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Sri Lanka Telecommunications Profile

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Telephones - main lines in usetotal subscriptions: 2,291,464

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 10.08 (2019 est.)
Telephones - mobile cellulartotal subscriptions: 30,778,582

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 135.34 (2019 est.)
Telecommunication systemsgeneral assessment: telephone services have improved significantly; strong growth anticipated as Sri Lanka is lagging behind other Asian telecoms; increase in mobile broadband penetration; govt. funds telecom sector to expand fiber and LTE networks and growing investment in 5G services (2020)

domestic: fixed-line 12 per 100 and mobile-cellular 115 per 100; national trunk network consists of digital microwave radio relay and fiber-optic links; fixed wireless local loops have been installed; competition is strong in mobile cellular systems and mobile cellular subscribership is increasing (2019)

international: country code - 94; landing points for the SeaMeWe -3,-5,  Dhiraagu-SLT Submarine Cable Network, WARF Submarine Cable, Bharat Lanka Cable System and the Bay of Bengal Gateway submarine cables providing connectivity to Asia, Africa, Southeast Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and Europe; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (2019)

note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments
Broadcast mediagovernment operates 5 TV channels and 19 radio channels; multi-channel satellite and cable TV subscription services available; 25 private TV stations and about 43 radio stations; 6 non-profit TV stations and 4 radio stations
Internet country code.lk
Internet userstotal: 7,700,876

percent of population: 34.11% (July 2018 est.)
Broadband - fixed subscriptionstotal: 1,666,317

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 7.33 (2019 est.)

Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021

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