Solomon Islands People - 2024

Population

714,766 (2023 est.)

Nationality

noun: Solomon Islander(s)

adjective: Solomon Islander

Ethnic groups

Melanesian 95.3%, Polynesian 3.1%, Micronesian 1.2%, other 0.3% (2009 est.)

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

Religions

Protestant 73.4% (Church of Melanesia 31.9%, South Sea Evangelical 17.1%, Seventh Day Adventist 11.7%, United Church 10.1%, Christian Fellowship Church 2.5%), Roman Catholic 19.6%, other Christian 2.9%, other 4%, unspecified 0.1% (2009 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 31.06% (male 114,104/female 107,900)

15-64 years: 63.82% (male 233,501/female 222,640)

65 years and over: 5.12% (2023 est.) (male 17,238/female 19,383)

2023 population pyramid:

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 74.8

youth dependency ratio: 68.8

elderly dependency ratio: 6

potential support ratio: 16.5 (2021 est.)

Median age

total: 24.8 years (2023 est.)

male: 24.6 years

female: 25 years

Population growth rate

1.69% (2023 est.)

Birth rate

22.3 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Death rate

4 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Net migration rate

-1.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Population distribution

most of the population lives along the coastal regions; about one in five live in urban areas, and of these some two-thirds reside in Honiara, the largest town and chief port

Urbanization

urban population: 26% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization: 3.57% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas - population

82,000 HONIARA (capital) (2018)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female

total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2023 est.)

Mother's mean age at first birth

22.6 years (2015 est.)

note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-29

Maternal mortality ratio

122 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 19.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)

male: 23.3 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 15.6 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 77 years (2023 est.)

male: 74.3 years

female: 79.7 years

Total fertility rate

2.82 children born/woman (2023 est.)

Gross reproduction rate

1.38 (2023 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

29.3% (2015)

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 95% of population

rural: 65.9% of population

total: 73.1% of population

unimproved: urban: 5% of population

rural: 34.1% of population

total: 26.9% of population (2020 est.)

Current health expenditure

4.4% of GDP (2020)

Physicians density

0.19 physicians/1,000 population (2016)

Hospital bed density

1.4 beds/1,000 population (2012)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 95.6% of population

rural: 22.6% of population

total: 40.6% of population

unimproved: urban: 4.4% of population

rural: 77.4% of population

total: 59.4% of population (2020 est.)

Obesity - adult prevalence rate

22.5% (2016)

Alcohol consumption per capita

total: 1.19 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer: 1.1 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine: 0.06 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits: 0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Tobacco use

total: 36.5% (2020 est.)

male: 53.8% (2020 est.)

female: 19.2% (2020 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

16.2% (2015)

Currently married women (ages 15-49)

64.1% (2023 est.)

Education expenditures

12.8% of GDP (2020 est.)

Literacy

total population: NA

male: NA

female: NA