Main page Compare countries Index countries Index fields

Query:
##ciekawa_strona##

Compare Arctic Ocean (2004) - Solomon Islands (2005)

Compare Arctic Ocean (2004) z Solomon Islands (2005)

 Arctic Ocean (2004)Solomon Islands (2005)
 Arctic OceanSolomon Islands
Administrative divisions - 9 provinces and 1 capital territory*; Central, Choiseul, Guadalcanal, Honiara*, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell and Bellona, Temotu, Western
Age structure - 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.)
Agriculture - products - cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs; timber; fish
Airports - 33 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways - total: 2


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total: 31


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 9


under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.)
Area total: 14.056 million sq km


note: includes Baffin Bay, Barents Sea, Beaufort Sea, Chukchi Sea, East Siberian Sea, Greenland Sea, Hudson Bay, Hudson Strait, Kara Sea, Laptev Sea, Northwest Passage, and other tributary water bodies
total: 28,450 sq km


land: 27,540 sq km


water: 910 sq km
Area - comparative slightly less than 1.5 times the size of the US slightly smaller than Maryland
Background The Arctic Ocean is the smallest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and the recently delimited Southern Ocean). The Northwest Passage (US and Canada) and Northern Sea Route (Norway and Russia) are two important seasonal waterways. A sparse network of air, ocean, river, and land routes circumscribes the Arctic Ocean. 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.
Birth rate - 30.74 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget - revenues: $49.7 million


expenditures: $75.1 million, including capital expenditures of $0 (2003)
Capital - Honiara
Climate polar climate characterized by persistent cold and relatively narrow annual temperature ranges; winters characterized by continuous darkness, cold and stable weather conditions, and clear skies; summers characterized by continuous daylight, damp and foggy weather, and weak cyclones with rain or snow tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather
Coastline 45,389 km 5,313 km
Constitution - 7 July 1978
Country name - conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Solomon Islands


former: British Solomon Islands
Death rate - 3.98 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external - $180.4 million (2002)
Diplomatic representation from the US - 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
Diplomatic representation in the US - 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
Disputes - international some maritime disputes (see littoral states) 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
Economic aid - recipient - $28 million annually, mainly from Australia (2003 est.)
Economy - overview Economic activity is limited to the exploitation of natural resources, including petroleum, natural gas, fish, and seals. 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.
Electricity - consumption - 29.76 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports - 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports - 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production - 32 million kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Fram Basin -4,665 m


highest point: sea level 0 m
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m
Environment - current issues endangered marine species include walruses and whales; fragile ecosystem slow to change and slow to recover from disruptions or damage; thinning polar icepack deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying
Environment - international agreements - 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
Ethnic groups - Melanesian 94.5%, Polynesian 3%, Micronesian 1.2%, other 1.1%, unspecified 0.2% (1999 census)
Exchange rates - Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - 7.4847 (2004), 7.5059 (2003), 6.7488 (2002), 5.278 (2001), 5.0889 (2000)
Executive branch - 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
Exports - NA
Exports - commodities - timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa
Exports - partners - China 27.8%, South Korea 17.1%, Thailand 15.7%, Japan 9.7%, Philippines 4.8% (2004)
Fiscal year - calendar year
Flag description - 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
GDP - composition by sector - agriculture: 42%


industry: 11%


services: 47% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate - 5.8% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates 90 00 N, 0 00 E 8 00 S, 159 00 E
Geography - note major chokepoint is the southern Chukchi Sea (northern access to the Pacific Ocean via the Bering Strait); strategic location between North America and Russia; shortest marine link between the extremes of eastern and western Russia; floating research stations operated by the US and Russia; maximum snow cover in March or April about 20 to 50 centimeters over the frozen ocean; snow cover lasts about 10 months strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean, the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea
Government - note - 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.
Highways - total: 1,360 km


paved: 34 km


unpaved: 1,326 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10%: NA


highest 10%: NA
Imports - NA
Imports - commodities - food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners - Australia 24.6%, Singapore 23.1%, New Zealand 7.7%, Fiji 4.8%, Papua New Guinea 4.7% (2004)
Independence - 7 July 1978 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate - NA
Industries - fish (tuna), mining, timber
Infant mortality rate - 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.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) - 10% (2003 est.)
International organization participation - 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
Irrigated land - NA
Judicial branch - Court of Appeal
Labor force - 26,840 (1999)
Labor force - by occupation - agriculture 75%, industry 5%, services 20% (2000 est.)
Land boundaries - 0 km
Land use - arable land: 0.64%


permanent crops: 2%


other: 97.36% (2001)
Languages - 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
Legal system - English common law, which is widely disregarded
Legislative branch - 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
Life expectancy at birth - total population: 72.66 years


male: 70.16 years


female: 75.28 years (2005 est.)
Literacy - definition: NA


total population: NA%


male: NA%


female: NA%
Location body of water between Europe, Asia, and North America, mostly north of the Arctic Circle Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea
Map references Arctic Region Oceania
Maritime claims - measured from claimed archipelagic baselines


territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm
Military branches - no regular military forces; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP)
Military expenditures - dollar figure - NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP - NA
National holiday - Independence Day, 7 July (1978)
Nationality - noun: Solomon Islander(s)


adjective: Solomon Islander
Natural hazards ice islands occasionally break away from northern Ellesmere Island; icebergs calved from glaciers in western Greenland and extreme northeastern Canada; permafrost in islands; virtually ice locked from October to June; ships subject to superstructure icing from October to May typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity
Natural resources sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules, oil and gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals and whales) fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel
Net migration rate - 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Political parties and leaders - 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
Political pressure groups and leaders - NA
Population - 538,032 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line - NA
Population growth rate - 2.68% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors Churchill (Canada), Murmansk (Russia), Prudhoe Bay (US) Honiara, Malloco Bay, Shortland Harbor, Viru Harbor, Yandina
Radio broadcast stations - AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2004)
Religions - 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)
Sex ratio - 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.)
Suffrage - 21 years of age; universal
Telephone system - general assessment: NA


domestic: NA


international: country code - 677; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use - 6,600 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular - 1,000 (2002)
Terrain central surface covered by a perennial drifting polar icepack that averages about 3 meters in thickness, although pressure ridges may be three times that size; clockwise drift pattern in the Beaufort Gyral Stream, but nearly straight-line movement from the New Siberian Islands (Russia) to Denmark Strait (between Greenland and Iceland); the icepack is surrounded by open seas during the summer, but more than doubles in size during the winter and extends to the encircling landmasses; the ocean floor is about 50% continental shelf (highest percentage of any ocean) with the remainder a central basin interrupted by three submarine ridges (Alpha Cordillera, Nansen Cordillera, and Lomonosov Ridge) mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls
Total fertility rate - 4.04 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Transportation - note sparse network of air, ocean, river, and land routes; the Northwest Passage (North America) and Northern Sea Route (Eurasia) are important seasonal waterways -
Unemployment rate - NA%
Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.