Sri Lanka's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) was 3.31 in 2019, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 37.47% from 5.29 in 2009 (4.59% a year on average, compounded).
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 3.31 | 2019 |
| Five years earlier | 2.57 | 2014 |
| Ten years earlier | 5.29 | 2009 |
| Highest | 12.14 | 1990 |
| Lowest | 2.2 | 2017 |
| Average since 2010 | 2.83 | 2010–2019 |
| First recorded | 12.14 | 1990 |
What the numbers say
In 2019, Sri Lanka's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) rose 1 on 2018 (from 2.31 to 3.31).
Across the 13 yearly changes before that (1996 to 2018), the average change was −0.19 and a typical year strayed about 1.8 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 4.01 in 2006 and the biggest yearly fall was 4.41 in 2009. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2010 to 2019 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.11 a year. A straight line explains 36% of the movement over 10 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
See how every economy compares in the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Sri Lanka | 3.31 | 2019 |
| World | 5.2 | 2023 |
| South Asia | 2.8 | 2023 |
| Upper middle income | 5.7 | 2023 |
Closest to Sri Lanka in the 2019 ranking
What this measures
An intentional homicide is defined as an unlawful death inflicted upon a person with the intent to cause death or serious injury.
Limitations: Statistics reported to the United Nations in the context of its various surveys on crime levels and criminal justice trends are incidents of victimization that have been reported to the authorities in any given country. That means that this data is subject to the problems of accuracy of all official crime data. The survey results provide an overview of trends and interrelationships between various parts of the criminal justice system to promote informed decision-making in administration, nationally and internationally. The degree to which different societies apportion the level of culpability to acts resulting in death is also subject to variation.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a aggregate values are computed by unodc. for additional information, please see the unodc website: https://dataunodc.un.org/sites/dataunodc.un.org/files/metadata_intentional_homicide.pdf.
All 19 values
| Year | Intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 3.31 |
| 2018 | 2.31 |
| 2017 | 2.2 |
| 2016 | 2.42 |
| 2015 | 2.24 |
| 2014 | 2.57 |
| 2013 | 2.9 |
| 2012 | 3.19 |
| 2011 | 3.48 |
| 2010 | 3.65 |
| 2009 |
Intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) in nearby economies
- Bangladesh — 2.34 (2018)
- Bhutan — 2.47 (2020)
- India — 2.82 (2022)
- Maldives — 0.62 (2019)
- Nepal — 2.13 (2020)
More public sector data for Sri Lanka
- Military expenditure (current USD) — 1.39 billion (2025)
- Military expenditure (current LCU) — 418.25 billion (2025)
- Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 1.31% (2025)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 11 million (2025)
- Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) — 4.92% (2025)
- Net acquisition of financial assets (current LCU) — 234.09 billion (2023)
- Net acquisition of financial assets (% of GDP) — 0.85% (2023)
- Net incurrence of liabilities, total (current LCU) — 2.77 trillion (2023)
- Net incurrence of liabilities, total (% of GDP) — 10.07% (2023)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Sri Lanka's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people)?
- 3.31 in 2019, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1990?
- It is down 72.72% from 12.14 in 1990 (4.38% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 12.14 in 1990 and the lowest 2.2 in 2017.
- Is the latest change in intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) unusual for Sri Lanka?
- In 2019, Sri Lanka's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) rose 1 on 2018 (from 2.31 to 3.31). Across the 13 yearly changes before that (1996 to 2018), the average change was −0.19 and a typical year strayed about 1.8 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
- Where does this data come from?
- The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: UNODC Research - Data Portal – Intentional Homicide, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator VC.IHR.PSRC.P5, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: UNODC Research - Data Portal – Intentional Homicide, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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