Sri Lanka People - 2021

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Population

23,044,123 (July 2021 est.)

Nationality

noun: Sri Lankan(s)

adjective: Sri Lankan

Ethnic groups

Sinhalese 74.9%, Sri Lankan Tamil 11.2%, Sri Lankan Moors 9.2%, Indian Tamil 4.2%, other 0.5% (2012 est.)

Languages

Sinhala (official and national language) 87%, Tamil (official and national language) 28.5%, English 23.8% (2012 est.)

note: data represent main languages spoken by the population aged 10 years and older; shares sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census; English is commonly used in government and is referred to as the "link language" in the constitution

Religions

Buddhist (official) 70.2%, Hindu 12.6%, Muslim 9.7%, Roman Catholic 6.1%, other Christian 1.3%, other 0.05% (2012 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 23.11% (male 2,696,379/female 2,592,450)

15-24 years: 14.58% (male 1,700,442/female 1,636,401)

25-54 years: 41.2% (male 4,641,842/female 4,789,101)

55-64 years: 10.48% (male 1,110,481/female 1,288,056)

65 years and over: 10.63% (male 1,023,315/female 1,410,734) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 53.7

youth dependency ratio: 36.4

elderly dependency ratio: 17.3

potential support ratio: 5.8 (2020 est.)

Median age

total: 33.7 years

male: 32.3 years

female: 35.1 years (2020 est.)

Population growth rate

0.63% (2021 est.)

Birth rate

14.01 births/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Death rate

6.45 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Net migration rate

-1.24 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Population distribution

the population is primarily concentrated within a broad wet zone in the southwest, urban centers along the eastern coast, and on the Jaffna Peninsula in the north

Urbanization

urban population: 18.9% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 1.22% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030

Major urban areas - population

103,000 Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital) (2018), 619,000 COLOMBO (capital) (2021)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 0.97 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 0.86 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female

total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Mother's mean age at first birth

25.6 years (2016 est.)

note: median age at first birth among women 30-34

Maternal mortality rate

36 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 8.36 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 9.35 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 7.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 77.75 years

male: 74.31 years

female: 81.33 years (2021 est.)

Total fertility rate

2 children born/woman (2021 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

64.6% (2016)

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 98.1% of population

rural: 91.4% of population

total: 92.6% of population

unimproved: urban: 1.9% of population

rural: 8.6% of population

total: 7.4% of population (2017 est.)

Current Health Expenditure

3.8% (2018)

Physicians density

1 physicians/1,000 population (2018)

Hospital bed density

4.2 beds/1,000 population (2017)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 97.1% of population

rural: 99.3% of population

total: 98.9% of population

unimproved: urban: 2.9% of population

rural: 0.7% of population

total: 1.1% of population (2017 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

<.1 est.>

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

3,700 (2020 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk:

intermediate

(2020)

vectorborne diseases: dengue fever

water contact diseases: leptospirosis

animal contact diseases: rabies

Obesity - adult prevalence rate

5.2% (2016)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

20.5% (2016)

Education expenditures

2.1% of GDP (2018)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 91.9%

male: 93%

female: 91% (2017)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 14 years

male: 14 years

female: 15 years (2018)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24

total: 21.1%

male: 16.6%

female: 29.4% (2018 est.)

NOTE: The information regarding Sri Lanka on this page is re-published from the 2021 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Sri Lanka 2021 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Sri Lanka 2021 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.