Geographical Locations - Solomon Islands

• (Statistical) Number of Inhabitants per Doctor: 3,584
• Commonwealth of Nations : Solomon Islands country profile
• Tobacco or Health: country profile (provided by CDC / OSH)
• Secretariat of the Pacific Community, Women's Organizations in Soloman Islands

Organisations and Networks

UN and Multinational

• WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific (WPRO) in Manila (Philippines)
  - WHO - Environmental Burden of Disease: Country Profile – Solomon Islands
• UNDP - Solomon Islands Program Information

Government

• Ministry of Commerce, Employment and Tourism - provides information on further ministries
• People First Network - "a collaboration between UNDP/UNOPS and the Solomon Islands Ministry of Provincial Government and Rural Development and aims to bring increased community participation in development"
• AusAID country program: Solomon Islands
  - Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development - Solomon Islands

Non-Government

• Greenpeace: Sustaining forests and communities in Melanesia
• Peace Corps in Solomon Islands
• Save the Children - Solomon Islands

Academic Institutions

National Policy and Related Documents

• Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI)
• Australian and Strategic Policy Institute - Policy Report: "Our Failing Neighbour: Australia and the Future of the Solomon Islands"

Reports, Guidelines, and Projects

• 2010–2011 – Solomon Islands
  "The Government’s Medium-Term Development Strategy for 2008–2010 has identified a number of health-related outcomes. These include rehabilitating damaged economic infrastructure as well as building new infrastructure to stimulate economic growth especially in rural areas and to work towards food security for the nation and ensure a healthy, literate and contented population. Expected health-related outcomes in the 2008–2012 United Nations Development Assistance Framework include strengthened equitable social and protection services through support to the development of evidence-based policies and enabling environments; and improved capacity to deliver affordable, quality, basic social services with strengthened safety nets and an emphasis on equality, inclusiveness and access. These areas of collaboration have been reflected in the WHO country programme budgets over the last two bienniums." [WHO, c2009]
• Communicable disease surveillance in Solomon Islands
  "Solomon Islands is classified as a low-resource developing country. These constraints impact on the technical and organisational ability of the Ministry of Health to deliver services. Integrating and establishing strong relationships between the primary health and tertiary sector is essential when resources are limited, services rationalised and delivery duplication must be minimised. It is within this context that sentinel site surveillance for important syndromes and diseases was established." [Inform’ACTION, no.31, December 2009 (Secretariat of the Pacific Community)]
• Culturally Appropriate Health Care in Kwaio, Solomon Islands: An Action Research Approach
  The Kwaio people of central Malaita, Solomon Islands who retain the culture and religion of their ancestors, face a stark choice when seeking treatment at Atoifi Adventist Hospital—relinquish fundamental precepts of Kwaio culture and religion by entering the hospital, or remain true to Kwaio beliefs and stay away. Many choose the latter. The result is considerable untreated acute and chronic illness and preventable death. For people who have converted to Christianity Atoifi Adventist Hospital poses fewer cultural barriers and is one of the most respected and best equipped hospitals in Solomon Islands. However, for those who have chosen not to become Christian, the ongoing exclusion they face has resulted in antagonism and mistrust between their community and Atoifi. This thesis describes and analyses the colonial-Christian discourse in which the hospital was established and action taken to achieve a long held desire of many Kwaio people—a facility at Atoifi where health services are attainable without the rejection and desecration of Kwaio culture and religion. Using a Participatory Action Research methodology that challenges the dominant colonial-Christian paradigm, this study seeks to understand the nature of Participatory Action Research through its pursuit of culturally appropriate health services at Atoifi. [extract from author abstract] [Ph.D thesis, School of Public Health, Griffith University, Australia, December 2006]
• Prevalence and Associated Factors of Betel Quid Use in the Solomon Islands: A Hyperendemic Area for Oral and Pharyngeal Cancer
  Chewing betel quid is a popular habit in tropical areas. It is also a known fact that oral cancer is one of the most common cancers in the Solomon Islands, where betel quid chewing is prevalent. This study explores the prevalence of betel quid chewing in the Solomon Islands and related sociodemographic factors. A community-based survey was designed for the entire Solomon Islands people. Information on sociodemographic characteristics, habits of betel quid chewing, smoking, and drinking was collected by trained interviewers with a standard questionnaire. The prevalence of betel quid chewers, smokers, and drinkers was 76.8%, 53.0%, and 36.8%, respectively. Betel quid use was closely associated with smoking (aOR = 3.95; 95% CI: 1.87–8.33). Seventh-Day Adventist subjects were less likely to chew betel quid (aOR = 0.08; 95% CI: 0.04–0.18). Efforts to reduce habitual betel quid consumption and smoking might be of benefit in reduction of oral cancer incidence. [author abstract] [Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg., 77(3), 2007, pp. 586–590]
• Primary Health Care Review in the Solomon Islands
  "A lesson learnt at the introduction of the PHC concept was the importance of community involvement in the planning and decisions making process that affects their health and village. At the beginning most communities including health staff view PHC as foreign concept that did not fit well into the local culture. Family planning did not make an easy entry in to the society of Solomon Island. Innovative approaches have to be 'invented' so that the targets of the various PHC components could be seen as 'beneficial' to the ordinary villager to warrant acceptance and participation. These ways and means are important to determine upfront and continue to emphasize throughout for the success of the PHC concept." [World Health Organization, 2001]
• Solomon Islands: Initial National Communications under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
  "Under Articles 4 and 12 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) all parties to the Convention are obliged to prepare and submit national communications to the UNFCCC Secretariat. The government and people of the Solomon Islands are pleased to be able to submit this initial National Communication of the commitments undertaken to address the cause and effects of Climate Change. As a small-island developing nation, the Solomon Islands are extremely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The protection of the people and their property is the most important role of any national government, and the potential threat posed by climate change and accelerated sea-level rise to those living in small island states is well documented. Being a global issue it is also well known that only concerted international effort will reduce the threat posed by climate change. For this reason the government of the Solomon Islands considers the UNFCCC to be a particularly important international agreement. This document contains an overview of the environmental, social, geographical and economic circumstances of the Solomon Islands; presents a comprehensive national greenhouse gas inventory; addresses the issues of mitigation and vulnerability; and adaptation; and concludes with a summary of public awareness, education and capacity building within the people of the Solomon Islands. It is an important reference for all those who are charged with the responsibility of addressing the climate change issue." [Solomon Islands Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Aviation, n.d.]
• Solomon Islands: Pacific Regional Environment Programme
  Identifies such issues as water resources, water supply and sanitation in the Solomon Islands. "Water is generally accepted as the most important natural resources in the country. It is vital for drinking, sanitation, agriculture, industries and other countless purposes. However, it is often a problem thing. In Solomon Islands leakage from water supply system is one of the major problem, which is estimated to be about 70 to 80 %. Water ownership and management is also a source of conflict in the country among social group, among clans and tribes and among landowners. Given the situation, the government attempts to protect and manage this important resource, by trying to come up with an appropriate legislation that will provide a common understanding among various stakeholders on the issues of water resources." [Proceedings of the Pacific Regional Consultation on Water in Small Island Countries – Country Briefing Papers (2003)]
• Solomon Islands: "Plus 5" Review of the 2002 Special Session on Children and World Fit for Children Plan of Action – Country Report
  "Relevant and up-to-date development indicators are generally scarce in the Solomon Islands, as the Annex in this report demonstrates. However, there are also recorded some significant achievements, as this report notes. Overall, the country is striving to implement many of the MDG and WFFC goals and objectives with various levels of commitment and efforts." [UNICEF, c2007]
• Solomon Islands Country Profile
  "SPC country profiles document the nature and extent of the organisation’s services to individual members. This country profile presents basic country facts and a synopsis of Solomon Island’s development background and a narrative summary of the Secretariat’s assistance during the period 2006–2008. Annexes include specific country activities and human resource development activities in 2008, and a financial summary of assistance during the period 2006 to 2008." [Secretariat of the Pacific Community, October 2008]
• Threats and opportunities in Solomon Islands: Sinking or swimming in uncharted waters
  "This paper assesses the threats and an opportunity created by the conflict in Solomon Islands which has caused political and economic meltdown.1 The conflict in Solomon Islands is commonly referred to as a ‘crisis’, a word that in Chinese can mean both ‘danger’ and ‘opportunity’. Following the Townsville Peace Agreement in October 2000, there are serious dangers of further disintegration but also opportunities for positive transformations. Whether the Solomons sinks or swims will depend on skilful navigation away from the waves of violent ethnic conflict and towards political, social and economic recovery." [Development Bulletin, no. 53, pp. 84-88, 2000]

Educational Resources

• Bougainville updates - Bougainville Freedom Movement
• CDC - Travel Information: Australia and the South Pacific
• CIA - World Factbook: Solomon Islands
• U.S. State Department, Human Rights Report 1998: Solomon Islands
• Ethnic tension on Guadalcanal - an activist web-site providing news from the Solomon Islands
• Solomon Island Homepage - information on tourism and business
• The Solomon Islands: Headed for Self-destruction? by Cherylee P. Sevilla - mirrored from the original site
• Vaka Taumako Project - "preserves and perpetuates authentic Polynesian seafaring by documenting ancient voyaging practices of the people of Taumako Island (in the Duff Islands of the Santa Cruz Group, S.E. Solomon Islands), and their traditional trading partners, and by educating a new generation to build and sail traditional voyaging canoes and related seafaring skills, values, and customs. Vaka Taumako translates Voyaging Canoes of Taumako"