Solomon Islands

LOCATION

Background: Settlers from Papua arrived on the Solomon Islands around 30,000 years ago. About 6,000 years ago, Austronesian settlers came to the islands, and the two groups mixed extensively. Despite significant inter-island trade, no attempts were made to unite the islands into a single political entity. In 1568, a Spanish explorer became the first European to spot the islands. After a failed Spanish attempt at creating a permanent European settlement in the late 1500s, the Solomon Islands remained free of European contact until a British explorer arrived in 1767. European explorers and US and British whaling ships regularly visited the islands into the 1800s.Germany declared a protectorate over the northern Solomon Islands in 1885, and the UK established a protectorate over the southern islands in 1893. In 1899, Germany transferred its islands to the UK in exchange for the UK relinquishing all claims in Samoa. In 1942, Japan invaded the islands, and the Guadalcanal Campaign (August 1942-February 1943) proved a turning point in the Pacific theater of WWII. The fighting destroyed large parts of the Solomon Islands, and a nationalist movement emerged near the end of the war. By 1960, the British allowed some local autonomy. The islands were granted self-government in 1976 and independence two years later under Prime Minister Sir Peter KENILOREA.In 1999, longstanding tensions between ethnic Guale in Honiara and ethnic Malaitans in Honiara’s suburbs erupted in civil war, leading thousands of Malaitans to take refuge in Honiara and prompting Guale to flee the city. In 2000, newly elected Prime Minister Manasseh SOGAVARE focused on peace agreements and distributing resources equally among groups, but his actions bankrupted the government in 2001 and led to his ouster. In 2003, the Solomon Islands requested international assistance to reestablish law and order; the Australian-led Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands, which ended in 2017, improved the security situation. In 2006, however, riots broke out in Honiara, and the city’s Chinatown was burned amid allegations that the prime minister took money from China. SOGAVARE was reelected prime minister for a fourth time in 2019. When a small group of protestors, mostly from the island of Malaita, approached parliament to lodge a petition calling for SOGAVARE’s removal and more development in Malaita in 2021, police fired tear gas into the crowd which sparked rioting and looting in Honiara.

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: 28,896 sq km
land: 27,986 sq km
water: 910 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries: total: 0 km
Coastline: 5,313 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm
Climate: tropical monsoon; few temperature and weather extremes
Terrain: mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls
Elevation: highest point: Mount Popomanaseu 2,335 m
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
Natural resources: fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel
Land use: agricultural land: 3.9% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land: arable land: 0.8% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops: permanent crops: 2.8% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture: permanent pasture: 0.3% (2023 est.)
forest: 89.9% (2023 est.)
other: 6.2% (2023 est.)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (2022)
Population distribution: most of the population lives along the coastal regions; about one in five live in urban areas, and of these about two thirds reside in Honiara, the largest town and chief port
Natural hazards: tropical cyclones, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earthquakes, tremors, and volcanic activity; tsunamis volcanism: Tinakula (851 m) has frequent eruption activity, and an eruption of Savo (485 m) could affect the capital Honiara on nearby Guadalcanal
Geography - note: strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean, the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea; Rennell Island, the southernmost in the Solomon Islands chain, is one of the world’s largest raised coral atolls; the island’s Lake Tegano, formerly a lagoon on the atoll, is the largest lake in the insular Pacific (15,500 hectares; 38,300 acres)

Population: total: 738,774 (2025 est.)
male: 377,067
female: 361,707
Nationality: noun: Solomon Islander(s)
adjective: Solomon Islander
Ethnic groups: Melanesian 95.3%, Polynesian 3.1%, Micronesian 1.2%, other 0.3% (2009 est.)
Languages: Melanesian pidgin (lingua franca in much of the country), English (official but spoken by only 1%-2% of the population), 120 indigenous languages
Religions: Protestant 73.4% (Church of Melanesia 31.9%, South Sea Evangelical 17.1%, Seventh Day Adventist 11.7%, United Church 10.1%, Christian Fellowship Church 2.5%), Roman Catholic 19.6%, other Christian 2.9%, other 4%, unspecified 0.1% (2009 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 30.6% (male 114,246/female 108,020)
15-64 years: 64.2% (male 238,708/female 227,636)
65 years and over: 5.3% (2024 est.) (male 18,016/female 20,173)
Dependency ratios: total dependency ratio: 55.1 (2025 est.)
youth dependency ratio: 46.7 (2025 est.)
elderly dependency ratio: 8.4 (2025 est.)
potential support ratio: 12 (2025 est.)
Median age: total: 25.5 years (2025 est.)
male: 25 years
female: 25.4 years
Population growth rate: 1.62% (2025 est.)
Birth rate: 21.57 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate: 3.94 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Net migration rate: -1.47 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Population distribution: most of the population lives along the coastal regions; about one in five live in urban areas, and of these about two thirds reside in Honiara, the largest town and chief port
Urbanization: urban population: 26% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 3.57% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas - population: 82,000 HONIARA (capital) (2018)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
Mother's mean age at first birth: 22.6 years (2015 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio: 123 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 18.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
male: 22.7 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 15.2 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 77.2 years (2024 est.)
male: 74.6 years
female: 80 years
Total fertility rate: 2.72 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate: 1.33 (2025 est.)
Drinking water source: improved: rural: rural: 59.4% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total: total: 73.1% of population
unimproved: rural: rural: 40.6% of population (2022 est.)
Health expenditure: Health expenditure (as % of GDP): 4.8% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget): 9.7% of national budget (2022 est.)
Physician density: 0.24 physicians/1,000 population (2023)
Sanitation facility access: improved: rural: rural: 22.6% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural: rural: 77.4% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total: total: 59.4% of population
Obesity - adult prevalence rate: 22.5% (2016)
Alcohol consumption per capita: total: 1.19 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
beer: 1.1 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine: 0.06 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits: 0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Tobacco use: total: 36.8% (2025 est.)
male: 54.5% (2025 est.)
female: 18.8% (2025 est.)
Currently married women (ages 15-49): 64.5% (2019 est.)
Child marriage: women married by age 15: 5.6% (2015)
women married by age 18: 21.3% (2015)
men married by age 18: 4.4% (2015)
Education expenditure: Education expenditure (% GDP): 8.3% of GDP (2023 est.)
Education expenditure (% national budget): 25.2% national budget (2024 est.)

Environmental issues: deforestation; soil erosion; damage to coral reefs
International environmental agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban
Climate: tropical monsoon; few temperature and weather extremes
Land use: agricultural land: 3.9% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land: arable land: 0.8% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops: permanent crops: 2.8% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture: permanent pasture: 0.3% (2023 est.)
forest: 89.9% (2023 est.)
other: 6.2% (2023 est.)
Urbanization: urban population: 26% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 3.57% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions: total emissions: 318,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)
from petroleum and other liquids: 318,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)
Particulate matter emissions: 8.8 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
Waste and recycling: municipal solid waste generated annually: 180,000 tons (2024 est.)
percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 6.1% (2022 est.)
Total renewable water resources: 44.7 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)

Country name: conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Solomon Islands
local long form: none
local short form: Solomon Islands
former: British Solomon Islands
etymology: Spanish explorer Alvaro de MENDANA named the isles in 1568 after the wealthy biblical King SOLOMON in the mistaken belief that the islands contained great riches
Government type: parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm
Capital: name: Honiara
geographic coordinates: 9 26 S, 159 57 E
time difference: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
etymology: the name derives from the local term nagho ni ara, meaning "place of the east wind" or "facing the trade winds"
Administrative divisions: 9 provinces and 1 city*; Central, Choiseul, Guadalcanal, Honiara*, Isabel, Makira and Ulawa, Malaita, Rennell and Bellona, Temotu, Western
Legal system: mixed system of English common law and customary law
Constitution: history: adopted 31 May 1978, effective 7 July 1978
amendment process: proposed by the National Parliament; passage of constitutional sections, including those on fundamental rights and freedoms, the legal system, Parliament, alteration of the constitution and the ombudsman, requires three-fourths majority vote by Parliament and assent of the governor general; passage of other amendments requires two-thirds majority vote and assent of the governor general
International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
Citizenship: citizenship by birth: no
citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of the Solomon Islands
dual citizenship recognized: no
residency requirement for naturalization: 7 years
Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: King CHARLES III (since 8 September 2022); represented by Governor General David Tiva KAPU (since 7 July 2024)
head of government: Prime Minister Jeremiah MANELE (since 2 May 2024)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister
election/appointment process: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the advice of the National Parliament for up to 5 years (eligible for a second term); following legislative elections, the National Parliament usually elects the leader of the majority party or majority coalition as prime minister; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister
Legislative branch: legislature name: National Parliament
legislative structure: unicameral
number of seats: 50 (all directly elected)
electoral system: plurality/majority
scope of elections: full renewal
term in office: 4 years
most recent election date: 4/17/2024
parties elected and seats per party: Ownership Unity and Responsibility (OUR Party) (15); Solomon Islands Democratic Party (SIDP) (11); Solomon Islands United Party (UP) (6); Solomon Islands People First Party (SIPFP) (3); Independents (11); Other (4)
percentage of women in chamber: 6%
expected date of next election: April 2028
Judicial branch: highest court(s): Court of Appeal (consists of the court president and ex officio members including the High Court chief justice and puisne judges); High Court (consists of the chief justice and puisne judges)
judge selection and term of office: Court of Appeal and High Court president, chief justices, and puisne judges appointed by the governor general on recommendation of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission, chaired by the chief justice and includes 5 members, mostly judicial officials and legal professionals; all judges serve until retirement at age 60
subordinate courts: Magistrates' Courts; Customary Land Appeal Court; local courts
Political parties: Democratic Alliance Party or DAPKadere Party of Solomon Islands or KADOwnership, Unity, and Responsibility Party (OUR Party)Solomon Islands People First Party or SIPFPSolomon Islands Democratic Party or SIDPSolomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement or SIPRASolomon Islands United Party or UPUnited for Change Party or U4CCoalition for Accountability Reform and Empowerment (CARE) (includes DAP, SIDP, and U4C)
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Jane Mugafalu Kabui WAETARA (since 16 September 2022); note - also Permanent Representative to the UN
chancery: 685 Third Avenue, 11th Floor, Suite 1102, New York, NY 10017
telephone: [1] (212) 599-6192
FAX: [1] (212) 661-8925
email address and website: simun@solomons.com
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Ann Marie YASTISHOCK (since 14 March 2024); note - also accredited to the Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu, based in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
embassy: BJS BuildingCommonwealth AvenueHoniara, Solomon Islands
telephone: [677] 23426
FAX: [677] 27429
email address and website: EmbassyHoniara@state.govhttps://pg.usembassy.gov/
International organization participation: ACP, ADB, AOSIS, C, EITI (candidate country), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO
Independence: 7 July 1978 (from the UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 7 July (1978)
Flag: description: divided diagonally by a yellow stripe from the lower-left corner; the upper triangle (left side) is blue with five five-pointed white stars in an "X" pattern; the lower triangle is greenmeaning: blue stands for the ocean, green for the land, and yellow for sunshine; the five stars stand for the main island groups
National color(s): blue, yellow, green, white
National anthem(s): title: "God Save the King"
lyrics/music: unknown
history: in use since 1745
National heritage: total World Heritage Sites: 1 (natural)
selected World Heritage Site locales: East Rennell

Economic overview: lower middle-income Pacific island economy; natural resource rich but environmentally fragile; key agrarian sector; growing Chinese economic relationship; infrastructure damage due to social unrest; metal mining operations
Real GDP (purchasing power parity): Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2024: $2.07 billion (2024 est.)
Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2023: $2.019 billion (2023 est.)
Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2022: $1.967 billion (2022 est.)
Real GDP growth rate: Real GDP growth rate 2024: 2.5% (2024 est.)
Real GDP growth rate 2023: 2.7% (2023 est.)
Real GDP growth rate 2022: 2.4% (2022 est.)
Real GDP per capita: Real GDP per capita 2024: $2,500 (2024 est.)
Real GDP per capita 2023: $2,500 (2023 est.)
Real GDP per capita 2022: $2,500 (2022 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate): $1.761 billion (2024 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2023: 5.9% (2023 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2022: 5.5% (2022 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2021: -0.1% (2021 est.)
GDP - composition, by sector of origin: agriculture: 33.8% (2022 est.)
industry: 18.7% (2022 est.)
services: 47.3% (2022 est.)
GDP - composition, by end use: household consumption: 61.7% (2022 est.)
government consumption: 29.2% (2022 est.)
investment in fixed capital: 24.4% (2022 est.)
investment in inventories: -1% (2022 est.)
exports of goods and services: 26.3% (2022 est.)
imports of goods and services: -51.7% (2022 est.)
Agricultural products: oil palm fruit, coconuts, sweet potatoes, yams, taro, fruits, pulses, vegetables, cocoa beans, cassava (2023)
Industries: fish (tuna), mining, timber
Industrial production growth rate: 4.7% (2022 est.)
Labor force: 435,600 (2024 est.)
Unemployment rate: Unemployment rate 2024: 1.5% (2024 est.)
Unemployment rate 2023: 1.5% (2023 est.)
Unemployment rate 2022: 1.5% (2022 est.)
Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24): total: 3% (2024 est.)
male: 2.6% (2024 est.)
female: 3.4% (2024 est.)
Remittances: Remittances 2024: 5.4% of GDP (2024 est.)
Remittances 2023: 5.1% of GDP (2023 est.)
Remittances 2022: 5.2% of GDP (2022 est.)
Budget: revenues: $436.174 million (2022 est.)
expenditures: $482.24 million (2022 est.)
Public debt: Public debt 2022: 15.4% of GDP (2022 est.)
Taxes and other revenues: 20.7% (of GDP) (2022 est.)
Current account balance: Current account balance 2024: -$66.231 million (2024 est.)
Current account balance 2023: -$178.197 million (2023 est.)
Current account balance 2022: -$218.534 million (2022 est.)
Exports: Exports 2024: $642.877 million (2024 est.)
Exports 2023: $546.025 million (2023 est.)
Exports 2022: $411.359 million (2022 est.)
Exports - partners: China 56%, Australia 11%, Italy 10%, Spain 5%, Netherlands 4% (2023)
Exports - commodities: wood, fish, gold, precious metal ore, palm oil (2023)
Imports: Imports 2024: $857.128 million (2024 est.)
Imports 2023: $883.611 million (2023 est.)
Imports 2022: $764.641 million (2022 est.)
Imports - partners: China 42%, Singapore 13%, Australia 13%, Taiwan 5%, Malaysia 5% (2023)
Imports - commodities: refined petroleum, plastic products, fish, broadcasting equipment, iron structures (2023)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 2023: $688.22 million (2023 est.)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 2022: $661.604 million (2022 est.)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 2021: $694.515 million (2021 est.)
Debt - external: Debt - external 2023: $184.191 million (2023 est.)
Exchange rates: Currency: Solomon Islands dollars (SBD) per US dollar -
Exchange rates 2024: 8.455 (2024 est.)
Exchange rates 2023: 8.376 (2023 est.)
Exchange rates 2022: 8.156 (2022 est.)
Exchange rates 2021: 8.03 (2021 est.)
Exchange rates 2020: 8.213 (2020 est.)

Electricity access: electrification - total population: 76% (2022 est.)
electrification - urban areas: 79%
electrification - rural areas: 75.4%
Electricity: installed generating capacity: 37,000 kW (2023 est.)
consumption: 91.031 million kWh (2023 est.)
transmission/distribution losses: 19.969 million kWh (2023 est.)
Electricity generation sources: fossil fuels: 90.1% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
solar: 5.4% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
hydroelectricity: 0.9% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
biomass and waste: 3.6% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
Petroleum: refined petroleum consumption: 2,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)
Energy consumption per capita: Total energy consumption per capita 2023: 5.655 million Btu/person (2023 est.)

Telephones - fixed lines: total subscriptions: 7,000 (2021 est.)
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 1 (2022 est.) less than 1
Telephones - mobile cellular: total subscriptions: 485,000 (2022 est.)
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 62 (2022 est.)
Broadcast media: multi-channel pay-TV is available; Solomon Islands Broadcasting Corporation (SIBC) operates 2 national radio stations and 2 provincial stations; 2 local commercial radio stations; Radio Australia is available via satellite (2019)
Internet country code: .sb
Internet users: percent of population: 43% (2023 est.)
Broadband - fixed subscriptions: total: 1,000 (2022 est.)
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: (2022 est.) less than 1

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: H4
Airports: 36 (2025)
Heliports: 2 (2025)
Merchant marine: total: 25 (2023)
by type: general cargo 8, oil tanker 1, other 16
Ports: total ports: 6 (2024)
large: 0
medium: 0
small: 2
very small: 4
ports with oil terminals: 1
key ports: Gizo Harbor, Honiara, Port Noro, Ringgi Cove, Tulaghi, Yandina

Military and security forces: Ministry of Police, National Security and Correctional Services (MPNSCS): the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) (2025)
Military - note: in 2017, the Solomon Islands and Australia signed a security treaty allowing Australian police, defense, and associated civilian personnel to deploy rapidly to Solomon Islands should the need arise and where both countries consent; the treaty was activated for the first time in November 2021 following civil unrest in Honiara; Australia was the first country Solomon Islands called upon for support, and from November 2021, Australia deployed police and defense personnel to work alongside partners from Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and New Zealand to restore law and order in Honiarain 2022, the Solomon Islands Government has also signed a police and security agreement with China (2025)

Refugees and internally displaced persons: IDPs: 1,638 (2023 est.)
Trafficking in persons: tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — Solomon Islands does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, but the government has devoted sufficient resources to a written plan that, if implemented, would constitute significant efforts to meet the minimum standards; therefore, Solomon Islands was granted a waiver per the Trafficking Victims Protection Act from an otherwise required downgrade to Tier 3 and remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the third consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2025-trafficking-in-persons-report/solomon-islands/