| 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. Current issues
include government deficits, deforestation, and malaria
control. |
| Location: |
Oceania, group of
islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
8 00 S, 159 00 E |
| Area: |
total:
28,450 sq km
land: 27,540 sq km
water: 910 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly smaller
than Maryland |
| Maritime
claims: |
measured from
claimed archipelagic baselines
continental shelf: 200 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 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:
1%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 1%
forests and woodland: 88%
other: 9% (1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
typhoons, but
they are rarely destructive; geologically active region with
frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity |
| Environment
- current issues: |
deforestation;
soil erosion; much of the surrounding coral reefs are dead
or dying |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental
Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life
Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol |
| Population: |
480,442 (July
2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
43.79% (male 107,229; female 103,162)
15-64 years: 53.15% (male 129,315; female
126,021)
65 years and over: 3.06% (male 7,190; female
7,525) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
2.98% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
34.05
births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
4.27 deaths/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
0 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
24.47
deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 71.55 years
male: 69.12 years
female: 74.1 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
4.65 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
NA% |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Solomon Islander(s)
adjective: Solomon Islander |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Melanesian 93%,
Polynesian 4%, Micronesian 1.5%, European 0.8%, Chinese
0.3%, other 0.4% |
| Religions: |
Anglican 34%,
Roman Catholic 19%, Baptist 17%, United
(Methodist/Presbyterian) 11%, Seventh-Day Adventist 10%,
other Protestant 5%, indigenous beliefs 4% |
| Languages: |
Melanesian pidgin
in much of the country is lingua franca, English spoken by
1%-2% of population
note: 120 indigenous languages |
| Literacy: |
definition:
NA
total population: NA%
male: NA%
female: NA% |
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: none
conventional short form: Solomon Islands
former: British Solomon Islands |
| Government
type: |
parliamentary
democracy |
| Administrative
divisions: |
7 provinces and 1
town*; Central, Guadalcanal, Honiara*, Isabel, Makira,
Malaita, Temotu, Western; note - there may be two new
provinces of Choiseul (Lauru) and Rennell/Bellona and the
administrative unit of Honiara may have been abolished |
| Independence: |
7 July 1978 (from
UK) |
| National
holiday: |
Independence Day,
7 July (1978) |
| Constitution: |
7 July 1978 |
| Legal
system: |
English common
law |
| Suffrage: |
21 years of age;
universal |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of
state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by Governor General Father John LAPLI (since NA
1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Mannaseh
Damukana SOGAVARE (since 1 July 2000); Assistant Prime
Minister Nathaniel WAENA (since 1 July 2000); Deputy Prime
Minister Allan KEMAKEZA (since 1 July 2000); note - Prime
Minister Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU was forced to resign his
position in June 2000 following the armed takeover of the
capital by elements supporting the opposition parties;
Mannaseh Damukana SOGAVARE, who had been opposition leader,
was then elected prime minister at a sitting of National
Parliament on 30 June 2000
cabinet: Cabinet 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 6 August 1997 (next to be
held by August 2001)
election results: percent of vote by party -
NA%; seats by party - GNUR 21, PAP 7, NAPSI 5, SILP 4, UP 4,
independents 6, other 3 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Court of Appeal |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
there are two
main coalitions - Coalition for National Unity,
Reconciliation, and Peace or CNURP and Alliance for Change;
the CNURP took power on 30 June 2000, it comprises members
of the Liberal Party, People's Alliance Party, and the
United Party, as well as a number of independents; the
Alliance for Change, represents the former government and
now is the opposition; in general, Solomon Islands politics
is characterized by fluid coalitions; Group for National
Unity and Reconciliation or GNUR [leader NA]; Liberal Party
[Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]; National Action Party of Solomon
Islands or NAPSI [Francis SAEMALA]; People's Alliance Party
or PAP [George LEPPING]; People's Progressive Party [Mannaseh
Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [Joses
TUHANUKU]; United Party or UP [leader NA] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
NA |
| International
organization participation: |
ACP, AsDB, C,
ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, ITU,
Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO,
WTrO |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires ad
interim Jeremiah MANELE
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 |
| Economy
- overview: |
The bulk of the
population depends on agriculture, fishing, and forestry for
at least part of their 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. However, severe ethnic violence, the
closing of key business enterprises, and an empty government
treasury have led to a continuing economic downslide.
Deliveries of crucial fuel supplies (including those for
electrical generation) by tankers have become sporadic due
to the government's inability to pay and attacks against
ships. Telecommunications are threatened by the lack of
technical and maintenance staff many of whom have left the
country. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $900 million (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
1% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
50%
industry: 3.5%
services: 46.5% (1995) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
10% (1999 est.) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture NA%,
industry NA%, services NA% |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$147 million
expenditures: $168 million, including capital
expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
| Industries: |
fish (tuna),
mining, timber |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
NA% |
| Electricity
- production: |
30 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
27.9 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
cocoa, beans,
coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit;
cattle, pigs; timber; fish |
| Exports: |
$165 million
(f.o.b., 1999 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
timber, fish,
palm oil, cocoa, copra |
| Exports
- partners: |
Japan 35.5%,
other Asian countries 47.3% (1999) |
| Imports: |
$152 million
(f.o.b., 1999 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
plant and
equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals, fuels,
chemicals |
| Imports
- partners: |
Australia 38.5%,
Singapore 15%, Japan 10.6%, NZ 6.2% (1999) |
| Debt
- external: |
$152.4 million
(1998) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$47 million (1999
est.), mainly from Japan, Australia, China, and NZ |
| Currency: |
Solomon Islands
dollar (SBD) |
| Exchange
rates: |
Solomon Islands
dollars per US dollar - 5.0968 (November 2000), 5.0864
(2000), 4.8381 (1999), 4.8156 (1998), 3.7169 (1997), 3.5664
(1996) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
8,000 (1997) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
658 (1997) |
| Telephone
system: |
general
assessment: NA
domestic: NA
international: satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 3, FM 0,
shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
0 (1997) |
| Televisions: |
3,000 (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.sb |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
1 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
3,000 (2000) |
| Highways: |
total:
1,360 km
paved: 34 km
unpaved: 1,326 km (includes about 800 km of
private plantation roads) (1996 est.) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Aola Bay,
Honiara, Lofung, Noro, Viru Harbor, Yandina |
| Merchant
marine: |
none (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total:
29
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 10
under 914 m: 18 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
no regular
military forces; Solomon Islands National Reconnaissance and
Surveillance Force; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$NA |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
NA% |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
|
