Sri Lanka
| Country summary | |
|---|---|
|
Capital |
Colombo |
|
Borders |
(N/A) |
|
Government type |
republic |
|
Population |
21,324,791[1] |
|
Population growth |
0.904% (2010 est.)[1] |
|
Life expectancy |
75.14 years[1] |
|
Unemployment |
5.9% (2009 est.)[1] |
|
120[2] | |
|
97[3] | |
|
105[4] | |
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. 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 May 2009, the government announced that its military had finally defeated the remnants of the LTTE and that its leader, Velupillai PRABHAKARAN, had been killed.[1]
Economical characteristics
- Currency: Sri Lankan Rupee (ISO code: LKR)
- Central bank discount rate: 7.5% (31 December 2009)[1]
- Commercial banks lending rate: 10.91% (31 December 2009)[1]
- Stock of money (M1): $2.462 billion (31 December 2008)[1]
- Quasi money (with M1 makes M2): $11.01 billion (31 December 2008)[1]
Notable events:
- Banking crisis: 1989-1993[5]
- Years in inflation: 3.2% (share of years 1948-2009 with annual inflation above 20 per cent per annum)
- Public default: 1979, 1981-1983 (external), 1996 (domestic)[6]
Statistics
| Statistic / Year | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP (million USD)[7] | 15 656 | 16 331 | 15 746 | 17 103 | 18 882 | 20 663 | 24 406 | 28 281 | 32 363 | 40 565 |
| Govt. debt (% of GDP)[8] | 95.108 | 96.904 | 103.219 | 102.032 | 102.271 | 102.329 | 90.605 | 88.699 | 84.994 | |
| Govt. revenue (% of GDP)[9] | 17.713 | 16.797 | 16.640 | 15.887 | 15.159 | 14.892 | 15.479 | 16.226 | 15.774 | |
| Govt. expenses (% of GDP)[10] | 21.219 | 22.989 | 23.813 | 22.149 | 20.478 | 20.711 | 20.196 | 21.148 | 20.047 | |
| Debt to revenue (years) | 5.370 | 5.769 | 6.203 | 6.422 | 6.747 | 6.871 | 5.853 | 5.467 | 5.388 |
References
Note: statistical data was rounded. Different sources may use different methodologies for their estimates. Debt to revenue is calculated by dividing the two variables from their original ('unrounded') values. It represents how long it would a government take to repay its entire debt if it used its whole revenue for this purpose.
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 CIA - The World Factbook. "Sri Lanka", from The World Factbook. Referenced 2010-09-30.
- ↑ Heritage Foundation. "Sri Lanka", Economic Freedom Score. A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-30.
- ↑ Transparency International. "Sri Lanka", Corruption Perceptions Index 2009. A lower ranking is better; but please note that the numbers cannot be compared between countries or years due to different methodology. Referenced 2010-09-30.
- ↑ Doing Business. "Sri Lanka", Doing Business 2010 (part of The World Bank Group). A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-30.
- ↑ Carmen M. Reinhart and Kenneth S. Rogoff. "This Time is Different", Princeton University Press, ISBN 978-0-691-14216-6, p. 383. (The list does not claim to be complete.) Referenced 2011-07-21.
- ↑ Carmen M. Reinhart. "This Time is Different Chartbook: Country Histories on Debt, Default, and Financial Crises" (pdf), March 3, 2010, p. 105. (The list does not claim to be complete.) Referenced 2011-07-21.
- ↑ World Bank. "Sri Lanka: GDP", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-30.
- ↑ World Bank. "Sri Lanka: government debt", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-30.
- ↑ World Bank. "Sri Lanka: government revenue", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-30.
- ↑ World Bank. "Sri Lanka: government expenses", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-30.
Links
- Sri Lanka on Wikipedia
- Central bank of Sri Lanka
- Country profile (pdf) from the Enterprise Studies page (part of the The World Bank Group)
- Studies from the Library of Congress (1986-1998)
- BBC country profile
