by Parliament; deputy prime minister appointed by the
governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the
members of Parliament

Legislative branch: unicameral National Parliament (50 seats; members
elected from single member constituencies by popular vote to serve
four-year terms)
elections: last held 6 August 1997 (next to be held by August 2001)
election results: percent of vote by party-NA; seats by party-GNUR 21,
PAP 7, NAPSI 5, SILP 4, UP 4, independents 6, other 3

Judicial branch: Court of Appeal

Political parties and leaders: characterized by fluid coalitions;
Liberal Party, Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU; Solomon Islands National Unity,
Reconciliation, and Progressive Party (SINURP), Danny PHILIP (leader
of opposition); People's Alliance Party (PAP), leader NA; Group for
National Unity and Reconciliation (GNUR), leader NA; National Action
Party of Solomon Islands (NAPSI), leader NA; Solomon Islands Labor
Party (SILP), leader NA; United Party (UP), leader NA; Nationalist
Front for Progress (NFP), Andrew NORI; Labor Party (LP), Joses
TUHANUKU; Christian Fellowship, leader NA; National Party, leader NA

International organization participation: ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO,
G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat
(nonsignatory user), IOC, ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Stephen Rex HOROI (represents the country
as both the Permanent Representative to the UN and the ambassador to
the US)
chancery: Permanent Mission of the Solomon Islands to the UN, 820
Second Avenue, Suite 800, New York, NY 10017
telephone: [1] (212) 599-6193

Diplomatic representation from the US: 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

Flag description: 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

@Solomon Islands:Economy

Economy-overview: The bulk of the population depend on subsistence
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. In recent