Compare Solomon Islands (2008) - Mauritius (2005)

Compare Solomon Islands (2008) z Mauritius (2005)

	Solomon Islands (2008)	Mauritius (2005)

Administrative divisions	9 provinces and 1 capital territory; Central, Choiseul, Guadalcanal, Honiara, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell and Bellona, Temotu, Western	9 districts and 3 dependencies; Agalega Islands, Black River, Cargados Carajos Shoals, Flacq, Grand Port, Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart, Rodrigues, Savanne
Age structure	0-14 years: 40.7% (male 117,739/female 113,125) 15-64 years: 55.9% (male 160,310/female 156,773) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 9,036/female 9,859) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 24.4% (male 151,043/female 148,847) 15-64 years: 69.1% (male 424,472/female 425,974) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 31,506/female 48,760) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; timber; cattle, pigs; fish	sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish
Airports	35 (2007)	6 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)	total: 2 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 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 (2007)	total: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 28,450 sq km land: 27,540 sq km water: 910 sq km	total: 2,040 sq km land: 2,030 sq km water: 10 sq km note: includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon), and Rodrigues
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Maryland	almost 11 times the size of Washington, DC
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, then 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 generally been effective in restoring law and order and rebuilding government institutions.	Discovered by the Portuguese in 1505, Mauritius was subsequently held by the Dutch, French, and British before independence was attained in 1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has earned one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Recent poor weather and declining sugar prices have slowed economic growth, leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole community.
Birth rate	29.27 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	15.62 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $49.7 million expenditures: $75.1 million (2003)	revenues: $1.231 billion expenditures: $1.582 billion, 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)	Port Louis
Climate	tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather	tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)
Coastline	5,313 km	177 km
Constitution	7 July 1978	12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992
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 Mauritius conventional short form: Mauritius
Death rate	3.87 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	6.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$166 million (2004)	$1.78 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 John PRICE embassy: 4th Floor, Rogers House, John Kennedy Street, Port Louis mailing address: international mail: P. O. Box 544, Port Louis; US mail: American Embassy, Port Louis, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2450 telephone: [230] 202-4400 FAX: [230] 208-9534
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 Usha JEETAH chancery: 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 441, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-1491, 1492 FAX: [1] (202) 966-0983
Disputes - international	since 2003, the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI), consisting of police, military, and civilian advisors drawn from 15 countries, has assisted in reestablishing and maintaining civil and political order while reinforcing regional stability and security	Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, were granted UK citizenship but no right to patriation in the UK; claims French-administered Tromelin Island
Economic aid - recipient	$198.2 million annually, mainly from Australia (2005 est.)	$42 million (1997)
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's efforts to restore law and order and economic stability have led to modest growth as the economy rebuilds.	Since independence in 1968, Mauritius has developed from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors. For most of the period, annual growth has been in the order of 5% to 6%. This remarkable achievement has been reflected in more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much-improved infrastructure. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 25% of export earnings. The government's development strategy centers on expanding local financial institutions and building a domestic information telecommunications industry. Mauritius has attracted more than 9,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in India and South Africa, and investment in the banking sector alone has reached over $1 billion. Mauritius, with its strong textile sector, has been well poised to take advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).
Electricity - consumption	55.8 million kWh (2005)	1.707 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	60 million kWh (2005)	1.836 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Piton 828 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying	water pollution, degradation of coral reefs
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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands 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)	Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%
Exchange rates	Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - NA (2007), 7.3447 (2006), 7.5299 (2005), 7.4847 (2004), 7.5059 (2003)	Mauritian rupees per US dollar - 27.499 (2004), 27.902 (2003), 29.962 (2002), 29.129 (2001), 26.25 (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 Derek SIKUA (since 20 December 2007); note - Prime Minister Manasseh SOGAVARE defeated in a no confidence vote in parliament on 13 December 2007; SIKUA elected on 20 December 2007 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 Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since 7 October 2003) and Vice President Abdool Raouf BUNDHUN (since 25 February 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Paul BERENGER (since 30 September 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president and vice president elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 25 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president, responsible to the National Assembly election results: Karl OFFMANN elected president and Raouf BUNDHUN elected vice president; percent of vote by the National Assembly - NA%; note - Karl OFFMANN stepped down on 30 September 2003
Exports	0 bbl/day (2004)	NA
Exports - commodities	timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa	clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses
Exports - partners	China 48%, South Korea 9.5%, Japan 8.9%, Thailand 4.7%, Italy 4.4%, Philippines 4.2% (2006)	UK 33.1%, France 20.4%, US 14.8%, Madagascar 5.1%, Italy 4.1% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 July - 30 June
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	four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 42% industry: 11% services: 47% (2000 est.)	agriculture: 7.6% industry: 30% services: 62.4% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $12,800 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	4.4% (2005 est.)	4.7% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	8 00 S, 159 00 E	20 17 S, 57 33 E
Geography - note	strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean, the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea; on 2 April 2007 an undersea earthquake measuring 8.1 on the Richter scale occurred 345 km WNW of the capital Honiara, the resulting tsunami devastated coastal areas of Western and Choiseul provinces with dozens of deaths and thousands dislocated; the provincial capital of Gizo was especially hard hit	the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs
Government - note	by the end of 2007, the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) - originally made up of police and troops from Australia, NZ, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga - had been scaled back to 303 police officers, 197 civilian technical advisers, and 72 military advisers from 15 countries across the region	-
Heliports	3 (2007)	-
Highways	-	total: 2,000 km paved: 1,960 km (including 60 km of expressways) unpaved: 40 km (2002)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Illicit drugs	-	minor consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia; small amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally; significant offshore financial industry creates potential for money laundering, but corruption levels are relatively low and the government appears generally to be committed to regulating its banking industry
Imports	1,296 bbl/day (2004)	NA
Imports - commodities	food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals	manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals
Imports - partners	Australia 25.5%, Singapore 23.5%, Japan 7.8%, NZ 5.1%, Fiji 4.2%, Papua New Guinea 4.1% (2006)	South Africa 11.3%, China 9.4%, India 9.3%, France 9.2%, Bahrain 5.3%, Japan 4.1% (2004)
Independence	7 July 1978 (from UK)	12 March 1968 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	8% (2000 est.)
Industries	fish (tuna), mining, timber	food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing; chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery; tourism
Infant mortality rate	total: 19.97 deaths/1,000 live births male: 22.8 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 15.03 deaths/1,000 live births male: 17.74 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6.6% (2005 est.)	4.5% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	ACP, ADB, 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, ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	NA	200 sq km (2000 est.)
Judicial branch	Court of Appeal	Supreme Court
Labor force	249,200 (1999)	560,000 (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 75% industry: 5% services: 20% (2000 est.)	agriculture and fishing 14%, construction and industry 36%, transportation and communication 7%, trade, restaurants, hotels 16%, finance 3%, other services 24% (1995)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 0.62% permanent crops: 2.04% other: 97.34% (2005)	arable land: 49.26% permanent crops: 2.96% other: 47.78% (2001)
Languages	Melanesian pidgin in much of the country is lingua franca; English (official; but spoken by only 1%-2% of the population); 120 indigenous languages	Creole 80.5%, Bhojpuri 12.1%, French 3.4% (official), other 3.7%, unspecified 0.3% (2000 census)
Legal system	English common law, which is widely disregarded	based on French civil law system with elements of English common law in certain areas
Legislative branch	unicameral National Parliament (50 seats; members elected from single-member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held on 5 April 2006 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - National Party 6.9%, PAP 6.3%, SIPRA 6.3%, Liberal 5%, Democratic 4.9%, SOCRED 4.3%, LAFARI 2.8%, independents 60.3%; seats by party - National Party 4, SIPRA 4, Democratic 3, PAP 3, LAFARI 2, Liberal 2, SOCRED 2, independents 30	unicameral National Assembly (66 seats; 62 elected by popular vote, 4 appointed by the election commission from the losing political parties to give representation to various ethnic minorities; members serve five-year terms) elections: last held on 11 September 2000 (next to be held September 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - MSM/MMM 52.3%, MLP/PMSD 36.9%, OPR 10.8%; seats by party - MSM/MMM 54, MLP/PMSD 6, OPR 2
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 73.16 years male: 70.64 years female: 75.81 years (2007 est.)	total population: 72.38 years male: 68.4 years female: 76.41 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: NA total population: NA male: NA female: NA	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.6% male: 88.6% female: 82.7% (2003 est.)
Location	Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea	Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
Map references	Oceania	Political Map of the World
Maritime claims	measured from claimed archipelagic baselines territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine	-	total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 22,946 GRT/27,102 DWT by type: bulk carrier 4, passenger/cargo 2, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 6 (India 4, Switzerland 2) (2005)
Military branches	no regular military forces; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP)	National Police Force (includes the paramilitary Special Mobile Force or SMF and National Coast Guard)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$12.5 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	3% (2006)	0.2% (2004)
National holiday	Independence Day, 7 July (1978)	Independence Day, 12 March (1968)
Nationality	noun: Solomon Islander(s) adjective: Solomon Islander	noun: Mauritian(s) adjective: Mauritian
Natural hazards	typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earthquakes, tremors, and volcanic activity; tsunamis	cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs that may pose maritime hazards
Natural resources	fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel	arable land, fish
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	-0.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
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	Hizbullah [Cehl Mohamed FAKEEMEEAH]; Mauritian Labor Party or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]; Mauritian Militant Movement or MMM [Paul BERENGER] - in coalition with MSM; Mauritian Social Democrat Party or PMSD [Charles Xavier-Luc DUVAL]; Militant Socialist Movement or MSM [Pravind JUGNAUTH] - governing party; Rodrigues Movement or MR [Joseph (Nicholas) Von MALLY]; Rodrigues Peoples Organization or OPR [Serge CLAIR]
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	various labor unions
Population	566,842 (July 2007 est.)	1,230,602 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	10% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate	2.54% (2007 est.)	0.84% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Port Louis
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2004)	AM 4, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2002)
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)	Hindu 48%, Roman Catholic 23.6%, other Christian 8.6%, Muslim 16.6%, other 2.5%, unspecified 0.3%, none 0.4% (2000 census)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.041 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.023 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.917 male(s)/female total population: 1.026 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 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: small system with good service domestic: primarily microwave radio relay trunk system international: country code - 230; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); new microwave link to Reunion; HF radiotelephone links to several countries; fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia
Telephones - main lines in use	7,400 (2005)	348,200 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	6,000 (2005)	462,400 (2003)
Television broadcast stations	-	2 (plus several repeaters) (1997)
Terrain	mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls	small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling central plateau
Total fertility rate	3.78 children born/woman (2007 est.)	1.96 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	NA%	10.8% (2004 est.)

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