tary manpower-reaching military age annually:
males: 15,546 (1998 est.)

Military expenditures-dollar figure: $NA

Military expenditures-percent of GDP: 2.1% (1997)

@Slovenia:Transnational Issues

Disputes-international: significant progress has been made with
Croatia toward resolving a maritime border dispute over direct access
to the sea in the Adriatic; Italy is negotiating with Slovenia over
property and minority rights issues dating from World War II

Illicit drugs: transit point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for
Western Europe and for precursor chemicals

______________________________________________________________________

SOLOMON ISLANDS

@Solomon Islands:Geography

Location: Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east
of Papua New Guinea

Geographic coordinates: 8 00 S, 159 00 E

Map references: Oceania

Area:
total: 28,450 sq km
land: 27,540 sq km
water: 910 sq km

Area-comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 5,313 km

Maritime claims: measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
continental shelf: 200 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather

Terrain: mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m

Natural resources: fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead,
zinc, nickel

Land use:
arable land: 1%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 1%
forests and woodland: 88%
other: 9% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: typhoons, but they are rarely destructive;
geologically active region with frequent earth tremors; volcanic
activity

Environment-current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; much of the
surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying

Environment-international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification,
Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer
Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

@Solomon Islands:People

Population: 441,039 (July 1998 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 45% (male 101,338; female 97,584)
15-64 years: 52% (male 116,045; female 112,840)
65 years and over: 3% (male 6,571; female 6,661) (July 1998 est.)

Population growth rate: 3.24% (1998 est.)

Birth rate: 36.62 births/1,00