COUNTRY FACTS
Location: South Pacific
Climate: tropical
Population: 460,200
Population Growth Rate: 2.8%
Economy: majority of
citizens rely on subsistence agriculture. Resources include coconut palms, forests, fisheries and some
minerals
Government: constitutional monarchy with unicameral legislature
Religion:
predominantly Christian
Language: more than 120 indigenous languages
Capital City: Honiara
The Solomon Islands archipelago is made up of more than 900 islands in an Exclusive Economic Zone of 1.3 million km 2.
Choiseul, Guadalcanal, Malaita, New Georgia, Makira, and Santa Isabel are the six major islands. The country is divided into
9 administrative provinces. Seventy-nine percent of the population are rural dwellers.
The country is just emerging from a period of ethnic-based civil conflict. An elected government has been in power
since 2002. Under Australian leadership, Pacific countries have, since 2003, contributed personnel to the Regional Assistance
Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) that has helped bring peace and stability.
