Colombo is the commercial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo metropolitan area has a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 in the city proper. It is the financial centre of the island and a tourist destination. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to the Greater Colombo area which includes Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, the legislative capital of Sri Lanka and Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia. Colombo is often referred to as the capital since Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is within the urban area of, and a suburb of, Colombo. It is also the administrative capital of the Western Province and the district capital of Colombo District. Colombo is a busy and vibrant city with a mixture of modern life, colonial buildings and monuments.
The Colombo Plan is a regional organisation of 27 countries designed to strengthen economic and social development of member countries in the Asia-Pacific region. It was established by Great Britain in Colombo, Ceylon, in 1950. The primary focus of its work is on the development of human resources in the region. Aid to education 1950 to 1983 came to $72 billion, of which $41 billion came from the United States.
The Western Province is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka, the first level administrative division of the country. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but did not have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. The province is the most densely populated province in the country and is home to the legislative capital Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte as well to Colombo, the nation's administrative and business center.
BepiColombo is a joint mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to the planet Mercury. The mission comprises two satellites launched together: the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and Mio. The mission will perform a comprehensive study of Mercury, including characterization of its magnetic field, magnetosphere, and both interior and surface structure. It was launched on an Ariane 5 rocket on 20 October 2018 at 01:45 UTC, with an arrival at Mercury planned for on 5 December 2025, after a flyby of Earth, two flybys of Venus, and six flybys of Mercury. The mission was approved in November 2009, after years in proposal and planning as part of the European Space Agency's Horizon 2000+ programme; it is the last mission of the programme to be launched.
Emilio Colombo was an Italian politician, member of the Christian Democracy, who served as Prime Minister of Italy from August 1970 to February 1972.
Gioachino Colombo (1903–1988) was an Italian automobile engine designer. Colombo was born in Legnano. He began work as an apprentice to Vittorio Jano at Alfa Romeo.
The University of Colombo is a public research university located primarily in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is the oldest institution of modern higher education in Sri Lanka. Specialised in the fields of natural, social, and applied sciences as well as mathematics, computer sciences, and law. It is ranked among the top 10 universities in South Asia.
The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) is the main stock exchange in Sri Lanka. It is one of the exchanges in South Asia, providing an electronic trading platform. The headquarters of the CSE have been located at the World Trade Center (Colombo) Towers in Colombo since 1995 and it also has branches across the country in Kandy, Jaffna, Negombo, Matara, Kurunegala, Anuradhapura and Ratnapura. The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) has 296 companies representing 20 business sectors as at 25 January 2021, with a Market Capitalization of Rs. 3,699 Billion.
The Colombo crime family is the youngest of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal organization known as the American Mafia. It was during Lucky Luciano's organization of the American Mafia after the Castellammarese War, and the assassinations of Giuseppe "Joe The Boss" Masseria and Salvatore Maranzano, that the gang run by Joseph Profaci was recognized as the Profaci crime family.
Bandaranaike International Airport is the main international airport serving Sri Lanka. It is named after former Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike and is located in a suburb of Negombo, 32.5 kilometres north of the nation's longstanding capital and commercial center, Colombo. It is administered by Airport and Aviation Services Ltd and serves as the hub of SriLankan Airlines, the national carrier of Sri Lanka, and domestic carrier Cinnamon Air. The other airport serving the city of Colombo is the Ratmalana International Airport, primarily serving domestic destinations.
Colombo District is one of the 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of the country. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a District Secretary appointed by the central government of Sri Lanka. The capital of the district is the city of Colombo. The district of Colombo was officially recorded in 2016 as having the highest income on average, per household.
Cricket is the most popular sport in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is one of the twelve nations that take part in test cricket and one of the six nations that has won a cricket world cup. Cricket is played at professional, semi-professional and recreational levels in the country and international cricket matches are watched with interest by a large proportion of the population.
Sivagnanam Shritharan is a Sri Lankan Tamil teacher, politician and Member of Parliament.
Mathiaparanan Abraham Sumanthiran is a Sri Lankan Tamil lawyer, politician and Member of Parliament.
Mohamed Shariff Thowfeek is a Sri Lankan politician, former provincial councillor, former deputy minister and Member of Parliament.
Canagasabapathy Visuvalingam Vigneswaran, PC is a Sri Lankan Tamil lawyer, judge, politician and Member of Parliament. After practising law for more than 15 years, Vigneswaran was a member of the judiciary for 25 years. He was a magistrate and a judge of the District Court, High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. He was Chief Minister of the Northern Province from October 2013 to October 2018. He was elected to the Parliament of Sri Lanka in August 2020. Vigneswaran is leader of the Tamil People's Alliance and the Tamil People's National Alliance.
The Ministry of Health, Nutrition and Indigenous Medicine is the central government ministry of Sri Lanka responsible for health. The ministry is responsible for formulating and implementing national policy on health, nutrition, indigenous medicine and other subjects which come under its purview.
The Sri Lanka People's Front, commonly known by its Sinhalese name Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), is a Sri Lankan political front. Previously a minor political party known as the Sri Lanka National Front (SLNF) and Our Sri Lanka Freedom Front (OSLFF), it was relaunched in 2016 as the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna and became the home for members of the United People's Freedom Alliance loyal to its former leader Mahinda Rajapaksa.
