Compare Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2008) - Solomon Islands (2005)

Compare Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2008) z Solomon Islands (2005)

	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2008)	Solomon Islands (2005)

Administrative divisions	6 parishes; Charlotte, Grenadines, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick	9 provinces and 1 capital territory; Central, Choiseul, Guadalcanal, Honiara, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell and Bellona, Temotu, Western
Age structure	0-14 years: 25.9% (male 15,596/female 15,027) 15-64 years: 67.6% (male 41,259/female 38,620) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 3,358/female 4,289) (2007 est.)	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	bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, spices; small numbers of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats; fish	cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs; timber; fish
Airports	6 (2007)	33 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2007)	total: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007)	total: 31 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 389 sq km (Saint Vincent 344 sq km) land: 389 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 28,450 sq km land: 27,540 sq km water: 910 sq km
Area - comparative	twice the size of Washington, DC	slightly smaller than Maryland
Background	Resistance by native Caribs prevented colonization on St. Vincent until 1719. Disputed between France and the United Kingdom for most of the 18th century, the island was ceded to the latter in 1783. Between 1960 and 1962, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines was a separate administrative unit of the Federation of the West Indies. Autonomy was granted in 1969 and independence in 1979.	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	16.02 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	30.74 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $94.6 million expenditures: $85.8 million (2000 est.)	revenues: $49.7 million expenditures: $75.1 million, including capital expenditures of $0 (2003)
Capital	name: Kingstown geographic coordinates: 13 09 N, 61 14 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	Honiara
Climate	tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)	tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather
Coastline	84 km	5,313 km
Constitution	27 October 1979	7 July 1978
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Solomon Islands former: British Solomon Islands
Death rate	5.97 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	3.98 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$223 million (2004)	$180.4 million (2002)
Diplomatic representation from the US	the US does not have an embassy in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	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 Ellsworth I. A. JOHN chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6730 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6736 consulate(s) general: New York	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	joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the eastern Caribbean Sea	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	$4.89 million (1995); note - EU $34.5 million (2005)	$28 million annually, mainly from Australia (2003 est.)
Economy - overview	Economic growth slowed slightly in 2007 after reaching a 10 year high of nearly 7% in 2006, but is expected to remain robust, hinging upon seasonal variations in the agricultural and tourism sectors and a recent increase in construction activity. This lower-middle-income country is vulnerable to natural disasters - tropical storms wiped out substantial portions of crops in 1994, 1995, and 2002. In 2005, the islands had more than 160,000 tourist arrivals, mostly to the Grenadines. Saint Vincent is home to a small offshore banking sector and has moved to adopt international regulatory standards. The government's ability to invest in social programs and respond to external shocks is constrained by its high debt burden - 25 percent of current revenues are directed towards debt servicing.	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	107 million kWh (2005)	29.76 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	115 million kWh (2005)	32 million kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: La Soufriere 1,234 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m
Environment - current issues	pollution of coastal waters and shorelines from discharges by pleasure yachts and other effluents; in some areas, pollution is severe enough to make swimming prohibitive	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, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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	black 66%, mixed 19%, East Indian 6%, Carib Amerindian 2%, other 7%	Melanesian 94.5%, Polynesian 3%, Micronesian 1.2%, other 1.1%, unspecified 0.2% (1999 census)
Exchange rates	East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2007), 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003)	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 Sir Fredrick Nathaniel BALLANTYNE (since 2 September 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Ralph E. GONSALVES (since 29 March 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister	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	0 bbl/day (2004)	NA
Exports - commodities	bananas 39%, eddoes and dasheen (taro), arrowroot starch; tennis racquets	timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa
Exports - partners	France 26.2%, Greece 21.3%, Italy 18.9%, Russia 7.2%, UK 6.8% (2006)	China 27.8%, South Korea 17.1%, Thailand 15.7%, Japan 9.7%, Philippines 4.8% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	three vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold (double width), and green; the gold band bears three green diamonds arranged in a V pattern	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: 10% industry: 26% services: 64% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 42% industry: 11% services: 47% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	4.4% (2007 est.)	5.8% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates	13 15 N, 61 12 W	8 00 S, 159 00 E
Geography - note	the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is comprised of 32 islands and cays	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%	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; small-scale cannabis cultivation	-
Imports	1,468 bbl/day (2004)	NA
Imports - commodities	foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, chemicals and fertilizers, minerals and fuels	food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners	Singapore 17.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 12.1%, US 11.1%, Italy 11%, Spain 9.5%, Turkey 4.6%, Germany 4.4% (2006)	Australia 24.6%, Singapore 23.1%, New Zealand 7.7%, Fiji 4.8%, Papua New Guinea 4.7% (2004)
Independence	27 October 1979 (from UK)	7 July 1978 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	-0.9% (1997 est.)	NA
Industries	food processing, cement, furniture, clothing, starch	fish (tuna), mining, timber
Infant mortality rate	total: 14.01 deaths/1,000 live births male: 15.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	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)	1% (2005 est.)	10% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WTO	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	10 sq km (2003)	NA
Judicial branch	Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based on Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court resides in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines)	Court of Appeal
Labor force	41,680 (1991 est.)	26,840 (1999)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 26% industry: 17% services: 57% (1980 est.)	agriculture 75%, industry 5%, services 20% (2000 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 17.95% permanent crops: 17.95% other: 64.1% (2005)	arable land: 0.64% permanent crops: 2% other: 97.36% (2001)
Languages	English, French patois	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	based on English common law	English common law, which is widely disregarded
Legislative branch	unicameral House of Assembly (21 seats, 15 elected representatives and six appointed senators; representatives are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 7 December 2005 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - ULP 55.3%, NDP 44.7%; seats by party - ULP 12, NDP 3	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: 74.09 years male: 72.21 years female: 76.04 years (2007 est.)	total population: 72.66 years male: 70.16 years female: 75.28 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 96% male: 96% female: 96% (1970 est.)	definition: NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA%
Location	Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago	Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Oceania
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm	measured from claimed archipelagic baselines territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 582 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,598,917 GRT/8,255,014 DWT by type: bulk carrier 92, cargo 353, carrier 19, chemical tanker 4, container 17, liquefied gas 6, livestock carrier 1, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 11, petroleum tanker 19, refrigerated cargo 31, roll on/roll off 21, specialized tanker 3 foreign-owned: 536 (Austria 2, Bangladesh 1, Barbados 1, Belgium 9, Bulgaria 13, Canada 6, China 106, Croatia 7, Cyprus 3, Czech Republic 1, Denmark 16, Egypt 4, Estonia 20, France 7, Germany 3, Greece 81, Guyana 2, Hong Kong 7, Iceland 15, India 5, Iran 1, Israel 4, Italy 19, Kenya 2, Latvia 20, Lebanon 7, Lithuania 7, Malta 1, Monaco 6, Montenegro 1, Netherlands 5, Norway 19, Pakistan 1, Philippines 1, Poland 1, Portugal 1, Puerto Rico 1, Romania 1, Russia 19, Singapore 6, Slovenia 5, Sweden 2, Switzerland 12, Syria 11, Turkey 20, Ukraine 12, UAE 12, UK 9, US 21) (2007)	-
Military branches	no regular military forces; Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, Coast Guard (2007)	no regular military forces; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	NA
National holiday	Independence Day, 27 October (1979)	Independence Day, 7 July (1978)
Nationality	noun: Saint Vincentian(s) or Vincentian(s) adjective: Saint Vincentian or Vincentian	noun: Solomon Islander(s) adjective: Solomon Islander
Natural hazards	hurricanes; Soufriere volcano on the island of Saint Vincent is a constant threat	typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity
Natural resources	hydropower, cropland	fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel
Net migration rate	-7.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Political parties and leaders	New Democratic Party or NDP [Arnhim EUSTACE]; Unity Labor Party or ULP [Ralph GONSALVES] (formed by the coalition of Saint Vincent Labor Party or SVLP and the Movement for National Unity or MNU)	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	NA
Population	118,149 (July 2007 est.)	538,032 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	NA
Population growth rate	0.248% (2007 est.)	2.68% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Honiara, Malloco Bay, Shortland Harbor, Viru Harbor, Yandina
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 6, shortwave 0 (2004)	AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2004)
Religions	Anglican 47%, Methodist 28%, Roman Catholic 13%, other (includes Hindu, Seventh-Day Adventist, other Protestant) 12%	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: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.038 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.068 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.783 male(s)/female total population: 1.039 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	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	18 years of age; universal	21 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: adequate system domestic: islandwide, fully automatic telephone system; VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to the other islands of the Grenadines; mobile-cellular teledensity about 75 telephones per 100 persons international: country code - 1-784; the East Caribbean Fiber Optic System (ECFS) and Southern Caribbean fiber optic system (SCF) submarine cables carry international calls; connectivity also provided by VHF/UHF radiotelephone from Saint Vincent to Barbados; SHF radiotelephone to Grenada and Saint Lucia; access to Intelsat earth station in Martinique through Saint Lucia	general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: country code - 677; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	22,600 (2006)	6,600 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	87,600 (2006)	1,000 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	1 (plus 3 repeaters) (2004)	-
Terrain	volcanic, mountainous	mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls
Total fertility rate	1.81 children born/woman (2007 est.)	4.04 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	15% (2001 est.)	NA%

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