Solomon Islands 2016 Country Review http://www.countrywatch.com Table of Contents Chapter 1 1 Country Overview 1 Country Overview 2 Key Data 3 Solomon Islands 4 Pacific Islands 5 Chapter 2 7 Political Overview 7 History 8 Political Conditions 9 Political Risk Index 29 Political Stability 43 Freedom Rankings 58 Human Rights 70 Government Functions 72 Government Structure 73 Principal Government Officials 78 Leader Biography 84 Leader Biography 84 Foreign Relations 89 National Security 91 Defense Forces 92 Chapter 3 95 Economic Overview 95 Economic Overview 96 Nominal GDP and Components 98 Population and GDP Per Capita 99 Real GDP and Inflation 100 Government Spending and Taxation 101 Money Supply, Interest Rates and Unemployment 102 Foreign Trade and the Exchange Rate 103 Data in US Dollars 104 Energy Consumption and Production Standard Units 105 Energy Consumption and Production QUADS 106 World Energy Price Summary 107 CO2 Emissions 108 Agriculture Consumption and Production 109 World Agriculture Pricing Summary 111 Metals Consumption and Production 112 World Metals Pricing Summary 114 Economic Performance Index 115 Chapter 4 127 Investment Overview 127 Foreign Investment Climate 128 Foreign Investment Index 130 Corruption Perceptions Index 143 Competitiveness Ranking 155 Taxation 164 Stock Market 164 Partner Links 165 Chapter 5 166 Social Overview 166 People 167 Human Development Index 168 Life Satisfaction Index 172 Happy Planet Index 183 Status of Women 193 Global Gender Gap Index 195 Culture and Arts 205 Etiquette 205 Travel Information 206 Diseases/Health Data 214 Chapter 6 220 Environmental Overview 220 Environmental Issues 221 Environmental Policy 223 Greenhouse Gas Ranking 225 Global Environmental Snapshot 236 Global Environmental Concepts 247 International Environmental Agreements and Associations 261 Appendices 285 Bibliography 286 Solomon Islands Chapter 1 Country Overview Solomon Islands Review 2016 Page 1 of 298 pages Solomon Islands Country Overview SOLOMON ISLANDS The Solomon Islands is located in the South Pacific Ocean just east of Papua New Guinea. It became a British protectorate in 1893. Self-governing was achieved in 1976, followed by independence in 1978. The Solomon Islands was plunged into political turmoil and civil strife in late 1999 due to ethnic tensions, and by mid-2003 the country had reached a state of near-collapse. The Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI), a multinational police-centered force organized by Australia, arrived in the country in July 2003 at the government's invitation to assist in restoring law and order and rebuilding the country's institutions. The RAMSI has generally been effective in the mission. Rich in forestry resources, the economy of the Solomon Islands has been heavily dependent on exports of timber. Solomon Islands Review 2016 Page 2 of 298 pages Solomon Islands Key Data Key Data Region: Pacific Islands Population: 622469 Climate: Tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather. Melanesian pidgin Languages: English 120 indigenous languages Currency: 1 Solomon Islands dollar (SI$) = 100 cents Holiday: Independence Day is 7 July (1978), Queen's Birthday is 12 June Area Total: 28450 Area Land: 27540 Coast Line: 5313 Solomon Islands Review 2016 Page 3 of 298 pages Solomon Islands Solomon Islands Country Map Solomon Islands Review 2016 Page 4 of 298 pages Solomon Islands Pacific Islands Regional Map Solomon Islands Review 2016 Page 5 of 298 pages Solomon Islands Solomon Islands Review 2016 Page 6 of 298 pages Solomon Islands Chapter 2 Political Overview Solomon Islands Review 2016 Page 7 of 298 pages Solomon Islands History The indigenous Melanesian population are likely to trace their roots to Southeast Asia. People from this region first reached the islands about 4,000 or 5,000 years ago. The first European to stop there was the Spaniard Álvaro de Mendaña de Neira in 1568. However, the islands failed to appear on Westerners' navigation charts of the region until British and French ships began sailing there in the late 16th century. European missionaries arrived in the middle of the 19th century, the first Westerners to become permanent residents. The islands did not develop an extensive colonial plantation economy of their own, but in the late 1800s tens of thousands of Solomon Islanders were conscripted as forced laborers on plantations in Fiji and Queensland, Australia. The islands became a British Protectorate in 1893 and a colony a few years later. Though the British claimed to be monitoring labor abuses, the new colonial rule was harsh. There were several clashes between the British government and the islanders. During World War II, the Solomon Islands saw possibly the entire conflict's most intense fighting between Allied and Japanese forces. One of the biggest provinces, Guadalcanal, is most widely known for the prolonged and bloody battle between the United States and the Japanese forces fought there in 1942-43 that ultimately displaced the occupying Japanese. After the war, the islanders -- led by a nationalist organization called Maasina Rule -- launched a concerted effort to attain political autonomy. While remaining under British rule, the Solomon Islands adopted a new constitution in 1960 that prescribed the institution of two appointed governing bodies, a legislative and executive council. Election of some members of these councils was eventually permitted. The Solomon Islands achieved full political autonomy in January 1976, holding a national election and convening a legislative assembly. The Solomon Islands was granted national status as an independent member of the British Commonwealth on July 7, 1978. Solomon Islands Review 2016 Page 8 of 298 pages Solomon Islands Note on History: In certain entries, open source content from the State Department Background Notes and Country Guides have been used. A full listing of sources is available in the Bibliography. Political Conditions After gaining independence, Peter Kenilorea was appointed the Solomon Islands' first prime minister in 1978; he was confirmed in that office by a nationwide election in 1980. A year later, his parliamentary coalition fell apart and Solomon Mamaloni of the People's Alliance Party (PAP) took over as prime minister. Kenilorea returned as prime minister after the 1984 election, leading a coalition government composed of his Solomon Islands United Party (SIUPA) and the Solomone Ano Sagufenua party (SAS). Kenilorea's second stint as head of government, like his first, was short-lived. When the ruling coalition dissolved, Ezekiel Alebua, who had been deputy prime minister, succeeded Kenilorea as prime minister. As elections approached in 1988, the PAP ran on a platform that advocated establishing the Solomon Islands as a federal republic and won a decisive victory. Mamaloni again became prime minister. His administration was widely criticized for suspect business dealings and his government fell in 1990. Mamaloni initially tried to cobble together a new coalition and cling to rule, but under pressure from the Solomon Islands Council of Trade Unions, Mamaloni resigned in 1991. Poor economic conditions added to Mamaloni's unpopularity and hastened his fall. Mamaloni resurrected himself politically by forming a new party, the Group for National Unity and Reconciliation (GNUR), which barely failed to gain a majority in parliament in the 1993 elections. With no clear winner, opposition parties attempted to align under an umbrella group called the National Coalition Partners and managed to bring Francis Billy Hilly into the office of prime minister. Hilly's political viability was limited, however, as his own unstable coalition contended against more cohesive forces in the GNUR. Hilly resigned in October 1994 and Mamaloni was restored to the prime ministership. Upon re-entering office, Mamaloni deregulated the logging industry, thus ignoring protests from Solomon Islands Review 2016 Page 9 of 298 pages Solomon Islands citizens, the Central Bank, and environmentalists, all of whom were concerned that the rate of logging was ecologically as well as economically untenable and would, moreover, devastate the important tourist industry. Mamaloni's dealings with Malaysian logging firms brought charges of corruption against his government. New logging regulations were announced to quell domestic and international opposition to the Mamaloni government's activities, but these actually resulted in increased logging by foreign companies. In 1996, a scandal centered at the finance ministry revealed $10 million in missing funds. Throughout 1997, opposition to the government mounted, much of it built on environmentalist pressure to protect the Solomon Islands' natural resources from foreign mining and timber companies. In August 1997, Mamaloni resigned and called early elections. The GNUR won 24 of the seats and the opposition coalition, the Alliance for Change, secured 26 to give it the slenderest possible majority in the 50-seat parliament. Bartholomew Ulufa'alu was elected prime minister and initiated economic and investment reforms to recover ground lost during Mamaloni's tenure. By mid-1998 the new government had enacted more effective regulation of foreign involvement in the logging industry and incentives for foreign investment in other sectors. However, Ulufa'alu's government ran into trouble on two fronts. One was opposition to a fiscal reform program calling for civil service job cuts. The other issue was the more serious outbreak of ethnic violence pitting