Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Sri Lanka: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna grade (MCB, ranked #79 of 195).
Sri Lanka is a presidential republic in Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India. The country's capital is Colombo (commercial capital); Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital); it covers 65,610 sq km. Independence: 4 February 1948 (from the UK). Terrain: mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior. Climate: tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October). Population: 22.1 million (2025 estimate). Population growth: +0.22% per year. Median age: 34.2 years. Life expectancy: 76.8 years (2024 est.). Languages: Sinhala (official) 87%, Tamil (official) 28.5%, English 23.8% (2012 est.) Religions: Budd…
| Capital | Colombo (commercial capital); Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital) |
|---|---|
| Population | 22,050,561 (2025 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $301.407 billion (2024 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $13,800 (2024 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 5% (2024 est.) |
| Inflation | 0.4% |
| Unemployment | 5.0% |
| Public debt | 79.1% of GDP (2017 est.) |
| Exports | $17.327 billion (2023 est.) |
| Imports | $18.823 billion (2023 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 76.8 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 34.2 |
| Urbanization | 19.2% of total population (2023) |
| Government | presidential republic |
| Independence | 4 February 1948 (from the UK) |
| Languages | Sinhala (official) 87%, Tamil (official) 28.5%, English 23.8% (2012 est.) |
MCB · 51/100 — The Magna grade is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — five dimensions, 100+ indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum +3 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
The recovery streak extended: growth running, debt restructuring nearly done, reserves rebuilt — eleven straight quarters of expansion.
Execution, not luck: a modestly positive quarter for an economy climbing out of its crisis.
Graphite, Phosphates, Hydropower.
Anura Kumara Dissanayake — President. President Anura Kumara DISSANAYAKE (since 23 September 2024)
Sri Lanka maintains 60 embassies abroad, hosts 41 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to UN New York, UN Geneva. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 60 |
|---|---|
| Foreign missions hosted | 41 |
| Multilateral missions | UN New York, UN Geneva |
Source: Lowy Institute Global Diplomacy Index 2024 (released 2024-02-25), https://globaldiplomacyindex.lowyinstitute.org/; Wikipedia 'List of diplomatic missions of Sri Lanka', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_diplomatic_missions_of_Sri_Lanka; '... in Sri Lanka', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_diplomatic_missions_in_Sri_Lanka
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Coastal — 1340 km of coastline. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 18 + 1 heliports (registration prefix 4R) |
| Major seaports | Batticaloa Roads, Colombo, Galle Harbor, Hambantota, Kankesanturai, Trincomalee Harbor |
| Railways | 1562 km |
Bandaranaike International Colombo Airport (CMB) — Colombo; Colombo Ratmalana International Airport (RML) — Colombo; Jaffna International Airport (JAF) — Jaffna; Batticaloa International Airport (BTC) — Batticaloa; China Bay Airport (TRR) — Trincomalee; Koggala Airport (KCT) — Galle; Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) — Mattala.
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28)
| Political system | presidential republic |
|---|---|
| Next election | No election currently scheduled. |
MCB · 51 Ranked #79 of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Sri Lanka.
Historical timeline of Sri Lanka
