Solomon Islands

Flag | Coat of Arms
Capital | Honiara
Government | Constitutional Monarchy
Language | English (official)
Monarch | Queen Elizabeth II

Prime minister | Manasseh Sogavare

Area | 10,965 sq. miles
Population | 786,543 (2020)
GDP 2011 | $1.725 billion
GDP per capita | $3,191
Currency | Solomon Islands dollar

The Solomon Islands are northeast of Australia. Its Melanesian population of half a million people live on some 990 islands.

The island chain was a major focus of fighting in World War II between American and Japanese forces.

In 2020, the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) offered the Solomon Islands a $100 billion loan as part of the PRC's Belt and Road initiative. The loan amount is 77 times the Solomon Island's GDP, an amount impossible to ever repay. By 2022 rioting erupted among the populace to expel Chinese nationals and businesses from the Solomon Islands.