Zimbabwe (2001) | Solomon Islands (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 provinces and 2 cities* with provincial status; Bulawayo*, Harare*, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands | 9 provinces and 1 capital territory*; Central, Choiseul (Lauru), Guadalcanal, Honiara*, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell/Bellona, Temotu, Western |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
38.68% (male 2,223,332; female 2,172,479) 15-64 years: 57.69% (male 3,319,982; female 3,236,286) 65 years and over: 3.63% (male 208,785; female 204,502) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.9% (male 111,333; female 107,062)
15-64 years: 54% (male 139,072; female 135,721) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 7,754; female 8,248) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | corn, cotton, tobacco, wheat, coffee, sugarcane, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs | cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs; timber; fish |
Airports | 455 (2000 est.) | 32 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
18 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 9 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
437 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 209 under 914 m: 224 (2000 est.) |
total: 30
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 20 (2002) |
Area | total:
390,580 sq km land: 386,670 sq km water: 3,910 sq km |
total: 28,450 sq km
land: 27,540 sq km water: 910 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Montana | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | The UK annexed Southern Rhodesia from the South Africa Company in 1923. A 1961 constitution was formulated to keep whites in power. In 1965 the government unilaterally declared its independence, but the UK did not recognize the act and demanded voting rights for the black African majority in the country (then called Rhodesia). UN sanctions and a guerrilla uprising finally led to free elections in 1979 and independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980. Robert MUGABE, the nation's first prime minister, has been the country's only ruler (as president since 1987) and has dominated the country's political system since independence. | 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. |
Birth rate | 24.68 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 32.45 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$2.5 billion expenditures: $2.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $279 million (FY96/97 est.) |
revenues: $38 million
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001) |
Capital | Harare | Honiara |
Climate | tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November to March) | tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 5,313 km |
Constitution | 21 December 1979 | 7 July 1978 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Zimbabwe conventional short form: Zimbabwe former: Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Solomon Islands former: British Solomon Islands |
Currency | Zimbabwean dollar (ZWD) | Solomon Islands dollar (SBD) |
Death rate | 23.22 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.12 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.1 billion (2000 est.) | $137 million (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affairs Earl M. IRVING embassy: 172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue, Harare mailing address: P. O. Box 3340, Harare telephone: [263] (4) 250-593 FAX: [263] (4) 796487 |
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 Simbi Veke MUBAKO chancery: 1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 332-7100 FAX: [1] (202) 483-9326 |
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Colin BECK
chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400L, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 599-6192, 6193 FAX: [1] (212) 661-8925 |
Disputes - international | - | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $200 million (2000 est.) | $28 million mainly from Japan, Australia, China, and NZ (2001 est.) |
Economy - overview | The government of Zimbabwe faces a wide variety of difficult economic problems as it struggles to consolidate earlier moves to develop a market-oriented economy. Its involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for example, has already drained hundreds of millions of dollars from the economy. Badly needed support from the IMF suffers delays in part because of the country's failure to meet budgetary goals. Inflation rose from an annual rate of 32% in 1998 to 59% in 1999 and 60% in 2000. The economy is being steadily weakened by excessive government deficits and AIDS; Zimbabwe has the highest rate of infection in the world. Per capita GDP, which is twice the average of the poorer sub-Saharan nations, will increase little if any in the near-term, and Zimbabwe will suffer continued frustrations in developing its agricultural and mineral resources. | 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 serious economic disarray, indeed near collapse. Tanker deliveries of crucial fuel supplies (including those for electrical generation) have become sporadic due to the government's inability to pay and attacks against ships. Telecommunications are threatened by the nonpayment of bills and by the lack of technical and maintenance staff many of whom have left the country. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.939 billion kWh (1999) | 29.76 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 1.564 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 5.78 billion kWh (1999) | 32 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
69.98% hydro: 30.02% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
junction of the Runde and Save rivers 162 m highest point: Inyangani 2,592 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; land degradation; air and water pollution; the black rhinoceros herd - once the largest concentration of the species in the world - has been significantly reduced by poaching | deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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 | African 98% (Shona 71%, Ndebele 16%, other 11%), mixed and Asian 1%, white less than 1% | Melanesian 93%, Polynesian 4%, Micronesian 1.5%, European 0.8%, Chinese 0.3%, other 0.4% |
Exchange rates | Zimbabwean dollars per US dollar - 54.9451 (January 2001), 43.2900 (2000), 38.3142 (1999), 21.4133 (1998), 11.8906 (1997), 9.9206 (1996) | Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - NA (2002), NA (2001), 5.09 (2000), 4.84 (1999), 4.82 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Co-Vice Presidents Simon Vengai MUZENDA (since 31 December 1987) and Joseph MSIKA (since 23 December 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Co-Vice Presidents Simon Vengai MUZENDA (since 31 December 1987) and Joseph MSIKA (since 23 December 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; responsible to the House of Assembly elections: presidential candidates nominated with a nomination paper signed by at least 10 registered voters (at least one from each province) and elected by popular vote; election last held 16-17 March 1996 (next to be held NA March 2002); co-vice presidents appointed by the president election results: Robert Gabriel MUGABE reelected president; percent of electoral college vote - Robert Gabriel MUGABE 92.7%, Abel MUZOREWA 4.8%; Ndabaningi SITHOLE 2.4% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir John LAPLI (since NA 1999)
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 | $1.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | tobacco 29%, gold 7%, ferroalloys 7%, cotton 5% (1999 est.) | timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa |
Exports - partners | South Africa 10%, UK 9%, Malawi 8%, Botswana 8%, Japan 7%, (1999 est.) | Japan 21.2%, China 18.8%, South Korea 16.3%, Philippines 8.9%, Thailand 7.6%, Singapore 4.1% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | seven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black, red, yellow, and green with a white isosceles triangle edged in black with its base on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle | 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 - $28.2 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $800 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
28% industry: 32% services: 40% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 42%
industry: 11% services: 47% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -6.1% (2000 est.) | -10% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 20 00 S, 30 00 E | 8 00 S, 159 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked | strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean, the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea |
Highways | total:
18,338 km paved: 8,692 km unpaved: 9,646 km (1996 est.) |
total: 1,360 km
paved: 34 km unpaved: 1,326 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1.8% highest 10%: 46.9% (1990) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | significant transit point for African cannabis and South Asian heroin, mandrax, and methamphetamines destined for the South African and European markets | - |
Imports | $1.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 35%, other manufactures 18%, chemicals 17%, fuels 14% (1999 est.) | food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals |
Imports - partners | South Africa 46%, UK 6%, China 4%, Germany 4%, US 3% (1999 est.) | Australia 31.3%, Singapore 19.7%, New Zealand 5.1%, Fiji 4.6%, Papua New Guinea 4.5% (2002) |
Independence | 18 April 1980 (from UK) | 7 July 1978 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | mining (coal, gold, copper, nickel, tin, clay, numerous metallic and nonmetallic ores), steel, wood products, cement, chemicals, fertilizer, clothing and footwear, foodstuffs, beverages | fish (tuna), mining, timber |
Infant mortality rate | 62.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 22.88 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.03 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 60% (2000 est.) | 1.8% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 6 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 1,930 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Court | Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 5.5 million (2000 est.) | 26,842 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 66%, services 24%, industry 10% (1996 est.) | agriculture 75%, industry 5%, services 20% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
3,066 km border countries: Botswana 813 km, Mozambique 1,231 km, South Africa 225 km, Zambia 797 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
7% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 13% forests and woodland: 23% other: 57% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 1.5%
permanent crops: 0.64% other: 97.86% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Shona, Sindebele (the language of the Ndebele, sometimes called Ndebele), numerous but minor tribal dialects | 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 | mixture of Roman-Dutch and English common law | English common law, which is widely disregarded |
Legislative branch | unicameral parliament, called House of Assembly (150 seats - 120 elected by popular vote for six-year terms, 12 nominated by the president, 10 occupied by traditional chiefs chosen by their peers, and 8 occupied by provincial governors)
elections: last held 24-25 June 2000 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - ZANU-PF 47.2%, MDC 45.6%, ZANU-Ndonga 0.7%, United Parties 0.7%; seats by party - ZANU-PF 63, MDC 56, ZANU-Ndonga 1 |
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:
37.13 years male: 38.51 years female: 35.7 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 72.1 years
male: 69.64 years female: 74.68 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write English total population: 85% male: 90% female: 80% (1995 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southern Africa, between South Africa and Zambia | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
continental shelf: 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Zimbabwe National Army, Air Force of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Republic Police (includes Police Support Unit, Paramilitary Police) | no regular military forces; Solomon Islands National Reconnaissance and Surveillance Force; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $127 million (FY99/00) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.1% (FY99/00) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,996,631 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,860,167 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 18 April (1980) | Independence Day, 7 July (1978) |
Nationality | noun:
Zimbabwean(s) adjective: Zimbabwean |
noun: Solomon Islander(s)
adjective: Solomon Islander |
Natural hazards | recurring droughts; floods and severe storms are rare | typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity |
Natural resources | coal, chromium ore, asbestos, gold, nickel, copper, iron ore, vanadium, lithium, tin, platinum group metals | fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: there is a small but steady flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa in search of better paid employment |
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | petroleum products 212 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Movement for Democratic Change or MDC [Morgan TSVANGIRAI]; Popular Democratic Front or PDF [Austin CHAKAODZA]; United Parties [Abel MUZOREWA]; Zimbabwe African National Union-Ndonga or ZANU-Ndonga [Ndabaningi SITHOLE]; Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front or ZANU-PF [Robert MUGABE]; Zimbabwe Unity Movement or ZUM [Edgar TEKERE] | 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 | National Constitutional Assembly or NCA | NA |
Population | 11,365,366
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
509,190 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.15% (2001 est.) | 2.83% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Binga, Kariba | Aola Bay, Honiara, Lofung, Noro, Viru Harbor, Yandina |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 7, FM 20 (plus 17 repeater stations), shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 3, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1.14 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,759 km (1995) narrow gauge: 2,759 km 1.067-m gauge (313 km electrified; 42 km double track) (1995 est.) |
0 km |
Religions | syncretic (part Christian, part indigenous beliefs) 50%, Christian 25%, indigenous beliefs 24%, Muslim and other 1% | Anglican 45%, Roman Catholic 18%, United (Methodist/Presbyterian) 12%, Baptist 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 7%, other Protestant 5%, indigenous beliefs 4% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 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: 0.94 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
system was once one of the best in Africa, but now suffers from poor maintenance; more than 100,000 outstanding requests for connection despite an equally large number of installed but unused main lines domestic: consists of microwave radio relay links, open-wire lines, radiotelephone communication stations, fixed wireless local loop installations, and a substantial mobile cellular network; Internet connection is available in Harare and planned for all major towns and for some of the smaller ones international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat; two international digital gateway exchanges (in Harare and Gweru) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 212,000 (in addition there are about 20,000 fixed telephones in wireless local loop connections) (1997) | 8,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 70,000 (1999) | 658 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 16 (1997) | 0 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly high plateau with higher central plateau (high veld); mountains in east | mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls |
Total fertility rate | 3.28 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.34 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 50% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | the Mazoe and Zambezi rivers are used for transporting chrome ore from Harare to Mozambique | none |