Solomon Islands

Facts About the Solomon Islands

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.
Government type: parliamentary democracy
Capital: Honiara
Currency: 1 Solomon Islands dollar (SI$) = 100 cents

Geography of the Solomon Islands

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
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 5,313 km
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

People of the Solomon Islands

The Solomon Islanders comprise diverse cultures, languages, and customs. Of its 427,000 persons, 93.3% are Melanesian, 4% Polynesian, and 1.5% Micronesian. In addition, small numbers of Europeans and Chinese are registered. About 70 vernaculars are spoken.

Most people reside in small, widely dispersed settlements along the coasts. Sixty percent live in localities with fewer than 200 persons, and only 11% reside in urban areas.

The capital city of Honiara, situated on Guadalcanal, the largest island, has over 35,000 inhabitants. The other principal towns are Gizo, Auki, and Kirakira.

Most Solomon Islanders are Christian, with the Anglican, Roman Catholic, South Seas Evangelical, and Seventh-day Adventist faiths predominating. About 5% of the population maintain traditional beliefs.

The chief characteristics of the traditional Melanesian social structure are:

The practice of subsistence economy;
The recognition of bonds of kinship, with important obligations extending beyond the immediate family group;
Generally egalitarian relationships, emphasizing acquired rather than inherited status; and
A strong attachment of the people to the land.

Most Solomon Islanders maintain this traditional social structure and find their roots in village life.

Population: 538,032 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 44% (male 105,024; female 101,065)
15-64 years: 53% (male 124,627; female 121,358)
65 years and over: 3% (male 6,935; female 7,185)
Population growth rate: 3.04%
Birth rate: 34.79 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 4.35 deaths/1,000 population
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
Infant mortality rate: 25.26 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.28 years
male: 68.86 years
female: 73.81 years
Total fertility rate: 4.8 children born/woman
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

History of the Solomon Islands

Although little prehistory of the Solomon Islands is known, material excavated on Santa Ana, Guadalcanal, and Gawa indicates that a hunter-gatherer people lived on the larger islands as early as 1000 B.C. Some Solomon Islanders are descendants of Neolithic, Austronesian-speaking peoples who migrated somewhat later to the Pacific Islands from Southeast Asia.

The European discoverer of the Solomons was the Spanish explorer Alvaro de Mendana Y Neyra, who set out from Peru in 1567 to seek the legendary Isles of Solomon. British mariner Philip Carteret , entered Solomon waters in 1767. In the years that followed, visits by explorers were more frequent.

Missionaries began visiting the Solomons in the mid-1800s. They made little progress at first, however, because “blackbirding”–the often brutal recruitment of laborers for the sugar plantations in Queensland and Fiji–led to a series of reprisals and massacres. The evils of the labor trade prompted the United Kingdom to declare a protectorate over the southern Solomons in 1893. In 1898 and 1899, more outlying islands were added to the protectorate; in 1900 the remainder of the archipelago, an area previously under German jurisdiction, was transferred to British administration. Under the protectorate, missionaries settled in the Solomons, converting most of the population to Christianity.

In the early 20th century, several British and Australian firms began largescale coconut planting. Economic growth was slow, however, and the islanders benefited little. With the outbreak of World War II, most planters and traders were evacuated to Australia, and most cultivation ceased.

From May 1942, when the Battle of the Coral Sea was fought, until December 1943, the Solomons were almost constantly a scene of combat. Although U.S. forces landed on Guadalcanal virtually unopposed in August 1942, they were soon engaged in a bloody fight for control of the islands’ airstrip, which the U.S. forces named Henderson Field. One of the most furious sea battles ever fought took place off Savo Island, near Guadalcanal, also in August 1942. Before the Japanese completely withdrew from Guadalcanal in February 1943, over 7,000 Americans and 21,000 Japanese died. By December 1943, the Allies were in command of the entire Solomon chain.

Postwar Developments
Following the end of World War II, the British colonial government returned. The capital was moved from Tulagi to Honiara to take advantage of the infrastructure left behind by the U.S. military. A native movement known as the Marching Rule defied government authority. There was much disorder until some of the leaders were jailed in late 1948. Throughout the 1950s, other indigenous dissident groups appeared and disappeared without gaining strength.

In 1960, an advisory council of Solomon Islanders was superseded by a legislative council, and an executive council was created as the protectorate’s policymaking body. The council was given progressively more authority.

In 1974, a new constitution was adopted establishing a parliamentary democracy and ministerial system of government. In mid-1975, the name Solomon Islands officially replaced that of British Solomon Islands Protectorate. On January 2, 1976, the Solomons became self-governing, and independence followed on July 7, 1978.

Solomon Islands Economy

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: 3.5% (1999 est.), 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)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 10% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 26,842
Labor force – by occupation: agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%
Budget:
revenues: $147 million
expenditures: $168 million (1997 est.)
Industries: fish (tuna), mining, timber
Electricity – production: 30 million kWh (1998)
Electricity – production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity – consumption: 28 million kWh (1998)
Agriculture – products: cocoa, beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs; timber; fish
Exports: $142 million (f.o.b., 1998 est.)
Exports – commodities: timber, fish, palm oil, cocoa, copra
Exports – partners: Japan 50%, Spain 16%, United Kingdom, Thailand 5% (1996)
Imports: $160 million (c.i.f., 1998 est.)
Imports – commodities: plant and equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals, fuel
Imports – partners: Australia 42%, Japan 10%, Singapore 9%, New Zealand 8%, United States 5% (1996)
Debt – external: $135 million (1997)
Economic aid – recipient: $46.4 million (1995)
Currency: 1 Solomon Islands dollar (SI$) = 100 cents