e: tropical
monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June
to October)

Terrain: mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central
interior

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point:
Pidurutalagala 2,524 m

Natural resources: limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates,
clay, hydropower

Land use: arable land: 13% permanent crops: 16% other: 71% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 6,510 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: occasional cyclones and tornadoes

Environment - current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife
populations threatened by poaching and urbanization; coastal degradation
from mining activities and increased pollution; freshwater resources
being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff; waste disposal;
air pollution in Colombo

Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone
Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified:
Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note: strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes

People Sri Lanka

Population: 19,576,783 note: since the outbreak of hostilities between
the government and armed Tamil separatists in the mid-1980s, several
hundred thousand Tamil civilians have fled the island; as of mid-1999,
approximately 66,000 were housed in 133 refugee camps in south India,
another 40,000 lived outside the Indian camps, and more than 200,000
Tamils have sought refuge in the West (July 2002 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 25.6% (male 2,559,246; female 2,446,393)
15-64 years: 67.7% (male 6,446,320; female 6,802,515) 65 years and over:
6.7% (male 628,398; female 693,911) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.85% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 16.36 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 6.45 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: -1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05
male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over:
0.91 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 15.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: 75 years (2002 est.) male: Total fertility
rate: 1.93 children born/woman (2002 est.)

H