Country Profile
| Country Name | Sri Lanka |
| Size | 65,525 sq km |
| Location | An island off the south-eastern cost shores of India, 880 km north of the equator, in the Indian Ocean |
| Capital | Sri Jayawardenepura |
| Commercial Capital | Colombo |
| Government | Sri Lanka is a free, independent and sovereign nation with a population of 20,926,315 million (July 2007 est.). Legislative power is exercised by a Parliament, elected by universal franchise on proportional representation basis. A President, who is also elected by the people, exercises executive power inclusive of defence. Sri Lanka enjoys a multi party system, and the people vote to elect a new government every six years. |
| Population | 20,926,315 million |
| Population Density | 309 people per sq km |
| Life Expectancy at Birth | 74 female, 64 male |
| Literacy rate | 91.8% |
| Languages | Sinhala, Tamil and English are widely spoken throughout Sri Lanka, with the exception of remote villages where it might be Sinhala only or Tamil only. |
| Ethnic Groups | Sinhalese- 74 per cent; Tamil- 18 per cent; Muslim -7 per cent; Burgher (descendants of Dutch and Portuguese colonist) and others- 1 per cent. |
| Religions Buddhism | 70 per cent; Hinduism- 16 per cent; Christianity- 7 per cent; Islam-7 per cent |
| Climate Low Lands | tropical, average 27C Central Hills cooler, with temperatures dropping to 14C. The south-west monsoon brings rain to the western, southern and central regions from May to July, while the north-eastern monsoon is from December t0 January. Sri Lanka climate is ideal for holiday-makers throughout the year. |
| Annual per capita | GNP USD $870 |
| Industries | Processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; clothing, cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco. |
| Agriculture | Products Rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, roots, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, meat. |
| Currency | Sri Lanka follows decimal currency system in Rupees (Rs.) and cents (Cts.) with 100 cents equal to a rupee. Currency notes are available in the denominations of Rs.10,20,50,100,200,500,1000 & 2000. Coins are issued in values of Cts. 25 and 50 and Rs.1,2,5 and 10. The intervention currency continuously will be the US Dollar |