Sri Lanka’s population has grown by over 1.4 million according to the latest census.

Figures for the Census of Population and Housing 2024, which have just been released, show that the population of Sri Lanka increased by over 1.4 million since the previous census in 2012.

Sri Lanka’s new statistics, reported by the country’s Department of Census and Statistics (DCS), indicate an all-time population high of just under 22 million. The average annual growth rate of the population between censuses is 0.5 per cent.

According to the latest census, the highest population density within Sri Lanka is 3,549 persons per square kilometre, reported in the Colombo District (the executive and judicial capital).

The South Asian country’s continued population growth, coupled with insufficient infrastructure investment, has placed significant strain on energy services in recent years.

In 2022, amid Sri Lanka’s worst economic crisis in decades, widespread fuel shortages led to rolling blackouts of up to 13 hours a day. The energy crisis, exacerbated by mismanagement and corruption, left homes in darkness, factories idle, and hospitals struggling to function.

In February this year, Sri Lanka was plunged into an island-wide blackout which left millions without electricity. While power was gradually restored across the island, hospitals were forced to rely on backup generators and businesses had to cease operating. According to Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody, the outage was triggered when a monkey entered the Panadura substation and came into contact with a transformer, causing a system-wide imbalance. However, while the government attributed the failure to a rogue animal, critics have pointed to long-standing structural weaknesses in Sri Lanka’s outdated power grid.

It is estimated that, by the end of 2025, the population of Sri Lanka will rise to approximately 23.229 million, a 20 per cent increase since 2000.

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