Compare Solomon Islands (2006) - Moldova (2005)

Compare Solomon Islands (2006) z Moldova (2005)

	Solomon Islands (2006)	Moldova (2005)

Administrative divisions	9 provinces and 1 capital territory; Central, Choiseul, Guadalcanal, Honiara, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell and Bellona, Temotu, Western	32 raions (raioane, singular - raionul), 3 municipalities (municipiul), 1 autonomous territorial unit (unitatea teritoriala autonoma), and 1 territorial unit (unitatea teritoriala) counties: Anenii Noi, Basarabeasca, Briceni, Cahul, Cantemir, Calarasi, Causeni, Cimislia, Criuleni, Donduseni, Drochia, Dubasari, Edinet, Falesti, Floresti, Glodeni, Hincesti, Ialoveni, Leova, Nisporeni, Ocnita, Orhei, Rezina, Riscani, Singerei, Soldanesti, Soroca, Stefan-Voda, Straseni, Taraclia, Telenesti, Ungheni municipalities: Balti, Bender, Chisinau autonomous territorial unit: Gagauzia territorial unit: Stinga Nistrului
Age structure	0-14 years: 41.3% (male 116,370/female 111,834) 15-64 years: 55.4% (male 154,793/female 151,308) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 8,696/female 9,437) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 20.2% (male 459,452/female 442,725) 15-64 years: 69.5% (male 1,489,813/female 1,606,202) 65 years and over: 10.3% (male 169,038/female 288,191) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; timber; cattle, pigs; fish	vegetables, fruits, wine, grain, sugar beets, sunflower seed, tobacco; beef, milk
Airports	35 (2006)	23 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)	total: 6 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 33 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 23 (2006)	total: 17 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 11 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 28,450 sq km land: 27,540 sq km water: 910 sq km	total: 33,843 sq km land: 33,371 sq km water: 472 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Maryland	slightly larger than Maryland
Background	The UK established a protectorate over the Solomon Islands in the 1890s. Some of the bitterest fighting of World War II occurred on this archipelago. 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.	Formerly part of Romania, Moldova was incorporated into the Soviet Union at the close of World War II. Although independent from the USSR since 1991, Russian forces have remained on Moldovan territory east of the Dniester River supporting the Slavic majority population, mostly Ukrainians and Russians, who have proclaimed a "Transnistria" republic. The poorest nation in Europe, Moldova became the first former Soviet state to elect a Communist as its president in 2001.
Birth rate	30.01 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	15.27 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $49.7 million expenditures: $75.1 million; including capital expenditures of NA (2003)	revenues: $648.1 million expenditures: $634.8 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Capital	name: Honiara geographic coordinates: 9 26 S, 159 57 E time difference: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	Chisinau
Climate	tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather	moderate winters, warm summers
Coastline	5,313 km	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	7 July 1978	new constitution adopted 29 July 1994, effective 27 August 1994; replaced old Soviet constitution of 1979
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Solomon Islands local long form: none local short form: Solomon Islands former: British Solomon Islands	conventional long form: Republic of Moldova conventional short form: Moldova local long form: Republica Moldova local short form: none former: Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic; Moldovan Soviet Socialist Republic
Death rate	3.92 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	12.79 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$166 million (2004)	$1.4 billion (2004 est.)
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	chief of mission: Ambassador Heather M. HODGES embassy: 103 Mateevici Street, Chisinau MD-2009 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [373] (22) 408-300 FAX: [373] (22) 23-30-44
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	chief of mission: Ambassador Mihail MANOLI chancery: 2101 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 667-1130 FAX: [1] (202) 667-1204
Disputes - international	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	Moldova and Ukraine have established joint customs posts to monitor transit through Moldova's break-away Transnistria Region which remains under OSCE supervision
Economic aid - recipient	$122 million annually, mainly from Australia (2004 est.)	$100 million (2000)
Economy - overview	The bulk of the population depends on agriculture, fishing, and forestry for at least part of its 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.	Moldova remains one of the poorest countries in Europe despite recent progress from its small economic base. It enjoys a favorable climate and good farmland but has no major mineral deposits. As a result, the economy depends heavily on agriculture, featuring fruits, vegetables, wine, and tobacco. Moldova must import almost all of its energy supplies from Russia. Energy shortages contributed to sharp production declines after the breakup of the Soviet Union in December 1991. As part of an ambitious reform effort after independence, Moldova introduced a convertible currency, freed prices, stopped issuing preferential credits to state enterprises, backed steady land privatization, removed export controls, and freed interest rates. The government entered into agreements with the World Bank and the IMF to promote growth and reduce poverty. The economy returned to positive growth of 2.1% in 2000, 6.1% in 2001, 7.2% in 2002, 6.3% in 2003, and 6.8% in 2004. Further reforms will come slowly because of strong political forces backing government controls. The economy remains vulnerable to higher fuel prices, poor agricultural weather, and the skepticism of foreign investors.
Electricity - consumption	51.15 million kWh (2003)	4.605 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2003)	1 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	55 million kWh (2003)	3.876 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m	lowest point: Dniester River 2 m highest point: Dealul Balanesti 430 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying	heavy use of agricultural chemicals, including banned pesticides such as DDT, has contaminated soil and groundwater; extensive soil erosion from poor farming methods
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	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection 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)	Moldovan/Romanian 64.5%, Ukrainian 13.8%, Russian 13%, Jewish 1.5%, Bulgarian 2%, Gagauz and other 5.2% (1989 est.) note: internal disputes with ethnic Slavs in the Transnistrian region
Exchange rates	Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - 7.5299 (2005), 7.4847 (2004), 7.5059 (2003), 6.7488 (2002), 5.278 (2001)	lei per US dollar - 12.33 (2004), 13.945 (2003), 13.571 (2002), 12.865 (2001), 12.434 (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 Manasseh SOGAVARE (since 4 May 2006); note - Prime Minister Snyder RINI, elected on 18 April 2006 and sworn in on 20 April 2006, resigned on 26 April prior to no confidence vote in parliament; SOGAVARE elected on 4 May 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 (eligible for a second term); 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	chief of state: President Vladimir VORONIN (since 4 April 2001) head of government: Prime Minister Vasile TARLEV (since 15 April 2001), First Deputy Prime Minister Vasile IOVV (since 29 January 2002) cabinet: selected by president, subject to approval of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a four-year term; election last held 4 April 2005 (next to be held NA 2009); note - prime minister designated by the president, upon consultation with Parliament; within 15 days from designation, the prime minister-designate must request a vote of confidence from the Parliament regarding his/her work program and entire cabinet; prime minister designated 15 April 2001, cabinet received a vote of confidence 19 April 2001 election results: Vladimir VORONIN reelected president; parliamentary votes - Vladimir VORONIN 75, Gheorghe DUCA 1; Vasile TARLEV designated prime minister; parliamentary votes of confidence - 75 of 101
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA
Exports - commodities	timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa	foodstuffs, textiles, machinery
Exports - partners	China 40.7%, South Korea 13.2%, Thailand 6.9%, Japan 6.3%, Philippines 4.5%, Italy 4.1% (2005)	Russia 35.8%, Italy 13.9%, Romania 10%, Germany 7.3%, Ukraine 6.6%, Belarus 6%, US 4.6% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar 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	same color scheme as Romania - three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; emblem in center of flag is of a Roman eagle of gold outlined in black with a red beak and talons carrying a yellow cross in its beak and a green olive branch in its right talons and a yellow scepter in its left talons; on its breast is a shield divided horizontally red over blue with a stylized ox head, star, rose, and crescent all in black-outlined yellow
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 42% industry: 11% services: 47% (2000 est.)	agriculture: 22.4% industry: 24.8% services: 52.8% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	4.4% (2005 est.)	6.8% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	8 00 S, 159 00 E	47 00 N, 29 00 E
Geography - note	strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean, the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea	landlocked; well endowed with various sedimentary rocks and minerals including sand, gravel, gypsum, and limestone
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, NZ, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga arrived 24 July 2003; by 2006, the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) had been scaled back to 259 police officers and 20 military, in addition to civilian technical advisers; in response to rioting that broke out in mid-April 2006, Australia dispatched an addtional 220 troops and 70 police officers to help restore order	-
Highways	-	total: 12,719 km paved: 10,977 km unpaved: 1,742 km (2002)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 2.2% highest 10%: 30.7% (1997)
Illicit drugs	-	limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for CIS consumption; transshipment point for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia via Central Asia to Russia, Western Europe, and possibly the US; widespread crime and underground economic activity
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA
Imports - commodities	food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals	mineral products and fuel, machinery and equipment, chemicals, textiles (2000)
Imports - partners	Australia 25.8%, Singapore 25.3%, NZ 4.6%, Fiji 4.2%, Papua New Guinea 4.1% (2005)	Ukraine 24.6%, Russia 12.2%, Romania 9.3%, Germany 8.5%, Italy 7.4% (2004)
Independence	7 July 1978 (from UK)	27 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	17% (2003 est.)
Industries	fish (tuna), mining, timber	food processing, agricultural machinery, foundry equipment, refrigerators and freezers, washing machines, hosiery, sugar, vegetable oil, shoes, textiles
Infant mortality rate	total: 20.63 deaths/1,000 live births male: 23.54 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.59 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 40.42 deaths/1,000 live births male: 43.11 deaths/1,000 live births female: 37.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6.6% (2005 est.)	11.5% (2004 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, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO	ACCT, BSEC, CE, CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, FAO, GUUAM, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	NA	3,070 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Court of Appeal	Supreme Court; Constitutional Court (the sole authority for constitutional judicature)
Labor force	249,200 (1999)	1.36 million (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 75% industry: 5% services: 20% (2000 est.)	agriculture 40%, industry 14%, services 46% (1998)
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 1,389 km border countries: Romania 450 km, Ukraine 939 km
Land use	arable land: 0.62% permanent crops: 2.04% other: 97.34% (2005)	arable land: 55.3% permanent crops: 10.79% other: 33.91% (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	Moldovan (official, virtually the same as the Romanian language), Russian, Gagauz (a Turkish dialect)
Legal system	English common law, which is widely disregarded	based on civil law system; Constitutional Court reviews legality of legislative acts and governmental decisions of resolution; it is unclear if Moldova accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction but accepts many UN and Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) documents
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 April 2006 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - National Party 6.9%, SIPRA 6.3%, Democratic 4.9%, PAP 6.3%, LAFARI 2.8%, Liberal 5%, SOCRED 4.3%, independents 60.3%; seats by party - National Party 4, SIPRA 4, Democratic 3, PAP 3, LAFARI 2, Liberal 2, SOCRED 2, independents 30	unicameral Parliament or Parlamentul (101 seats; parties and electoral blocs elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 6 March 2005 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - PCRM 46.1%, Democratic Moldova Bloc 28.4%, PPCD 9.1%, other parties 16.4%; seats by party - PCRM 56, Democratic Moldova Bloc 34, PPCD 11
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 72.91 years male: 70.4 years female: 75.55 years (2006 est.)	total population: 65.18 years male: 61.12 years female: 69.43 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: NA total population: NA male: NA female: NA	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.1% male: 99.6% female: 98.7% (2003 est.)
Location	Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea	Eastern Europe, northeast of Romania
Map references	Oceania	Europe
Maritime claims	measured from claimed archipelagic baselines territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm	none (landlocked)
Merchant marine	-	total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,636 GRT/1,088 DWT by type: cargo 2 (2005)
Military branches	no regular military forces; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP)	National Army: Ground Forces, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	NA	$8.7 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	0.4% (FY02)
National holiday	Independence Day, 7 July (1978)	Independence Day, 27 August (1991)
Nationality	noun: Solomon Islander(s) adjective: Solomon Islander	noun: Moldovan(s) adjective: Moldovan
Natural hazards	typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity	landslides (57 cases in 1998)
Natural resources	fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel	lignite, phosphorites, gypsum, arable land, limestone
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-0.25 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	-	gas 606 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	Association of Independent Members or AIM [Thomas CHAN]; Christian Alliance Solomon Islands or CASI [Edward RONIA]; LAFARI Party [John GARO]; National Party [Francis HILLY]; People's Alliance Party or PAP [Sir Allan KEMAKEZA]; Social Credit Party or SOCRED [Manasseh Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon First Party [David QUAN]; Solomon Islands Democratic Party [Gabriel SURI]; Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [Joses TUHANUKU]; Solomon Islands Liberal Party [Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]; Solomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement or SIPRA [Job D. TAUSINGA]; United Party [Sir Peter KENILOREA] note: in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid coalitions	Democratic Modova Bloc [Serafim URECHEANU] includes: Democratic Party [Dumitru DIACOV], Our Moldova Alliance [Dumitru BRAGHIS, Serafim URECHEANU], Social Liberal Party [Oleg SEREBRIAN]; Communist Party of the Republic of Moldova or PCRM [Vladimir VORONIN, first chairman]; Popular Christian Democratic Party or PPCD [Iurie ROSCA]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Isatabu Freedom Movement (IFM); Malaita Eagle Force (MEF); note - these rival armed ethnic factions crippled the Solomon Islands in a wave of violence from 1999 to 2003	NA
Population	552,438 (July 2006 est.)	4,455,421 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	80% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate	2.61% (2006 est.)	0.22% (2005 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2004)	AM 7, FM 50, shortwave 3 (1998)
Railways	-	total: 1,138 km broad gauge: 1,124 km 1.520-m gauge standard gauge: 14 km 1.435-m gauge (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)	Eastern Orthodox 98%, Jewish 1.5%, Baptist and other 0.5% (2000)
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: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.59 male(s)/female total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage	21 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: country code - 677; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)	general assessment: inadequate, outmoded, poor service outside Chisinau; some effort to modernize is under way domestic: new subscribers face long wait for service; mobile cellular telephone service being introduced international: country code - 373; service through Romania and Russia via landline; satellite earth stations - Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik
Telephones - main lines in use	7,400 (2005)	706,900 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	6,000 (2005)	338,200 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	-	1 (plus 30 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain	mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls	rolling steppe, gradual slope south to Black Sea
Total fertility rate	3.91 children born/woman (2006 est.)	1.81 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	NA%	8% (roughly 25% of working age Moldovans are employed abroad) (2002 est.)
Waterways	-	424 km (2004)

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