forests and woodland: 32%
other: 32% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 5,500 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: occasional cyclones and tornadoes

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

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, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation

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

People

Population: 19,144,875 (July 1999 est.)
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 late 1996, 63,068 were
housed in refugee camps in south India, another 30,000-40,000 lived
outside the Indian camps, and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought
political asylum in the West

Age structure:
0-14 years: 27% (male 2,650,135; female 2,535,092)
15-64 years: 67% (male 6,231,987; female 6,500,782)
65 years and over: 6% (male 592,539; female 634,340) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.1% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 18.16 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 6.02 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: -1.13 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 16.12 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 72.67 years
male: 69.89 years
female: 75.59 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.1 children born/woman (1999 est.)

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

Ethnic groups: Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay,
and Vedda 1%

Religions: Buddhist 69%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 8%

Languages: Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil
(national language) 18%
note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken by about
10% of the