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Background:
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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. |
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Location:
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Oceania,
group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of
Papua New Guinea |
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Geographic coordinates:
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8 00 S,
159 00 E |
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Map references:
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Oceania
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Area:
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total:
28,450 sq km
land: 27,540 sq km
water: 910 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly
smaller than Maryland |
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Land boundaries:
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0 km |
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Coastline:
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5,313 km
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Maritime claims:
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measured
from claimed archipelagic baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm |
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Climate:
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tropical
monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather |
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Terrain:
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mostly
rugged mountains with some low coral atolls |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m |
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Natural resources:
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fish,
forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel
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Land use:
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arable
land: 0.64%
permanent crops: 2%
other: 97.36% (2001) |
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Irrigated land:
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NA |
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Natural hazards:
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typhoons,
but rarely destructive; geologically active region with
frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity |
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Environment - current issues:
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deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding
coral reefs are dead or dying |
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Environment - international agreements:
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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 |
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Geography - note:
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strategic
location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean,
the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea |
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Population:
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538,032
(July 2005 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 41.9% (male 114,860/female 110,404)
15-64 years: 54.9% (male 149,400/female 145,970)
65 years and over: 3.2% (male 8,371/female 9,027)
(2005 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
18.63 years
male: 18.5 years
female: 18.76 years (2005 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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2.68%
(2005 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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30.74
births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Death rate:
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3.98
deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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0
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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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: 0.93 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
21.29 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 24.27 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 18.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2005
est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 72.66 years
male: 70.16 years
female: 75.28 years (2005 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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4.04
children born/woman (2005 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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NA |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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NA |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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NA |
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Nationality:
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noun:
Solomon Islander(s)
adjective: Solomon Islander |
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Ethnic groups:
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Melanesian 94.5%, Polynesian 3%, Micronesian 1.2%, other
1.1%, unspecified 0.2% (1999 census) |
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Religions:
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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) |
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Languages:
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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 |
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Literacy:
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definition: NA
total population: NA%
male: NA%
female: NA% |
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Country name:
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conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Solomon Islands
former: British Solomon Islands |
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Government type:
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parliamentary democracy |
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Capital:
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Honiara
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Administrative divisions:
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9
provinces and 1 capital territory*; Central, Choiseul,
Guadalcanal, Honiara*, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell
and Bellona, Temotu, Western |
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Independence:
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7 July
1978 (from UK) |
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National holiday:
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Independence Day, 7 July (1978) |
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Constitution:
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7 July
1978 |
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Legal system:
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English
common law, which is widely disregarded |
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Suffrage:
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21 years
of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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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 |
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Legislative branch:
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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 not later than December 2005)
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 |
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Judicial branch:
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Court of
Appeal |
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Political parties and leaders:
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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 |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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NA |
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International organization participation:
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ACP,
AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory),
ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU,
OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO,
WMO, WTO |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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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 |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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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 |
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Flag description:
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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 |
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Government - note:
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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. |
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Economy - overview:
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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. 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. |
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$800
million (2002 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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5.8%
(2003 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2002 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 42%
industry: 11%
services: 47% (2000 est.) |
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Labor force:
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26,840
(1999) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture 75%, industry 5%, services 20% (2000 est.)
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Unemployment rate:
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NA% |
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Population below poverty line:
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NA |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest
10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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10% (2003
est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $49.7 million
expenditures: $75.1 million, including capital
expenditures of $0 (2003) |
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Agriculture - products:
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cocoa
beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes,
vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs; timber; fish |
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Industries:
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fish
(tuna), mining, timber |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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NA |
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Electricity - production:
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32
million kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil
fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001) |
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Electricity - consumption:
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29.76
million kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh
(2002) |
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Electricity - imports:
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0 kWh
(2002) |
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Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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1,250
bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
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NA |
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Oil - imports:
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NA |
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Exports:
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$74
million f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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timber,
fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa |
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Exports - partners:
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China
27.8%, South Korea 17.1%, Thailand 15.7%, Japan 9.7%,
Philippines 4.8% (2004) |
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Imports:
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$67
million f.o.b. (2003) |
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Imports - commodities:
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food,
plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels,
chemicals |
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Imports - partners:
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Australia
24.6%, Singapore 23.1%, New Zealand 7.7%, Fiji 4.8%,
Papua New Guinea 4.7% (2004) |
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Debt - external:
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$180.4
million (2002) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$28
million annually, mainly from Australia (2003 est.) |
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Currency (code):
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Solomon
Islands dollar (SBD) |
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Currency code:
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SBD |
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Exchange rates:
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Solomon
Islands dollars per US dollar - 7.4847 (2004), 7.5059
(2003), 6.7488 (2002), 5.278 (2001), 5.0889 (2000) |
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Fiscal year:
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calendar
year |
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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6,600
(2002) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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1,000
(2002) |
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Telephone system:
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general assessment: NA
domestic: NA
international: country code - 677; satellite
earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 1, FM
1, shortwave 1 (2004) |
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Radios:
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57,000
(1997) |
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Televisions:
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3,000
(1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.sb |
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Internet hosts:
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398
(2003) |
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Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
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1 (2000)
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Internet users:
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2,200
(2002) |
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Highways:
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total:
1,360 km
paved: 34 km
unpaved: 1,326 km (1999 est.) |
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Ports and harbors:
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Honiara,
Malloco Bay, Shortland Harbor, Viru Harbor, Yandina |
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Airports:
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33 (2004
est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total:
2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total:
31
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 9
under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
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Military branches:
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no
regular military forces; Royal Solomon Islands Police
(RSIP) |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
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NA |
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Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
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NA |
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Disputes - international:
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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 |
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This page was last updated on
20 October, 2005 |
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