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| Country
Name |
| Conventional long
form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri
Lanka |
conventional short
form: Sri Lanka
former: Ceylon |
|
| Size |
65,525 sq km |
| Capital |
Sri Jayawardenepura |
| Commercial Capital |
Colombo |
| Government |
Sri Lanka, is a free,
independent and sovereign nation with a population
of 18.774 million (1998 mid year estimates). 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 defense.
Sri Lanka enjoys a multi party system, and the people
vote to elect a new government every six years. |
| National Flag |
National Flag
of Sri Lanka is the Lion Flag. A Lion bearing
a sword in its right hand is depicted in gold
on red background with a yellow border. Four
Bo leaves pointing inwards are at the four
corners. Two vertical bands of green and orange
at the mast end represent the minority ethnic
groups. It is an adaptation of the standard
of the last King of Sri Lanka.
|
 |
|
| National Anthem |
| "Sri Lanka
Matha" composed by late Mr. Ananda Samarakoon. |
| |
Click on the Speaker
Icon to listen to a few bars of
the Anthem |
|
|
| National Flower |
| the
Blue Water Lily (Nymphaea stellata) is the
National Flower. |
 |
|
| Population |
19 million |
| Population density |
309 people per sq km |
| Life expectancy at
birth |
74 female, 64 male |
| Literacy rate |
91.8% |
| Languages |
Sinhala & Tamil
English is widely spoken throughout Sri Lanka, with
the exception of remote villages. |
| Ethnic
mix |
Sihalese- 74 per cent;
Tamil- 18 per cent; Muslim -7 per cent; Burgher
(descendants of Dutch and Portuguese colonist) and
others- 1 per cent |
| Religion |
Buddhism- 70 per cent;
Hinduism- 16 per cent; Christianity- 7 per cent;
Islam-7 per cent |
| Climate |
Low Lands – tropical,
average 270C
Central Hills – cooler, with temperatures
dropping to 140C. The south-west monsoon brings
rain to the western, southern and central regions
from May to July, while the north-eastern monsoon
occurs in the north and east in December and January.
Sri Lanka has a good climate for holiday-makers
throughout the year. |
| Annual per capita
GNP |
US$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. 2,10,20,50,100,200,
500 and 1000. Coins are issued in values of Cts.1,2,5,10,
25 and 50 and Rs.1,2,5 and 10. The intervention
currency continuously will be the US Dollar. |
| Visa |
Residents from countries
are issued visas on arrival. Consult your local
Sri Lanka embassy, consulate, tourist office or
your travel agent.
|
| Working week |
Sri Lanka works a five-day
week, from Monday to Friday. |
| Business hours |
Government offices 9.00
a.m. -5.00 p.m, Monday to Friday |
| Banks |
9.00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m.
or 3.00 p.m. Monday to Saturday |
| Post office |
8.30 a.m.- 5.00 p.m.,
Monday to Friday
8.30 a.m. – 1.00 p.m. on Saturday. The Central
Mail Exchange, at D.R.Wijewardene Mawatha, Colombo
10, (Telephone : 326203) is open 24-hours. |
| Location |
An island off the south-eastern
cost shores of India, 880 km north of the equator,
in the Indian Ocean. |
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