The UK established a protectorate over the Solomon Islands in the 1890s. Some of the bitterest fighting of World War II occurred on this archipelago. 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, then 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 generally been effective in restoring law and order and rebuilding government institutions.
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 sq km
land
27,540 sq km
water
910 sq km
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
typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earthquakes, tremors, and volcanic activity; tsunamis
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; on 2 April 2007 an undersea earthquake measuring 8.1 on the Richter scale occurred 345 km WNW of the capital Honiara, the resulting tsunami devastated coastal areas of Western and Choiseul provinces with dozens of deaths and thousands dislocated; the provincial capital of Gizo was especially hard hit
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 (official; but spoken by only 1%-2% of the population); 120 indigenous languages
Literacy
definition
NA
total population
NA
male
NA
female
NA
Country name
conventional long form
none
conventional short form
Solomon Islands
local long form
none
local short form
Solomon Islands
former
British Solomon Islands
Government type
parliamentary democracy
Capital
name
Honiara
geographic coordinates
9 26 S, 159 57 E
time difference
UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
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 Manasseh SOGAVARE (since 4 May 2006); note - Prime Minister Snyder RINI, elected on 18 April 2006 and sworn in on 20 April 2006, resigned on 26 April prior to no confidence vote in parliament; SOGAVARE elected on 4 May 2006
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 (eligible for a second term); 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 on 5 April 2006 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - National Party 6.9%, PAP 6.3%, SIPRA 6.3%, Liberal 5%, Democratic 4.9%, SOCRED 4.3%, LAFARI 2.8%, independents 60.3%; seats by party - National Party 4, SIPRA 4, Democratic 3, PAP 3, LAFARI 2, Liberal 2, SOCRED 2, independents 30
Judicial branch
Court of Appeal
Political parties and leaders
Association of Independent Members or AIM [Thomas CHAN]; Christian Alliance Solomon Islands or CASI [Edward RONIA]; LAFARI Party [John GARO]; National Party [Francis HILLY]; People's Alliance Party or PAP [Sir Allan KEMAKEZA]; Social Credit Party or SOCRED [Manasseh Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon First Party [David QUAN]; Solomon Islands Democratic Party [Gabriel SURI]; Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [Joses TUHANUKU]; Solomon Islands Liberal Party [Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]; Solomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement or SIPRA [Job D. TAUSINGA]; United Party [Sir Peter KENILOREA]
note: in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid coalitions
Political pressure groups and leaders
Isatabu Freedom Movement (IFM); Malaita Eagle Force (MEF); note - these rival armed ethnic factions crippled the Solomon Islands in a wave of violence from 1999 to 2003
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
by 2006, the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) - originally made up of troops from Australia, NZ, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga - had been scaled back to 259 police officers and 20 military, in addition to civilian technical advisers; in response to rioting that broke out in mid-April 2006, Australia dispatched an additional 220 troops and 70 police officers to help restore order
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's efforts to restore law and order and economic stability have led to modest growth as the economy rebuilds.
GDP (purchasing power parity)
$800 million (2002 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)
$286 million (2005)
GDP - real growth rate
4.4% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)
$600 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector
agriculture
42%
industry
11%
services
47% (2000 est.)
Labor force
249,200 (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)
6.6% (2005 est.)
Budget
revenues
$49.7 million
expenditures
$75.1 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2003)
Agriculture - products
Industries
fish (tuna), mining, timber
Industrial production growth rate
NA%
Electricity - production
55 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source
fossil fuel
100%
hydro
0%
nuclear
0%
other
0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption
51.15 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports
0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports
0 kWh (2004)
Oil - production
0 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption
1,280 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports
NA bbl/day
Natural gas - production
0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption
0 cu m (2004 est.)
Exports
$171 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities
timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa
Exports - partners
China 45.2%, South Korea 13.9%, Japan 8.4%, Philippines 4.5%, Thailand 4.4%, Italy 4.2% (2006)
Imports
$159 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities
food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners
Australia 25.2%, Singapore 23.3%, Japan 7.8%, NZ 5%, Fiji 4.2%, Papua New Guinea 4.1% (2006)
Debt - external
$166 million (2004)
Economic aid - recipient
$122 million annually, mainly from Australia (2004 est.)
Currency (code)
Solomon Islands dollar (SBD)
Currency code
SBD
Exchange rates
Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - 7.3447 (2006), 7.5299 (2005), 7.4847 (2004), 7.5059 (2003), 6.7488 (2002)
Fiscal year
calendar year
Telephones - main lines in use
7,400 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular
6,000 (2005)
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)
Radios
57,000 (1997)
Televisions
3,000 (1997)
Internet country code
.sb
Internet hosts
2,658 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
1 (2000)
Internet users
8,400 (2005)
Airports
35 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways
total
2
1,524 to 2,437 m
1
914 to 1,523 m
1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways
total
33
1,524 to 2,437 m
1
914 to 1,523 m
9
under 914 m
23 (2006)
Roadways
total
1,360 km
paved
34 km
unpaved
1,326 km (1999)
Ports and terminals
Honiara, Malloco Bay, Shortland Harbor, Viru Harbor, Yandina
Military branches
no regular military forces; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP)
Manpower available for military service
males age 18-49: 114,253 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service
males age 18-49: 92,796 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually
males age 18-49: 6,033 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP
3% (2006)
Disputes - international
since 2003, Australian Defense Force leads the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) to maintain civil and political order and reinforce regional security
