The World Factbook (1982)/Sri Lanka

by the Central Intelligence Agency

SRI LANKA
(formerly Ceylon)

(See reference map VIII)

LAND

65,500 km²; 25% cultivated; 44% forested; 31% waste, urban, and other

WATER

Limits of territorial waters (claimed): 12 nm (fishing 200 nm, plus pearling in the Gulf of Mannar; 200 nm exclusive economic zone)

Coastline: 1,340 km

PEOPLE

Population: 15,398,000 (July 1982), average annual growth rate 1.8%

Nationality: noun—Sri Lankan(s); adjective—Sri Lankan

Ethnic divisions: 74% Sinhalese, 18% Tamil, 7% Moor, 1% other

Religion: 69% Buddhist, 15% Hindu, 8% Christian, 8% Muslim, 0.1% other

Language: Sinhala official, Sinhala and Tamil listed as national languages, Sinhala spoken by about 74% of population; Tamil spoken by about 18%; English commonly used in government and spoken by about 10% of the population

Literacy: 82% (1970 est.)

Labor force: 4 million; 17% unemployed; employed persons—53.4% agriculture, 14.8% mining and manufacturing, 12.4% trade and transport, 19.4% services and other; extensive underemployment

Organized labor: 43% of labor force, over 50% of which employed on tea, rubber, and coconut estates

GOVERNMENT

Official name: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka

Type: independent state since 1948

Capital: Colombo

Political subdivisions: 9 provinces, 24 administrative districts, and four categories of semiautonomous elected local governments

Legal system: a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Muslim and customary law; new constitution 7 September 1978 reinstituted a strong, independent judiciary; legal education at Sri Lanka Law College and University of Sri Lanka, Peradeniya; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

National holiday: Independence Day, 22 May

Branches: the 1978 constitution established a strong presidential form of government under J. R. Jayewardene, who had been Prime Minister since his party's election victory in July 1977; Jayewardene will remain President until 1984, regardless of whether Parliament is dissolved and subsequent parliamentary elections are held; when Jayewardene's term in office expires, a new President will be chosen by a direct national election for a six-year term

Government leader: President J. R. JAYEWARDENE

Suffrage: universal over age 18

Elections: national elections, ordinarily held every six years; must be held more frequently if government loses confidence vote; last election held July 1977

Political parties and leaders: Sri Lanka Freedom Party—Sirimavo, Sirimavo Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike, president, and Sri Lanka Freedom Party—Maitwripala, Maitwripala Senanayake, president (this split in the SLFP may eventually be resolved; both sides allege to be the "official" SLFP; Lanka Sama Samaja Party (Trotskyite), C. R. de Silva, president; Naya Sama Samaja Party, V. Nanayakkara, leader; Tamil United Liberation Front, A. Amirthalingam, leader; United National Party, J. R. Jayewardene; Communist Party/Moscow, K. P. Silva, general secretary; Communist Party/Peking, N. Shanmugathasan, general secretary; Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (People's United Front), M. B. Ratnayaka, president; Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (People's Liberation Front), Rohana Wijeweera, leader

Voting strength (1977 election): 30% Sri Lanka Freedom Party, 51% United National Party, 3.9% Lanka Sama Samaja Party, 1.8% Communist Party/Moscow, 6.5% TULF minor parties and independents accounted for remainder

Communists: approximately 107,000 voted for the Communist Party in the July 1977 general election; Communist Party/Moscow approximately 5,000 members (1975), Communist Party/Peking 1,000 members (1970 est.)

Other political or pressure groups: Buddhist clergy, Sinhalese Buddhist lay groups; far-left violent revolutionary groups; labor unions

Member of: ADB, ANRPC, Colombo Plan, Commonwealth, FAO, G-77, GATT (de facto), IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMCO, IMF, IPU, ITU, NAM, UN,

UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO; is applying for membership to ASEAN

ECONOMY

GNP: $3.7 billion (1980 current prices), $254 per capita; real growth rate 5.5% (1980)

Agriculture: agriculture accounts for about 23% of GNP; main crops—rice, rubber, tea, coconuts; food shortages—wheat and sugar

Fishing: catch 157,000 metric tons (1978)

Major industries: processing of rubber, tea, and other agricultural commodities; consumer goods manufacture

Electric power: 310,000 kW capacity (1980); 1.2 billion kWh produced (1980), 65 kWh per capita

Exports: $1.1 billion (f.o.b., 1980); tea, rubber, petroleum products

Imports: $2.0 billion (c.i.f., 1980); petroleum, machinery, transport equipment, sugar

Major trade partners: (1977) exports—8% Pakistan, 8% UK; imports—12.4% Saudi Arabia, 9.8% Iran

Budget: (1980 revised estimate) revenue $782 million, expenditure $1.65 billion

Monetary conversion rate: 20.95 rupees=US$1 (November 1981)

Fiscal year: 1 January-31 December (starting 1973)

COMMUNICATIONS

Railroads: 1,496 km total (1980); all broad gauge (1.435m); 102 km double track; no electrification; government owned

Highways: 66,176 km total (1979); 24,300 km paved (mostly bituminous treated), 28,916 km crushed stone or gravel, 12,960 km improved earth or unimproved earth; in addition several thousand km of tracks, mostly unmotorable

Inland waterways: 430 km; navigable by shallow-draft craft

Ports: 3 major, 9 minor

Civil air: 8 major transport (including 1 leased)

Airfields: 14 total, 11 usable; 11 with permanent-surface runways; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 7 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Telecommunications: good international service; 75,000 (est.) telephones (0.5 per 100 popl.); 16 AM stations, 2 FM stations, and 1 TV station; submarine cables extend to India; 1 ground satellite station

DEFENSE FORCES

Military manpower: males 15-49, 3,997,000; 3,138,000 fit for military service; 178,000 reach military age (18) annually

Military budget: for fiscal year ending 31 December 1982, $38.5 million, 2% of central government current budget