Demographics of Solomon Islands

Demographic features of the population of Solomon Islands include population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects.

Demographics of Solomon Islands
Population pyramid of the Solomon Islands in 2020
Population702,694 (2022 est.)
Growth rate1.72% (2022 est.)
Birth rate22.71 births/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Death rate3.96 deaths/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Net migration rate-1.55 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Age structure
0–14 years32.99%
65 and over4.51%
Nationality
NationalitySolomon Islander
Major ethnicMelanesian (95.3%)
Population, fertility rate and net reproduction rate, United Nations estimates

The Solomon Islanders comprise diverse cultures, languages, and customs. Of its,[1] 94.5% are Melanesian, 3% Polynesian, and 1.2% Micronesian.[2] In addition, small numbers of Europeans and Chinese are registered. About 120 vernaculars are spoken.

Most people reside in small, widely dispersed settlements along the coasts. Sixty per cent live in localities with fewer than 200 persons, and only 10% reside in urban areas.

The capital city of Honiara is situated on Guadalcanal, the largest island. The other principal towns are Gizo, Auki, and Kirakira.

Most Solomon Islanders are Christian, with the Anglican, Methodist, Roman Catholic, South Seas Evangelical, and Seventh-day Adventist faiths predominating. About 5% of the population maintain traditional beliefs.

The chief characteristics of the traditional Melanesian social structure are:

  • The practice of subsistence economy;
  • The recognition of bonds of kinship, with important obligations extending beyond the immediate family group;
  • Generally egalitarian relationships, emphasising acquired rather than inherited status; and
  • A strong attachment of the people to the land.

Most Solomon Islanders maintain this traditional social structure and find their roots in village life.

Vital statistics

Births and deaths[3][4]

Mid-year population (thousands) Live births (thousands) Deaths (thousands) Natural change (thousands) Crude birth rate (per 1000) Crude death rate (per 1000) Natural change (per 1000) Total fertility rate (TFR) Infant mortality (per 1000 live births) Life expectancy (in years)
1950 105,209 4,365 2,606 1,759 41.5 24.8 16.7 7.00 166.4 40.03
1951 107,119 4,519 2,536 1,983 42.2 23.7 18.5 7.02 163.8 40.53
1952 109,309 4,682 2,505 2,177 42.9 22.9 19.9 7.04 158.7 41.29
1953 111,760 4,816 2,472 2,344 43.1 22.1 21.0 7.01 153.7 42.08
1954 114,448 4,968 2,455 2,513 43.5 21.5 22.0 7.00 148.7 42.79
1955 117,314 5,119 2,432 2,687 43.7 20.8 22.9 6.99 143.8 43.58
1956 120,288 5,266 2,643 2,623 43.9 22.0 21.8 6.97 144.5 41.87
1957 123,373 5,415 2,366 3,049 43.9 19.2 24.7 6.95 132.9 45.28
1958 126,649 5,602 2,338 3,264 44.3 18.5 25.8 6.98 127.9 46.12
1959 130,071 5,774 2,315 3,459 44.4 17.8 26.6 6.97 123.0 46.91
1960 133,440 5,948 2,282 3,666 44.5 17.1 27.4 6.97 118.3 47.74
1961 136,780 6,085 2,291 3,794 44.4 16.7 27.7 6.97 113.6 48.43
1962 140,254 6,225 2,283 3,942 44.3 16.3 28.1 6.97 109.1 49.25
1963 143,863 6,357 2,274 4,083 44.1 15.8 28.3 6.97 104.6 50.05
1964 147,609 6,495 2,260 4,235 43.9 15.3 28.6 6.96 100.3 50.86
1965 151,495 6,624 2,246 4,378 43.7 14.8 28.9 6.95 96.0 51.66
1966 155,514 6,759 2,229 4,530 43.4 14.3 29.1 6.94 91.7 52.46
1967 159,667 6,901 2,216 4,685 43.2 13.9 29.3 6.94 87.5 53.21
1968 163,973 7,023 2,172 4,851 42.8 13.2 29.5 6.92 82.6 54.24
1969 168,399 7,224 2,141 5,083 42.8 12.7 30.1 6.97 78.0 55.16
1970 172,833 7,426 2,121 5,305 42.8 12.2 30.6 7.00 73.3 56.07
1971 177,264 7,604 2,116 5,488 42.8 11.9 30.9 7.03 68.9 56.98
1972 181,876 7,784 2,069 5,715 42.7 11.3 31.3 7.06 64.6 57.80
1973 186,816 7,995 2,027 5,968 42.7 10.8 31.9 7.09 60.7 58.59
1974 192,155 8,234 1,991 6,243 42.8 10.3 32.4 7.13 57.0 59.36
1975 197,853 8,395 2,161 6,234 42.4 10.9 31.5 7.07 56.2 58.08
1976 204,082 8,591 1,919 6,672 42.1 9.4 32.7 7.02 50.6 60.75
1977 210,932 8,824 1,937 6,887 41.8 9.2 32.7 6.95 48.3 60.86
1978 218,193 9,061 1,868 7,193 41.5 8.6 33.0 6.87 45.3 61.91
1979 225,786 9,303 1,864 7,439 41.2 8.3 33.0 6.78 43.3 62.39
1980 233,668 9,563 1,869 7,694 40.9 8.0 32.9 6.71 41.4 62.80
1981 241,827 9,817 1,881 7,936 40.6 7.8 32.8 6.61 39.8 63.16
1982 250,250 10,084 1,896 8,188 40.3 7.6 32.7 6.52 38.4 63.51
1983 258,945 10,369 1,924 8,445 40.1 7.4 32.6 6.42 37.1 63.76
1984 267,913 10,660 1,955 8,705 39.8 7.3 32.5 6.31 36.0 64.00
1985 277,158 10,969 1,981 8,988 39.6 7.2 32.4 6.22 35.0 64.29
1986 286,527 11,280 2,121 9,159 39.4 7.4 32.0 6.11 35.3 63.76
1987 295,836 11,536 2,039 9,497 39.0 6.9 32.1 5.99 33.2 64.76
1988 305,132 11,818 2,063 9,755 38.7 6.8 31.9 5.88 32.5 64.97
1989 314,560 12,091 2,093 9,998 38.4 6.6 31.7 5.78 31.7 65.19
1990 324,171 12,353 2,125 10,228 38.1 6.5 31.5 5.66 31.0 65.39
1991 333,952 12,615 2,160 10,455 37.7 6.5 31.3 5.55 30.3 65.58
1992 343,916 12,898 2,197 10,701 37.5 6.4 31.1 5.45 29.5 65.77
1993 354,086 13,248 2,237 11,011 37.4 6.3 31.1 5.38 28.8 65.96
1994 364,505 13,622 2,272 11,350 37.3 6.2 31.1 5.31 28.1 66.19
1995 375,189 13,988 2,315 11,673 37.2 6.2 31.1 5.24 27.5 66.38
1996 386,069 14,209 2,354 11,855 36.8 6.1 30.7 5.12 26.9 66.59
1997 397,050 14,391 2,402 11,989 36.2 6.0 30.2 4.99 26.5 66.74
1998 408,145 14,686 2,449 12,237 35.9 6.0 29.9 4.90 26.1 66.92
1999 419,229 14,967 2,502 12,465 35.6 6.0 29.7 4.82 25.7 67.07
2000 429,978 15,207 2,560 12,647 35.3 5.9 29.3 4.76 25.3 67.23
2001 440,395 15,457 2,615 12,842 35.0 5.9 29.1 4.69 25.1 67.36
2002 450,760 15,672 2,667 13,005 34.7 5.9 28.8 4.63 24.8 67.52
2003 461,216 15,914 2,722 13,192 34.4 5.9 28.5 4.57 24.6 67.64
2004 471,785 16,146 2,770 13,376 34.1 5.9 28.3 4.52 24.4 67.80
2005 482,486 16,400 2,821 13,579 33.9 5.8 28.1 4.48 24.2 67.94
2006 493,430 16,834 2,870 13,964 34.0 5.8 28.2 4.48 23.9 68.09
2007 504,619 17,123 2,968 14,155 33.8 5.9 28.0 4.44 23.8 67.99
2008 516,001 17,424 2,958 14,466 33.7 5.7 27.9 4.41 23.0 68.40
2009 527,833 17,763 3,024 14,739 33.6 5.7 27.8 4.39 22.9 68.47
2010 540,394 18,223 3,041 15,182 33.6 5.6 28.0 4.40 22.0 68.73
2011 553,721 18,661 3,076 15,585 33.6 5.5 28.1 4.41 21.4 68.91
2012 567,763 19,122 3,110 16,012 33.6 5.5 28.2 4.41 20.8 69.08
2013 582,365 19,592 3,162 16,430 33.6 5.4 28.2 4.42 20.3 69.19
2014 597,375 20,031 3,235 16,796 33.5 5.4 28.1 4.42 20.4 69.23
2015 612,660 20,203 3,227 16,976 32.9 5.3 27.7 4.36 19.1 69.58
2016 628,102 20,365 3,255 17,110 32.4 5.2 27.2 4.29 18.5 69.80
2017 643,634 20,458 3,293 17,165 31.7 5.1 26.6 4.22 18.0 69.99
2018 659,249 20,608 3,335 17,273 31.2 5.1 26.2 4.16 17.4 70.17
2019 674,993 20,791 3,372 17,419 30.8 5.0 25.8 4.10 16.9 70.38
2020 691,191 20,904 3,515 17,389 30.2 5.1 25.1 4.04 16.5 70.20
2021 707,851 21,098 3,561 17,537 29.8 5.0 24.8 3.98 15.8 70.35

Structure of the population
Population by Sex and Age Group (Census 22.XI.2009): [5]
Age Group Male Female Total %
Total 264 455 251 415 515 870 100
0–4 39 728 36 499 76 227 14.78
5–9 36 974 34 152 71 126 13.79
10–14 32 562 29 369 61 931 12.01
15–19 26 189 25 023 51 212 9.93
20–24 22 399 23 020 45 419 8.80
25–29 20 794 21 880 42 674 8.27
30–34 18 807 18 785 37 592 7.29
35–39 17 010 16 141 33 151 6.43
40–44 12 070 11 568 23 638 4.58
45–49 10 189 9 524 19 713 3.82
50–54 7 498 6 841 14 339 2.78
55–59 6 111 5 676 11 787 2.28
60–64 4 535 4 381 8 916 1.73
65-69 3 693 3 328 7 021 1.36
70-74 2 402 2 296 4 698 0.91
75-79 1 784 1 590 3 374 0.65
80-84 800 725 1 525 0.30
85-89 512 382 894 0.17
90-94 170 131 301 0.06
95+ 228 104 332 0.06
Age group Male Female Total Per cent
0–14 109 264 100 020 209 284 40.57
15–64 145 602 142 839 288 441 55.91
65+ 9 589 8 556 18 145 3.52
Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.VII.2021) (Projections based on adjusted 2009 census counts.): [5]
Age Group Male Female Total %
Total 360 961 346 523 707 484 100
0–4 42 814 40 013 82 826 11.71
5–9 42 227 39 814 82 041 11.60
10–14 41 682 39 525 81 206 11.48
15–19 39 816 37 593 77 409 10.94
20–24 34 052 31 980 66 032 9.33
25–29 28 304 26 540 54 843 7.75
30–34 25 926 24 335 50 261 7.10
35–39 23 401 22 340 45 740 6.47
40–44 19 810 19 951 39 760 5.62
45–49 17 196 17 749 34 945 4.94
50–54 13 460 13 628 27 088 3.83
55–59 10 280 10 328 20 608 2.91
60–64 7 637 7 601 15 238 2.15
65-69 5 588 5 656 11 243 1.59
70-74 3 905 4 262 8 167 1.15
75-79 2 596 2 800 5 396 0.76
80+ 2 269 2 411 4 679 0.66
Age group Male Female Total Per cent
0–14 126 723 119 352 246 075 34.78
15–64 219 880 212 042 431 922 61.05
65+ 14 358 15 129 29 487 4.17

The World Factbook demographic statistics

The following demographic statistics are from The World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.[6]

Demographics of Solomon Islands, Data of FAO, year 2005 ; Number of inhabitants in thousands.

Population
  • 685,097

Age structure
  • 0–14 years: 32.99% (male 116,397/female 109,604)
  • 15–24 years: 19.82% (male 69,914/female 65,874)
  • 25–54 years: 37.64% (male 131,201/female 126,681)
  • 55–64 years: 5.04% (male 17,844/female 16,704)
  • 65 years and over: 4.51% (male 14,461/female 16,417) (2020 est.)

Population growth rate
  • 1.84%

Birth rate
  • 23.6 births/1,000 population

Death rate
  • 3.8 deaths/1,000 population

Net migration rate
  • -1.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population

Urbanisation
  • Urban Population: 24.7% of total population
  • Rate of Urbanization: 3.91% annual rate of change

Sex ratio
  • At Birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
  • 0–14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
  • 15–24 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
  • 25–54 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
  • 55–64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
  • 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female
  • Total Population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Maternal mortality rate
  • 104 deaths/100,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth
  • Total population: 76.2 years
  • Male: 73.5 years
  • Female: 79 years (2020 est.)

Total fertility rate
  • 2.97 children born/woman (2020 est.)

Health expenditure
  • 5.2% of GDP

Physicians density
  • 0.2 physicians/1,000 population

Hospital bed density
  • 1.4 beds/1,000 population

Nationality
  • Solomon Islanders (noun)
  • Solomon Islander (adjective)

Ethnic groups

Religions

Languages

Literacy
  • Total population: 84.1%
  • Male: 88.9%
  • Female: 79.2%

References
  1. "Auswärtiges Amt".
  2. CIA World Factbook. Country profile: Solomon Islands URL Accessed 2007-05-19
  3. "Census - Solomon Islands National Statistics Office".
  4. "Population & Demography Data Explorer". Our World in Data. Retrieved 2022-07-22.
  5. "UNSD — Demographic and Social Statistics". unstats.un.org. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  6. "Australia-Oceania :: SOLOMON ISLANDS". CIA The World Factbook. 16 May 2022.
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