Solomon Islands

§1. Solomon Islands Introduction

Background:
  The UK established a protectorate over the Solomon Islands in the 1890s.
  Some of the bitterest fighting of World War II occurred on these islands.
  Self-government was achieved in 1976 and independence two years later.
  Ethnic violence, government malfeasance, and endemic crime have undermined
  stability and civil society. In June 2003, Prime Minister Sir Allen
  KEMAKEZA sought the assistance of Australia in reestablishing law and
  order; the following month, an Australian-led multinational force arrived
  to restore peace and disarm ethnic militias. The Regional Assistance
  Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) has been very effective in restoring
  law and order and rebuilding government institutions.

§2. Solomon Islands Geography

Location:
  Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New
  Guinea

Geographic coordinates:
  8 00 S, 159 00 E

Map references:
  Oceania

Area:
  total: 28,450 km²
  land: 27,540 km²
  water: 910 km²

Area - comparative:
  slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries:
  0 km

Coastline:
  5,313 km

Maritime claims:
  measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
  territorial sea: 12 nm
  exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
  continental shelf: 200 nm

Climate:
  tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather

Terrain:
  mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls

Elevation extremes:
  lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
  highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m

Natural resources:
  fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel

Land use:
  arable land: 0.62%
  permanent crops: 2.04%
  other: 97.34% (2005)

Irrigated land:
  NA

Natural hazards:
  typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent
  earth tremors; volcanic activity

Environment - current issues:
  deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding coral reefs are dead
  or dying

Environment - international agreements:
  party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
    Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine
    Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
  signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
  strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean, the
  Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea

§3. Solomon Islands People

Population:
  552,438 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
  0-14 years: 41.3% (male 116,370/female 111,834)
  15-64 years: 55.4% (male 154,793/female 151,308)
  65 years and over: 3.3% (male 8,696/female 9,437) (2006 est.)

Median age:
  total: 18.9 years
  male: 18.7 years
  female: 19 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
  2.61% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
  30.01 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
  3.92 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
  0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
  at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
  under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
  15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
  65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female
  total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
  total: 20.63 deaths/1,000 live births
  male: 23.54 deaths/1,000 live births
  female: 17.59 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
  total population: 72.91 years
  male: 70.4 years
  female: 75.55 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
  3.91 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
  NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
  NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
  NA

Nationality:
  noun: Solomon Islander(s)
  adjective: Solomon Islander

Ethnic groups:
  Melanesian 94.5%, Polynesian 3%, Micronesian 1.2%, other 1.1%, unspecified
  0.2% (1999 census)

Religions:
  Church of Melanesia 32.8%, Roman Catholic 19%, South Seas Evangelical 17%,
  Seventh-Day Adventist 11.2%, United Church 10.3%, Christian Fellowship
  Church 2.4%, other Christian 4.4%, other 2.4%, unspecified 0.3%, none 0.2%
  (1999 census)

Languages:
  Melanesian pidgin in much of the country is lingua franca; English is
  official but spoken by only 1%-2% of the population
  note: 120 indigenous languages

Literacy:
  definition: NA
  total population: NA
  male: NA
  female: NA

§4. Solomon Islands Government

Country name:
  conventional long form: none
  conventional short form: Solomon Islands
  former: British Solomon Islands

Government type:
  parliamentary democracy

Capital:
  Honiara

Administrative divisions:
  9 provinces and 1 capital territory*; Central, Choiseul, Guadalcanal,
  Honiara*, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell and Bellona, Temotu, Western

Independence:
  7 July 1978 (from UK)

National holiday:
  Independence Day, 7 July (1978)

Constitution:
  7 July 1978

Legal system:
  English common law, which is widely disregarded

Suffrage:
  21 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
  chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by
    Governor General Nathaniel WAENA (since 7 July 2004)
  head of government: Prime Minister Sir Allan KEMAKEZA (since 17 December
    2001); Deputy Prime Minister Snyder RINI (since 17 December 2001)
  cabinet: Cabinet consists of 20 members appointed by the governor general
    on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament
  elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by
    the monarch on the advice of Parliament for up to five years; following
    legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of
    a majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by Parliament;
    deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of
    the prime minister from among the members of Parliament

Legislative branch:
  unicameral National Parliament (50 seats; members elected from
  single-member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
  elections: last held 5 December 2001 (next to be held 5 April 2006)
  election results: percent of vote by party - PAP 40%, SIACC 40%, PPP 20%;
    seats by party - PAP 16, SIACC 13, PPP 2, SILP 1, independents 18

Judicial branch:
  Court of Appeal

Political parties and leaders:
  Association of Independents [Snyder RINI]; People's Alliance Party or PAP
  [Allan KEMAKEZA]; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Mannaseh Damukana
  SOGAVARE]; Solomon Islands Alliance for Change Coalition or SIACC
  [Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]; Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [Joses
  TUHANUKU]
  note: in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid
    coalitions

Political pressure groups and leaders:
  NA

International organization participation:
  ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA,
  IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC,
  UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
  chief of mission: Ambassador Collin David BECK
  chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400L, New York, NY 10017
  telephone: [1] (212) 599-6192, 6193
  FAX: [1] (212) 661-8925

Diplomatic representation from the US:
  the US does not have an embassy in Solomon Islands (embassy closed July
  1993); the ambassador to Papua New Guinea is accredited to the Solomon
  Islands

Flag description:
  divided diagonally by a thin yellow stripe from the lower hoist-side
  corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is blue with five white
  five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern; the lower triangle is green

Government - note:
  June 2003 Prime Minister Sir Allan KEMAKEZA sought the intervention of
  Australia to aid in restoring order; parliament approved the request for
  intervention in July 2003; troops from Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Papua
  New Guinea, and Tonga arrived 24 July 2003. By the end of 2004 the Regional
  Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) had been scaled back to
  302 police officers and 120 military in addition to civilian technical
  advisors.

§5. Solomon Islands Economy

Economy - overview:
  The bulk of the population depends on agriculture, fishing, and forestry
  for at least part of its livelihood. Most manufactured goods and petroleum
  products must be imported. The islands are rich in undeveloped mineral
  resources such as lead, zinc, nickel, and gold. Prior to the arrival of the
  Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI), severe ethnic
  violence, the closing of key businesses, and an empty government treasury
  culminated in economic collapse. RAMSI has enabled a return to law and
  order, a new period of economic stability, and modest growth as the economy
  rebuilds.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
  $800 million (2002 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
  NA

GDP - real growth rate:
  5.8% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
  $1,700 (2002 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
  agriculture: 42%
  industry: 11%
  services: 47% (2000 est.)

Labor force:
  26,840 (1999)

Labor force - by occupation:
  agriculture 75%, industry 5%, services 20% (2000 est.)

Unemployment rate:
  NA%

Population below poverty line:
  NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
  lowest 10%: NA%
  highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  10% (2003 est.)

Budget:
  revenues: $49.7 million
  expenditures: $75.1 million; including capital expenditures of $0 (2003)

Agriculture - products:
  cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit;
  timber; cattle, pigs; fish

Industries:
  fish (tuna), mining, timber

Industrial production growth rate:
  NA%

Electricity - production:
  55 million kWh (2003)

Electricity - consumption:
  51.15 million kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports:
  0 kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports:
  0 kWh (2003)

Oil - production:
  0 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - consumption:
  1,270 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:
  NA bbl/day

Oil - imports:
  NA bbl/day

Natural gas - production:
  0 m³ (2003 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
  0 m³ (2003 est.)

Exports:
  $171 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:
  timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa

Exports - partners:
  China 25.9%, South Korea 15.9%, Thailand 14.7%, Japan 9%, Philippines 4.5%
  (2004)

Imports:
  $159 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:
  food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals

Imports - partners:
  Australia 24.2%, Singapore 22.7%, New Zealand 7.6%, Fiji 4.7%, Papua New
  Guinea 4.6% (2004)

Debt - external:
  $180.4 million (2002)

Economic aid - recipient:
  $28 million annually, mainly from Australia (2003 est.)

Currency (code):
  Solomon Islands dollar (SBD)

Exchange rates:
  Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - 7.5299 (2005), 7.4847 (2004),
  7.5059 (2003), 6.7488 (2002), 5.278 (2001)

Fiscal year:
  calendar year

§6. Solomon Islands Communications

Telephones - main lines in use:
  6,200 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
  1,500 (2003)

Telephone system:
  general assessment: NA
  domestic: NA
  international: country code - 677; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat
    (Pacific Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations:
  AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2004)

Internet country code:
  .sb

Internet hosts:
  740 (2005)

Internet users:
  8,400 (2005)

§7. Solomon Islands Transportation

Airports:
  34 (2005)

Airports - with paved runways:
  total: 2
  1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
  914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2005)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
  total: 32
  1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
  914 to 1,523 m: 9
  under 914 m: 22 (2005)

Roadways:
  total: 1,360 km
  paved: 34 km
  unpaved: 1,326 km (1999)

Ports and terminals:
  Honiara, Malloco Bay, Shortland Harbor, Viru Harbor, Yandina

§8. Solomon Islands Military

Military branches:
  no regular military forces; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
  NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
  NA

§9. Solomon Islands Transnational Issues

Disputes - international:
  Australian Defense Force leads the Regional Assistance Mission to the
  Solomon Islands (RAMSI) at the invitation of the Solomon Islands'
  Government to maintain civil and political order and reinforce regional
  security


<Factbook 2006>
