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COUNTRY HEALTH ANALYSIS
COUNTRY: Sri Lanka
(1) COUNTRY STATISTICS (35 points, including population pyramid)
DESCRIPTION
Government type: Democratic Socialist Republic
Area (size of country) in square kilometers (km): 65,610 sq km
Gross Domestic Product GDP per capita (PPP): $274.7 billion
Major ethnic groups: Sinhalese 74.9%, Sri Lankan Tamil
11.2%, Sri Lankan Moors 9.2%, Indian Tamil 4.2%, other
0.5%
POPULATION
Total population: 20,715,000
Life Expectancy at Birth-males: 71.6
Life Expectancy at Birth-females: 78.3
Life expectancy at birth – 74.9
GENERAL HEALTH INFORMATION
COMMUNICABLE DISEASES
TB incidence: 65 per 100,000 population
Malaria incidence: 0 per 1000 population at risk
New HIV infections among adults 15-49 years: <0.1 per 1000
uninfected population
NONCOMMUNICABLE DISEASES
Total alcohol per capita (> 15 of age): 4.5 Liters
Probability of dying from any CVD, cancer, diabetes, CRD
between age 30 and exact age 70: 17.6%
Age-standardized prevalence of tobacco smoking among
persons 15 years and older – male: 28.4%
Age-standardized prevalence of tobacco smoking among
persons 15 years and older – female: 0.4%
MATERNAL & CHILD HEALTH
Neonatal mortality rate: 5.4 per 1000 live births
Under 5 mortality rate: 9.8 per 1000 live births
Maternal mortality ratio: 30 per 100,000 live births
Prevalence of wasting in children under 5: 21.4%
Prevalence of overweight in children under 5: 0.6%
ENVIRONMENT
Proportion of population using improved drinking water
sources: 96%
Proportion of population using improved sanitation: 95%
Mortality rate attributed to household and ambient air
pollution: 119.4 per 100,000 population
Mortality rate attributed to exposure to unsafe WASH services:
3.3 per 100,000 population
HEALTH CARE SERVICES
Proportion of married or in-union women of reproductive age
who have their need for family planning satisfied with modern
methods: 69.4%
Proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel: 99%
Skilled health professionals density: 23.2 per 10,000
population
INJURIES
Road traffic mortality rate: 17.4 per 100,000 population
Suicide mortality rate: 29.2 per 100,000 population
Mortality rate from unintentional poisoning: 0.4 per 100,000
population
Mortality rate due to homicide: 3.8 per 100,000 population
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Population Pyramid Graph (3 points)

Population Pyramid Graph - Custom Region - Sri Lanka

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(2) COUNTRY SUMMARY

Sri Lanka is a Southeast Asian island nation just south of India. It has an area of 65,610 sq km,
which is about 10 times smaller than the state of Texas. The government is a Democratic Socialist
Republic, which incorporates socialist goals into the democratic system, unlike the U.S. which is just a
Constitutional Federal Republic and does not contain socialist ideals. Sri Lanka’s GDP per capita is
about $12,800, 79% of which is government debt. The U.S, on the other hand, has a $59,500 GDP per
capita. Sri Lanka is not very diverse with a majority of people being Sinhalese (74.9%), or people
originally from North India, and a mixture of Tamil and Moors making up most of the rest of the
population. Thus, the main religions followed are Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam. The U.S, however, is
known for being a “melting pot” but is still majority white (72.4%) with the rest of the population being
mostly black, Asian, mixed, or other. Still, the U.S. has many different religions and faiths practiced,
with the main one being Christianity and its branches. Overall, Sri Lanka is fairly small as compared to
the U.S, which affects the diversity and culture of the nation. (The World Factbook)
The total population of Sri Lanka is about 20,715,000, which is just a fraction of the U.S.’s size
of 326,625,791. This can be attributed to the tremendous size difference between the two nations. The
life expectancy for both males and females are slightly lower in Sri Lanka than in the U.S, with males
being 71.6 and females being 78.3 versus 76.9 and 81.6 in the U.S. The life expectancies for the
Southeast Asia region as a whole fall below both Sri Lanka’s and the U.S, being 67.3 for males and 70.7
for females. Additionally, the life expectancy at birth for Sri Lanka is 74.9, which is lower than the U.S.
at 79.3 but still better than Southeast Asia as a whole at 68.9. This is due to the incorporation of India,
Indonesia, Bhutan, and many other nations that have lower life expectancies and a developing status that
would bring the average down. Therefore, Sri Lanka can be viewed as having better than average health
compared to its neighbors, which is a good indicator of its development as a nation. (WHO)
In terms of general health, Sri Lanka has a high rate of TB, but very low rates of Malaria and
HIV. TB is highly endemic in Sri Lanka with a contributory cause considered to be an influx of
migrants from China and India. The incidence of TB in Sri Lanka is 65 per 100,000, which is quite high
when compared to the U.S. rate of 3.1 per 100,000. However, the incidence rate for the entire Southeast
Asian region is much greater, at 211 per 100,000, due to the high incidence in nations such as India. For
health concerning noncommunicable diseases, Sri Lanka and the U.S. go back and forth on several
indicators. For example, Sri Lanka’s total alcohol consumption per capita is only 4.5 liters, which is half
of the U.S. at 9 liters. This may be attributed to culture differences in the two nations. Interestingly, the
indicator for all of Southeast Asia is less than both, at only 3.7 liters, which is probably due to many
countries not having the norm of alcohol consumption as prevalent as the U.S. The probability of death
due to CVD, cancer, diabetes, CRD between age 30 and 70 is not that much different for the U.S. and
Sri Lanka, with the latter being slightly higher at 17.6% and the U.S. at 14.3%. These are both better
than Southeast Asia, which is 24.5%, due to lack of effective health care in many areas. In terms of
tobacco smoking, Sri Lanka has a high rate among males, 28.4%, but a very low rate among females,
only 0.4%. In the U.S, the rate for males is slightly lower, 19.5%, but for females it is much higher at
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15%. This difference shows the culture differences between the two nations and how it is important to
look at how health hazards affect specific populations, not just the whole. (WHO)
For maternal and child health, the U.S. is better than Sri Lanka in most aspects. For example, the
neonatal and under 5 mortality rates for Sri Lanka are 5.4 and 9.8 per 1000 live births, respectively,
versus the U.S. have neonatal and under 5 mortality rates being only 3.6 and 6.5 per 1000 live births,
respectively. Additionally, the prevalence of wasting, defined as a low weight for the child’s height, is a
considerable 21.4% in Sri Lanka versus only 0.5% in the U.S. It can be concluded that the child health
in the U.S. is better than in Sri Lanka, which is probably due to extensive neonatal care. However, there
is a much higher prevalence of overweight children in the U.S, being 6% versus only 0.6%, most likely
due to the culture of fast food and large portions. When compared to the Southeast region as a whole,
the prevalence of wasting is actually less than Sri Lanka, at only 13.5%, but the neonatal and under 5
mortality rates are much higher, at 24.3 and 42.5 per 1000 live births, respectively. In terms of maternal
health, the U.S. has the lowest maternal mortality at only 14 per 100,000 live births, with Sri Lanka
about double that at 30 per 100,000 live births. These rates are very small compared to the Southeast
Asian rate of 164 per 100,000 live births. The reason for these numbers is probably due to tremendous
overpopulation and unsanitary conditions for families in nations, on top of poverty and limited access to
health care. When there are millions of people densely packed, there is going to be a lot of competition
for resources, jobs, and access to care. It is tragic to see so many cases of children malnourished and
sick in Southeast Asian nations, but the vast overpopulation and developing status of them make it so
that it is impossible for many to attain a better social standing and resources for their families. (WHO)
The environmental quality in Sri Lanka is very good in Sri Lanka, with the proportion of the
population using improved drinking water and sanitation being 96% and 95%, respectively, which is
fairly close to the U.S. proportions of 99% and 100%. Southeast Asia as a whole also has a good
proportion using improved drinking water, at 92%, but then drops tremendously for sanitation at only
49%. The culture in many nations concerning sanitation isn’t as rigid as in the U.S, and many even
consider having a bathroom inside the home to be dirty. Additionally, the homeless populations
contribute to the unsanitary conditions as it is much more prevalent in this region. While sanitation may
be good in Sri Lanka, it has a high mortality rate attributed to household and ambient air pollution, at
119.4 per 100,000 compared to the U.S. rate of only 12.1 per 100,000. The rate for the Southeast Asian
region is about the same as Sri Lanka, even slightly less at 117.1 per 100,000. The reason for such high
pollutants is mainly due to old vehicles and poor quality of gas, in addition to the burning of firewood
for cooking. The mortality rate due to unsafe WASH services (water, sanitation, and hygiene) in Sri
Lanka is 3.3 per 100,000, which is about 5 times the U.S. rate of 0.6 per 100,000. This ties in with the
other indicators mentioned previously and how access to good drinking water and sanitation affects
health tremendously. (WHO)
The health care serves in Sri Lanka vary in quality as compared to the U.S. For example, only
69.4% of Sri Lankan women are satisfied with modern methods for family planning, as compared to
83.4% of American women. 73.4% of Southeast Asian women as a whole are satisfied, which shows
that Sri Lanka needs to work on providing more resources to married or in-union women of reproductive
age for contraceptives and family planning. The proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel
is very good for both Sri Lanka and the U.S, being 99% for both, but much lower for the whole region at
only 59%. Even though this number is high for Sri Lanka, the actual density of skilled health
professionals is only 23.2 per 10,000, which is about a fifth of the U.S. density of 122.7 per 10,000.
Therefore, there are some disparities with the access to a health professional, which consequently affects
the general health of the population. (WHO)
The injury rate varies between Sri Lanka and the U.S, for several indicators, with road traffic
and suicide mortality rates being much higher in Sri Lanka but unintentional poisoning and homicide
mortality rates being much higher in the U.S. In Sri Lanka, road traffic and suicide mortality account for
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17.4 and 29.2 per 100,000, respectively, versus only 10.6 and 13.7 in the U.S. However, unintentional
poisoning and homicide account for 4.3 and 5.4 per 100,000 in the U.S. versus only 0.4 and 3.8 in Sri
Lanka. The reasons for these disparities may be more car use and resulting traffic jams in Sri Lanka, as
well availability of poisonous pesticides to ingest in suicide attempts. In the U.S. drug overdose could be
the problem with unintentional poisoning, and gun violence is a very prevalent issue in terms of
homicide. (WHO)
In conclusion, Sri Lanka has shown to be more developed and on par with industrialized nations
in many aspects, but can definitely still show improvement. Improvement can be made most in child
health, pollution, and suicide rates, which will all greatly affect the health and well-being of the current
population and future generations. This can be done by improving access to health care, implementing
policies to ensure more environmentally friendly cars, and investing in mental health.

Works Cited

Census Bureau. International Programs, International Data Base. Census Bureau QuickFacts.
https://www.census.gov/data-tools/demo/idb/informationGateway.php. Published June 27, 2011.
Accessed November 7, 2018.

The World Factbook: SRI LANKA. Central Intelligence Agency.

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ce.html. Published November 6,
2018. Accessed November 7, 2018

The World Factbook: UNITED STATES. Central Intelligence Agency.

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/us.html. Published October 23,
2018.Accessed November 7, 2018

World Health Statistics 2017: Monitoring health for the SDGs. World Health Organization.
https://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/2017/en/. Published July 4, 2017.
Accessed November 7, 2018.