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.

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

8 00 S, 159 00 E

Oceania

total: 28,450 sq km
land: 27,540 sq km
water: 910 sq km

slightly smaller than Maryland

0 km

5,313 km

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

tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather

mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls

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

fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel

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

NA

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

deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying

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

strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean, the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea

552,438 (July 2006 est.)

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.)

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

2.61% (2006 est.)

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

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

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

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.)

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.)

total population: 72.91 years
male: 70.4 years
female: 75.55 years (2006 est.)

3.91 children born/woman (2006 est.)

NA

NA

NA

noun: Solomon Islander(s)
adjective: Solomon Islander

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

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)

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

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

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

parliamentary democracy

Honiara

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

7 July 1978 (from UK)

Independence Day, 7 July (1978)

7 July 1978

English common law, which is widely disregarded

21 years of age; universal

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
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

unicameral National Parliament (50 seats; members elected from single-member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 5 April 2006 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA

Court of Appeal

Association of Independent Members or AIM [Thomas CHAN]; People's Alliance Party or PAP [Sir Allan KEMAKEZA]; LAFARI Party; National Party [Francis HILLY]; Social Credit Party or SOCRED [Manasseh Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon Islands Alliance for Change Coalition or SIACC [Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]; Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [Joses TUHANUKU]; United Party [Sir Peter KENILOREA]
note: in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid coalitions

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

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

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

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

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

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, NZ, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga arrived 24 July 2003; by 2006, the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) had been scaled back to 259 police officers and 20 military, in addition to civilian technical advisors; in response to rioting that broke out in mid-April 2006, Australia dispatched an addtional 220 troops and 70 police officers to help restore order

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.

$800 million (2002 est.)

NA

5.8% (2003 est.)

$1,700 (2002 est.)

agriculture: 42%
industry: 11%
services: 47% (2000 est.)

26,840 (1999)

agriculture: 75%
industry: 5%
services: 20% (2000 est.)

NA%

NA%

lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

10% (2003 est.)

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

cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; timber; cattle, pigs; fish

fish (tuna), mining, timber

NA%

55 million kWh (2003)

fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

51.15 million kWh (2003)

0 kWh (2003)

0 kWh (2003)

0 bbl/day (2003 est.)

1,270 bbl/day (2003 est.)

NA bbl/day

NA bbl/day

0 cu m (2003 est.)

0 cu m (2003 est.)

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

timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa

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

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

food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals

Australia 24.2%, Singapore 22.7%, NZ 7.6%, Fiji 4.7%, Papua New Guinea 4.6% (2004)

$180.4 million (2002)

$28 million annually, mainly from Australia (2003 est.)

Solomon Islands dollar (SBD)

SBD

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

calendar year

6,200 (2003)

1,500 (2003)

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

AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2004)

57,000 (1997)

3,000 (1997)

.sb

740 (2005)

1 (2000)

8,400 (2005)

34 (2005)

total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2005)

total: 32
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 9
under 914 m: 22 (2005)

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

Honiara, Malloco Bay, Shortland Harbor, Viru Harbor, Yandina

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

males age 18-49: 114,253 (2005 est.)

males age 18-49: 92,796 (2005 est.)

males age 18-49: 6,033 (2005 est.)

NA

NA

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