240 volts, 50 cycles AC. If you travel with a laptop computer bring a stabilizer

Economy:

Sri Lanka's most dynamic sectors are food processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages, port construction, telecommunications, insurance and banking. In 2006, plantation crops made up only 15% of exports (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 US$1 billion a year.

Labour Force

34.3% of the labour population is employed in agriculture, 25.3% in industry and 40.4% in services: 40.4% (30 June 2006 est.) The unemployment rate is 5.7% (2007 est.)

Agriculture & Products

Rice, Sugarcane, Grains, Pulses, Oilseed, Spices, Tea, Rubber, Coconuts, milk, Eggs, Hides, Beef, Fish

Industries:

Processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, tobacco and other agricultural commodities, telecommunications, insurance, banking; clothing, textiles, cement, petroleum refining.

Exports:

Textiles and apparel; tea and spices; diamonds, emeralds, rubies; coconut products, rubber manufactures, fish

Imports:

Main import commodities are textile fabrics, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and transportation equipment: $10.61 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.). Percentage of main commodities from main import partners: India 19.6%, China 10.5%, Singapore 8.8%, Iran 5.7%, Malaysia 5.1%, Hong Kong 4.2%, Japan 4.1% (2006)

Gross Domestic Product (GDP):

Purchasing power parity: $81.29 billion (2007 est.). Official exchange rate: $30.01 billion (2007 est.) Real growth rate: 6.3% (2007 est.) Per capita: $4,100 (2007 est.) composition by sector: Agriculture: 16.5% Industry: 26.9%

Gross National Product (GNP):

Sri Lanka is placed in 76th place in GNP figures of the world’s nationswith $22.8billion (2005)