Sri Lanka
Digital Snapshot – Key Policies and Laws
Sri Lanka’s digital profile is mid-tier by global benchmarks, with the UN E-Government Development Index (EGDI) 2024 ranking 98/193 (0.6667) and an E-Participation ranking of 108/193. At the network-ecosystem level, Internet Society’s tracker reports one active IXP in Sri Lanka (Colombo) with a small member base as of December 2025, which matters for keeping domestic traffic local.
On strategy and governance, the state’s main documents include the National Digital Economy Strategy 2030 (Digital Sri Lanka 2030) and the National Digital Government/Governance Policy, which is to say, digital service delivery and public-sector transformation. A related reference point is the Draft National Digital Policy 2020–2025, and the government’s ‘whole-of-government’ delivery approach is reflected in the Sri Lanka Government Enterprise Architecture (SL-GEA).
From internet shutdowns to the Online Safety Act
One ‘surprising’ internet-governance thread in Sri Lanka is how temporary platform shutdowns during crises have gradually been paired with a formal content-regulation law. During the 2022 protest wave, measurement groups documented a multi-platform block (Facebook, Twitter/X, WhatsApp, Viber, YouTube) that lasted roughly 15–16 hours, demonstrating the state’s willingness to use network-level restrictions in acute moments. In 2024, Parliament enacted the Online Safety Act, creating an Online Safety Commission empowered to act against broadly defined ‘prohibited statements,’ including mechanisms critics say can lead to orders to remove content and disable access, a shift from ad hoc restrictions to a standing enforcement architecture.
Connectivity policy is expressed through both projects and licensing decisions. TRCSL’s ‘Gamata Sannivedanaya (Connect Sri Lanka)’ is explicitly framed as a national effort to achieve 100% 4G/fibre broadband coverage. For 5G, TRCSL reports conducting the country’s first-ever spectrum auction and awarding spectrum for IMT-2020 (5G) broadband services. International resilience is supported by multiple submarine cables; for example, SLT-Mobitel reported landing SEA-ME-WE 6 in Matara.
In cloud and emerging tech, Sri Lanka has a public-sector Cloud First stance via the Policy for the Adoption of Cloud Services by Government Organisations, which directs agencies to prefer cloud for new ICT deployments. The country also has a formal National AI Strategy and is developing broader ‘connected government‘ building blocks to support interoperable digital services. For digital payments for public services, GovPay is a government online payment platform that allows paying fees and charges via banks and wallets.
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Trust and market rules are being built out in parallel. Cybersecurity is anchored in the National Cyber Security Strategy 2025–2029 (NCSOC) and the National Cyber Protection Strategy 2025–2029, following an earlier National Information and Cyber Security Strategy 2019-2023 published by Sri Lanka CERT|CC. For data protection, Sri Lanka enacted the Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022, with later amendments issued in 2025.
In content governance, Parliament passed the Online Safety Act, No. 9 of 2024, establishing a framework for the Online Safety Commission. For e-commerce, the legal basis includes the Electronic Transactions Act (2006), and consumer-facing rules were strengthened by the Consumer Affairs Authority’s 2023 Gazette direction, which defines e-commerce entities/platforms and sets conditions.
Sri Lanka’s permanent mission to the UN:
The Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the UN Office and other international organisations in Geneva serves as Sri Lanka’s official delegation in Geneva-based multilateral forums, including the UN system headquartered at UNOG. The Mission was established in December 1964 and also provides consular services to Sri Lankans in Switzerland through its Geneva-based services.
Official website: https://www.lankamission.org/
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The data is sourced from reputable international agencies and organizations. Hover over each field for source information and explanations.
General profile
Official name: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
National internet domain: LK
Area: 65,610 km2
Capital: Colombo and Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte
Population: 22.0 million
The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.Population growth: -0.65
Annual population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. Population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship.The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.
Life expectancy at birth: 76.61
Total years (Estimate for 2022)The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.
Rule of law estimate: -0.06
Rule of Law captures perceptions of the extent to which agents have confidence in and abide by the rules of society, and in particular the quality of contract enforcement, property rights, the police, and the courts, as well as the likelihood of crime and violence. Estimate gives the country's score ranging from approximately -2.5 to 2.5 (Estimate for 2023)
Regulatory quality estimate: -0.65
Political stability: -0.79
Economic info
Currency: Sri Lankan rupee
Unemployment (%): 4.53
Unemployment, total (% of total labor force)The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.
GDP (current US$): 84.4 billion
GDP growth (annual %): -2.30
GDP per capita (current US$): 3.8 thousand
The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.Inflation, consumer prices (annual %): 16.54
The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.
Digital profile
Internet and social media penetration:
Individuals using the internet, total (%): 50.11
The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.Social media users: 7.5 million
Estimate for 2024Male internet users (%): 47.90
Male internet users as a % of total male population.The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.
Facebook users: 7.5 million
Estimate for 2024Female internet users (%): 41.40
Female Internet users as a % of total female population.The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.
Instagram users: 1.8 million
Estimate for 2024Households with internet access at home (%): 61.72
The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.Linkedin users: 2.1 million
Estimate for 2024Fixed broadband subscriptions: 8.77
Total fixed broadband subscriptions (per 100 people) refers to fixed subscriptions to high-speed access to the public internet (a TCP/IP connection), at downstream speeds equal to, or greater than, 256 kbit/s.The displayed data represents the most recent information obtained from sources, typically covering the years 2018 to 2023.
X users: 309.1 thousand
Estimate for 2024Mobile infrastructure and access:
Mobile ownership (%): 62.28
Mobile phone ownership as a % of total population (Estimate for 2023)Mobile Infrastructure: 62.51
Mobile Infrastructure index: High-performance mobile internet coverage availability. It includes parameters such as network coverage, performance, quality of supporting infrastructure and amount of spectrum assigned to mobile network operators (Estimate for 2023)Gender gap in mobile internet (%): 55.74
This metric evaluates the disparity in mobile internet access between genders. (Estimate for 2023)Mobile Affordability: 44.36
Mobile Affordability index : The availability of mobile services and devices at price points that reflect the level of income across a national population. It includes parameters such as mobile tariffs, headset prices, taxation and inequality (Estimate for 2023)Gender gap in mobile ownership (%): 30.65
Represents the disparity between genders in owning mobile devices. (Estimate for 2023)Top-Level Domains (TLDs) per person: 43.50
Number of generic and country Top Level Domains per person Estimate for 2023.Network performance: 52.47
Network performance index: Quality of mobile services measured by download speed, upload speed and latencies (Estimate for 2023)Mobile download speeds: 26.23
Mobile download speeds: Average download speed for mobile users (originally in Mbit/s) (Estimate for 2023)Mobile uploads speeds: 41.65
Mobile uploads speeds: average uploads speed for mobile users (originally in Mbit/s) (Estimate for 2023)Mobile Latencies: 89.54
Mobile Latencies: Average latency for mobile users (originally in milliseconds) (Estimate for 2023)Network Coverage (%): 87.34
Network coverage (% of total population) (Estimate for 2023)2G Coverage (%): 99
Coverage % of population (Estimate for 2023)3G Coverage (%): 96
Coverage % of population (Estimate for 2023)4G Coverage (%): 96
Coverage % of population (Estimate for 2023)5G Coverage (%): 6.41
Coverage % of population (Estimate for 2023)Operating system and browser market share estimate
Operating system market share (%):
Desktop, Tablet & Console Operating System Market Share: Estimate for 2024Browser market share (%):
Browser Market Share Worldwide: Estimate for 2024Android: 36.50
Chrome: 54.60
Win10: 40.20
Safari: 4.47
iOS: 5.39
Edge: 34.33
OS X: 0.99
Firefox: 1.43
Win11: 14.45
Samsung Internet: 2.14
The UN E-Government Survey
The UN E-Government Survey is the assessment of the digital government landscape across all UN member states. The E-Government Survey is informed by over two decades of longitudinal research, with a ranking of countries based on the UN E-Government Development Index (EGDI), a combination of primary data (collected and owned by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs) and secondary data from other UN agencies.E-Government Rank: 98
Nations E-Government Development Index (EGDI), a combination of primary data (collected and owned by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs) and secondary data from other UN agencies. Estimate gives the country's rank.E-Government Index: 0.66
The EGDI is a composite measure of three important dimensions of e-government, namely: provision of online services, telecommunication connectivity and human capacity. Estimate gives the country's score ranging from approximately 0 to 1.E-Participation Index: 0.41
The E-Participation Index (EPI) is derived as a supplementary index to the United Nations E-Government Survey. Estimate gives the country's score ranging from approximately 0 to 1.Online Service Index: 0.54
The online services index was developed by the UN to evaluate the scope and quality of government online services. Estimate gives the country's score ranging from approximately 0 to 1.Human Capital Index: 0.65
The Human Capital Index (HCI) quantiï¬es the contribution of health and education to the productivity of the next generation of workers. Estimate gives the country's score ranging from approximately 0 to 1.Telecommunication Infrastructure Index: 0.79
Telecommunication Infrastructure Index- Telecommunication Infrastructure Index (TII) Composite Indicator that measures the countries' Telecommunication infrastructure readiness to adopt the opportunities offered by Information and Communication Technology as to enhance their competitiveness. Estimate gives the country's score ranging from approximately 0 to 1.Government AI Readiness Index
Ranking: 85
Global Ranking is calculated based on the total score. (Estimate for 2024).Total: 45.29
The total score is calculated by taking the arithmetic mean of each dimension, followed by the arithmetic mean of each pillar. The final score is the arithmetic mean of the three pillars, with all indicators, dimensions, and pillars weighted equally. (Estimate for 2024).Government: 55.04
This pillar evaluates a government's readiness and capability to implement AI responsibly and effectively. It includes several dimensions: the presence of a national AI strategy (Vision), regulations for data protection, privacy, and cybersecurity, along with ethical frameworks and accountability measures (Governance and Ethics). It also considers the existing IT infrastructure, online services, and promotion of emerging technology investments (Digital Capacity). Finally, it assesses the government’s ability to change and innovate effectively, including responsiveness to change, effectiveness, and use of procurement data (Adaptability). (Estimate for 2024).Technology Sector: 32.19
This pillar assesses the country's technology sector and its ability to support AI implementation. It includes the maturity of the sector, measured by metrics such as the number of AI and non-AI unicorns, value of trade in ICT services and goods, and spending on computer software (Maturity). It also evaluates the sector's capacity for innovation, considering factors like time spent dealing with regulations, availability of venture capital, R&D spending, company investment in emerging technology, and research papers published in AI (Innovation Capacity). Additionally, it examines the availability of skills within the population, focusing on STEM graduates, GitHub users, female STEM graduates, quality of engineering education, and ICT skills (Human Capital). (Estimate for 2024).Data and Infrastructure: 48.65
This pillar evaluates a country’s technological and data infrastructure to support AI implementation. It examines the quality of technological infrastructure, including telecommunications, supercomputing capabilities, broadband quality, 5G infrastructure, and the adoption of emerging technologies (Infrastructure). It also assesses the availability of data for training AI models, considering factors such as open data, data governance, mobile-cellular subscriptions, household internet access, and statistical capacity (Data Availability). Additionally, it considers the representativeness of the available data, focusing on metrics like the gender gap in internet access and the affordability of internet-enabled devices relative to GDP per capita (Data Representativeness). (Estimate for 2024).