Compare South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (2004) - Solomon Islands (2001)

Compare South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (2004) z Solomon Islands (2001)

	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (2004)	Solomon Islands (2001)

Administrative divisions	-	7 provinces and 1 town; Central, Guadalcanal, Honiara, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Temotu, Western; note - there may be two new provinces of Choiseul (Lauru) and Rennell/Bellona and the administrative unit of Honiara may have been abolished
Age structure	-	0-14 years: 43.79% (male 107,229; female 103,162) 15-64 years: 53.15% (male 129,315; female 126,021) 65 years and over: 3.06% (male 7,190; female 7,525) (2001 est.)
Agriculture - products	-	cocoa, beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs; timber; fish
Airports	none (2003 est.)	31 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	-	total: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 29 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 18 (2000 est.)
Area	total: 3,903 sq km land: 3,903 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Shag Rocks, Black Rock, Clerke Rocks, South Georgia Island, Bird Island, and the South Sandwich Islands, which consist of some nine islands	total: 28,450 sq km land: 27,540 sq km water: 910 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than Rhode Island	slightly smaller than Maryland
Background	The islands lie approximately 1,000 km east of the Falkland Islands and have been under British administration since 1908, except for a brief period in 1982 when Argentina occupied them. Grytviken, on South Georgia, was a 19th and early 20th century whaling station. Famed explorer Ernest SHACKLETON stopped there in 1914 en route to his ill-fated attempt to cross Antarctica on foot. He returned some 20 months later with a few companions in a small boat and arranged a successful rescue for the rest of his crew, stranded off the Antarctic Peninsula. He died in 1922 on a subsequent expedition and is buried in Grytviken. Today, the station houses scientists from the British Antarctic Survey. The islands have large bird and seal populations, and, recognizing the importance of preserving the marine stocks in adjacent waters, the UK, in 1993, extended the exclusive fishing zone from 12 nm to 200 nm around each island.	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. Current issues include government deficits, deforestation, and malaria control.
Birth rate	-	34.05 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Budget	-	revenues: $147 million expenditures: $168 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.)
Capital	-	Honiara
Climate	variable, with mostly westerly winds throughout the year interspersed with periods of calm; nearly all precipitation falls as snow	tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather
Coastline	NA km	5,313 km
Constitution	adopted 3 October 1985	7 July 1978
Country name	conventional long form: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands conventional short form: none	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Solomon Islands former: British Solomon Islands
Currency	-	Solomon Islands dollar (SBD)
Death rate	-	4.27 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Debt - external	-	$152.4 million (1998)
Dependency status	overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina; administered from the Falkland Islands by a commissioner, who is concurrently governor of the Falkland Islands, representing Queen ELIZABETH II; Grytviken, formerly a whaling station on South Georgia, is a scientific base	-
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)	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	none (overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires ad interim Jeremiah MANELE chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400L, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 599-6192, 6193 FAX: [1] (212) 661-8925
Disputes - international	briefly occupied by military force in 1982 - claimed by Argentina in constitution but declares it will no longer seek settlement by force	none
Economic aid - recipient	-	$47 million (1999 est.), mainly from Japan, Australia, China, and NZ
Economy - overview	Some fishing takes place in adjacent waters. Fees from fishing licenses and related activities traditionally account for around 90% of South Georgia's revenue (about $5.6 million in 2004). There is a potential source of income from harvesting finfish and krill. The islands receive income from postage stamps produced in the UK, sale of fishing licenses, and harbor and landing fees from tourist vessels. Tourism from specialized cruise ships is increasing rapidly. Annual tourist volume hovers around 3,000 arrivals.	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. However, severe ethnic violence, the closing of key business enterprises, and an empty government treasury have led to a continuing economic downslide. Deliveries of crucial fuel supplies (including those for electrical generation) by tankers have become sporadic due to the government's inability to pay and attacks against ships. Telecommunications are threatened by the lack of technical and maintenance staff many of whom have left the country.
Electricity - consumption	-	27.9 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports	-	0 kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports	-	0 kWh (1999)
Electricity - production	-	30 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Paget (South Georgia) 2,934 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m
Environment - current issues	NA	deforestation; soil erosion; much of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying
Environment - international agreements	-	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Ethnic groups	-	Melanesian 93%, Polynesian 4%, Micronesian 1.5%, European 0.8%, Chinese 0.3%, other 0.4%
Exchange rates	-	Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - 5.0968 (November 2000), 5.0864 (2000), 4.8381 (1999), 4.8156 (1998), 3.7169 (1997), 3.5664 (1996)
Executive branch	-	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Father John LAPLI (since NA 1999) head of government: Prime Minister Mannaseh Damukana SOGAVARE (since 1 July 2000); Assistant Prime Minister Nathaniel WAENA (since 1 July 2000); Deputy Prime Minister Allan KEMAKEZA (since 1 July 2000); note - Prime Minister Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU was forced to resign his position in June 2000 following the armed takeover of the capital by elements supporting the opposition parties; Mannaseh Damukana SOGAVARE, who had been opposition leader, was then elected prime minister at a sitting of National Parliament on 30 June 2000 cabinet: Cabinet 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	-	$165 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Exports - commodities	-	timber, fish, palm oil, cocoa, copra
Exports - partners	-	Japan 35.5%, other Asian countries 47.3% (1999)
Fiscal year	-	calendar year
Flag description	blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms features a shield with a golden lion centered; the shield is supported by a fur seal on the left and a penguin on the right; a reindeer appears above the shield, and below it on a scroll is the motto LEO TERRAM PROPRIAM PROTEGAT (Let the Lion Protect its Own Land)	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	-	purchasing power parity - $900 million (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	-	agriculture: 50% industry: 3.5% services: 46.5% (1995)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-	1% (2000 est.)
Geographic coordinates	54 30 S, 37 00 W	8 00 S, 159 00 E
Geography - note	the north coast of South Georgia has several large bays, which provide good anchorage; reindeer, introduced early in the 20th century, live on South Georgia	-
Highways	-	total: 1,360 km paved: 34 km unpaved: 1,326 km (includes about 800 km of private plantation roads) (1996 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	-	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Imports	-	$152 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Imports - commodities	-	plant and equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners	-	Australia 38.5%, Singapore 15%, Japan 10.6%, NZ 6.2% (1999)
Independence	-	7 July 1978 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	-	NA%
Industries	-	fish (tuna), mining, timber
Infant mortality rate	-	24.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-	10% (1999 est.)
International organization participation	-	ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	1 (2000)
Irrigated land	0 sq km (1998 est.)	NA sq km
Judicial branch	-	Court of Appeal
Labor force	-	26,842
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (largely covered by permanent ice and snow with some sparse vegetation consisting of grass, moss, and lichen) (2001)	arable land: 1% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 1% forests and woodland: 88% other: 9% (1993 est.)
Languages	-	Melanesian pidgin in much of the country is lingua franca, English spoken by 1%-2% of population note: 120 indigenous languages
Legal system	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply; the senior magistrate from the Falkland Islands presides over the Magistrates Court	English common law
Legislative branch	-	unicameral National Parliament (50 seats; members elected from single member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 6 August 1997 (next to be held by August 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - GNUR 21, PAP 7, NAPSI 5, SILP 4, UP 4, independents 6, other 3
Life expectancy at birth	-	total population: 71.55 years male: 69.12 years female: 74.1 years (2001 est.)
Literacy	-	definition: NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA%
Location	Southern South America, islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, east of the tip of South America	Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea
Map references	Antarctic Region	Oceania
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm	measured from claimed archipelagic baselines continental shelf: 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	-	none (2000 est.)
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the UK	-
Military branches	-	no regular military forces; Solomon Islands National Reconnaissance and Surveillance Force; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	-	NA%
National holiday	Liberation Day, 14 June (1982)	Independence Day, 7 July (1978)
Nationality	-	noun: Solomon Islander(s) adjective: Solomon Islander
Natural hazards	the South Sandwich Islands have prevailing weather conditions that generally make them difficult to approach by ship; they are also subject to active volcanism	typhoons, but they are rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity
Natural resources	fish	fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel
Net migration rate	-	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Political parties and leaders	-	there are two main coalitions - Coalition for National Unity, Reconciliation, and Peace or CNURP and Alliance for Change; the CNURP took power on 30 June 2000, it comprises members of the Liberal Party, People's Alliance Party, and the United Party, as well as a number of independents; the Alliance for Change, represents the former government and now is the opposition; in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid coalitions; Group for National Unity and Reconciliation or GNUR [leader NA]; Liberal Party [Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]; National Action Party of Solomon Islands or NAPSI [Francis SAEMALA]; People's Alliance Party or PAP [George LEPPING]; People's Progressive Party [Mannaseh Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [Joses TUHANUKU]; United Party or UP [leader NA]
Political pressure groups and leaders	-	NA
Population	no indigenous inhabitants note: the small military garrison on South Georgia withdrew in March 2001, to be replaced by a permanent group of scientists of the British Antarctic Survey, which also has a biological station on Bird Island; the South Sandwich Islands are uninhabited (July 2004 est.)	480,442 (July 2001 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	NA%
Population growth rate	-	2.98% (2001 est.)
Ports and harbors	Grytviken	Aola Bay, Honiara, Lofung, Noro, Viru Harbor, Yandina
Radio broadcast stations	0 (2003)	AM 3, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios	-	57,000 (1997)
Railways	-	0 km
Religions	-	Anglican 34%, Roman Catholic 19%, Baptist 17%, United (Methodist/Presbyterian) 11%, Seventh-Day Adventist 10%, other Protestant 5%, indigenous beliefs 4%
Sex ratio	-	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
Suffrage	-	21 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: coastal radiotelephone station at Grytviken	general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	-	8,000 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	658 (1997)
Television broadcast stations	0 (2003)	0 (1997)
Terrain	most of the islands, rising steeply from the sea, are rugged and mountainous; South Georgia is largely barren and has steep, glacier-covered mountains; the South Sandwich Islands are of volcanic origin with some active volcanoes	mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls
Total fertility rate	-	4.65 children born/woman (2001 est.)
Unemployment rate	-	NA%
Waterways	-	none

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