Capital

Finnland

name: Helsinki

geographic coordinates: 60 10 N, 24 56 E

time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology: the name may derive from the Swedish helsing, an archaic name for "neck" (hals), and which may refer to a narrowing of the Vantaa River that flows into the Gulf of Finland at Helsinki; fors refers to "rapids," so helsing fors meaning becomes "the narrows' rapids"

Sri Lanka

name: Colombo (commercial capital); Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital)

geographic coordinates: 6 55 N, 79 50 E

time difference: UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology: Colombo may derive from the Sinhala "kolon thota," meaning "port on the river" (referring to the Kelani River that empties into the Indian Ocean at Colombo); alternatively, the name may derive from the Sinhala "kola amba thota" meaning "harbor with mango trees"; it is also possible that the Portuguese named the city after Christopher COLUMBUS, who lived in Portugal for many years (as Cristovao COLOMBO) before discovering the Americas for the Spanish crown in 1492 - not long before the Portuguese made their way to Sri Lanka in 1505; Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte translates as "Resplendent City of Growing Victory" in Sinhala

Citizenship

Finnland

citizenship by birth: no

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Finland

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 6 years

Sri Lanka

citizenship by birth: no

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Sri Lanka

dual citizenship recognized: no, except in cases where the government rules it is to the benefit of Sri Lanka

residency requirement for naturalization: 7 years

Legal system

Finnland

civil law system based on the Swedish model

Sri Lanka

mixed legal system of Roman-Dutch civil law, English common law, Jaffna Tamil customary law, and Muslim personal law

Suffrage

Finnland

18 years of age; universal

Sri Lanka

18 years of age; universal

Area

Finnland

total: 338,145 sq km

land: 303,815 sq km

water: 34,330 sq km

Sri Lanka

total: 65,610 sq km

land: 64,630 sq km

water: 980 sq km

Land use

Finnland

agricultural land: 7.5% (2018 est.)

arable land: 7.4% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 0.1% (2018 est.)

forest: 72.9% (2018 est.)

other: 19.6% (2018 est.)

Sri Lanka

agricultural land: 43.5% (2018 est.)

arable land: 20.7% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 15.8% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 7% (2018 est.)

forest: 29.4% (2018 est.)

other: 27.1% (2018 est.)

Location

Finnland

Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, between Sweden and Russia

Sri Lanka

Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India

Age structure

Finnland

0-14 years: 16.25% (male 466,311/female 446,015)

15-64 years: 60.5% (male 1,726,110/female 1,670,981)

65 years and over: 23.25% (2023 est.) (male 575,259/female 729,895)

Sri Lanka

0-14 years: 21.95% (male 2,609,642/female 2,511,570)

15-64 years: 66.22% (male 7,609,573/female 7,836,480)

65 years and over: 11.83% (2023 est.) (male 1,156,637/female 1,602,370)

Birth rate

Finnland

10.3 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Sri Lanka

14.6 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Death rate

Finnland

10.4 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Sri Lanka

7.4 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Languages

Finnland

Finnish (official) 86.5%, Swedish (official) 5.2%, Russian 1.6%, other 6.7% (2021 est.)

major-language sample(s):
World Factbook, korvaamaton perustietolähde. (Finnish)

The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

Sri Lanka

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

Life expectancy at birth

Finnland

total population: 82 years (2023 est.)

male: 79.1 years

female: 85 years

Sri Lanka

total population: 76.6 years (2023 est.)

male: 73.6 years

female: 79.8 years

Major urban areas - population

Finnland

1.338 million HELSINKI (capital) (2023)

Sri Lanka

103,000 Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital) (2018), 633,000 COLOMBO (capital) (2023)

Median age

Finnland

total: 43.2 years (2023 est.)

male: 41.7 years

female: 44.8 years

Sri Lanka

total: 33.9 years (2023 est.)

male: 32.1 years

female: 35.6 years

Mother's mean age at first birth

Finnland

29.5 years (2020 est.)

Sri Lanka

25.6 years (2016 est.)

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

Net migration rate

Finnland

2.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Sri Lanka

-1.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Population distribution

Finnland

the vast majority of people are found in the south; the northern interior areas remain sparsely populated

Sri Lanka

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

Population growth rate

Finnland

0.22% (2023 est.)

Sri Lanka

0.56% (2023 est.)

Total fertility rate

Finnland

1.74 children born/woman (2023 est.)

Sri Lanka

2.14 children born/woman (2023 est.)

Urbanization

Finnland

urban population: 85.8% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization: 0.42% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Sri Lanka

urban population: 19.2% of total population (2023)

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

Education expenditures

Finnland

5.9% of GDP (2020 est.)

Sri Lanka

1.9% of GDP (2019 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

Finnland

total: 19 years

male: 18 years

female: 20 years (2020)

Sri Lanka

total: 14 years

male: 14 years

female: 14 years (2018)

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)

Finnland

-0.6% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Sri Lanka

-5.5% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Industrial production growth rate

Finnland

2.77% (2021 est.)

Sri Lanka

5.62% (2021 est.)

Labor force

Finnland

2.82 million (2021 est.)

Sri Lanka

8.268 million (2021 est.)

Population below poverty line

Finnland

12.2% (2019 est.)

Sri Lanka

4.1% (2016 est.)

Unemployment rate

Finnland

7.53% (2021 est.)

7.76% (2020 est.)

6.69% (2019 est.)

Sri Lanka

5.39% (2021 est.)

5.88% (2020 est.)

4.35% (2019 est.)

Public debt

Finnland

61.3% of GDP (2017 est.)

62.9% of GDP (2016 est.)

note: data cover general government debt and include debt instruments issued (or owned) by government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data include debt issued by subnational entities, as well as intragovernmental debt; intragovernmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement, medical care, and unemployment; debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions

Sri Lanka

79.1% of GDP (2017 est.)

79.6% of GDP (2016 est.)

note: covers central government debt and excludes debt instruments directly owned by government entities other than the treasury (e.g. commercial bank borrowings of a government corporation); the data includes treasury debt held by foreign entities as well as intragovernmental debt; intragovernmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement; sub-national entities are usually not permitted to sell debt instruments

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

Finnland

2.19% (2021 est.)

0.29% (2020 est.)

1.02% (2019 est.)

Sri Lanka

7.01% (2021 est.)

6.15% (2020 est.)

3.53% (2019 est.)

Exports

Finnland

$116.905 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$97.789 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$107.084 billion (2019 est.)

Sri Lanka

$13.083 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$19.414 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$20.264 billion (2018 est.)

Exports - partners

Finnland

Germany 13%, Sweden 9%, United States 8%, Netherlands 6%, China 6% (2021)

Sri Lanka

United States 24%, India 8%, United Kingdom 7%, Germany 7% (2019)

Imports

Finnland

$116.277 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$97.037 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$106.664 billion (2019 est.)

Sri Lanka

$18.271 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$24.562 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$26.841 billion (2018 est.)

Imports - partners

Finnland

Germany 16%, Sweden 15%, Russia 11%, China 7%, Netherlands 7% (2021)

Sri Lanka

India 24%, China 23%, Singapore 7%, United Arab Emirates 6%, Malaysia 5% (2019)

Airports

Finnland

148 (2021)

Sri Lanka

18 (2021)

Broadband - fixed subscriptions

Finnland

total: 1.846 million (2020 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 33 (2020 est.)

Sri Lanka

total: 1,781,530 (2020 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 8 (2020 est.)

Internet users

Finnland

total: 5.115 million (2021 est.)

percent of population: 93% (2021 est.)

Sri Lanka

total: 14.74 million (2021 est.)

percent of population: 67% (2021 est.)

Railways

Finnland

total: 5,918 km (2020) 3,349 km electrified

Sri Lanka

total: 1,562 km (2016)

broad gauge: 1,562 km (2016) 1.676-m gauge

Roadways

Finnland

total: 454,000 km (2012)

highways: 78,000 km (2012) (50,000 paved, including 700 km of expressways; 28,000 unpaved)

private and forest roads: 350,000 km (2012)

urban: 26,000 km (2012)

Sri Lanka

total: 114,093 km (2010)

paved: 16,977 km (2010)

unpaved: 97,116 km (2010)

Telephones - fixed lines

Finnland

total subscriptions: 207,000 (2021 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 4 (2021 est.)

Sri Lanka

total subscriptions: 2,869,186 (2021 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 13 (2021 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular

Finnland

total subscriptions: 7.15 million (2021 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 129 (2021 est.)

Sri Lanka

total subscriptions: 30,764,134 (2021 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 141 (2021 est.)

Waterways

Finnland

8,000 km (2013) (includes Saimaa Canal system of 3,577 km; southern part leased from Russia; water transport used frequently in the summer and widely replaced with sledges on the ice in winter; there are 187,888 lakes in Finland that cover 31,500 km); Finland also maintains 8,200 km of coastal fairways

Sri Lanka

160 km (2012) (primarily on rivers in southwest)

Disputes - international

Finnland

various groups in Finland advocate restoration of Karelia and other areas ceded to the former Soviet Union, but the Finnish Government asserts no territorial demands

Sri Lanka

none identified