SLB · snapshot 2026-08-09
Solomon Islands
MediumOverall risk score
43.2
Percentile of scored universe
45th
Data coverage
81%
vs Australia (16.1)
+27.1
Category breakdown
Political Stability & Governance
Medium6 indicators · 100% coverage
Economic Resilience
Medium7 indicators · 100% coverage
Financial & Currency Risk
Medium4 indicators · 68% coverage
Business Environment
Insufficient dataInsufficient data
Security & Crime
Low3 indicators · 80% coverage
Climate & Social Compliance
Very High2 indicators · 65% coverage
Technology & Digital
Very High4 indicators · 100% coverage
Cultural Distance
Insufficient dataInsufficient data · not in overall score
Key risks and considerations
Solomon Islands rates Medium for market entry — an overall risk score of 43.2, less risky than 55% of rated economies and 27 points riskier than Australia.
The main risk drivers are no double-tax agreement with Australia, high physical climate vulnerability, a low income level with limited crisis-absorption capacity, low internet adoption (29.0% of the population) and external imbalance (current account -10.3% of GDP, 3-yr average).
Relative strengths: inflation, FX reserves, DFAT smartraveller advisory level all rate Low, the least-risky rating band.
Possible mitigations
- Getting money out. Confirm profit-repatriation channels before committing capital: seek central-bank pre-approvals where required, consider an export-first model over an in-country entity, and structure via clear remittance jurisdictions.
- Withholding tax. No double-tax agreement with Australia: model withholding tax on dividends, interest, and royalties into the business case — it can decide the entity-vs-export question.
- Disaster resilience. High natural-hazard exposure: build business-continuity plans, check insurance availability (including parametric covers), and avoid single-point supply dependencies.
- Connectivity constraints. Thin digital infrastructure: plan for offline-capable operations, local hosting or caching, and paper-tolerant processes with government counterparts.
Generated automatically from this snapshot’s indicator data — a starting point for analysis, not advice.
Indicators
| Indicator | Value | Risk score | Rating | Australia | Data source year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Political Stability & Governance | ||||||
| Voice & accountability (WGI) | 62.6 | 39.3 | Medium | |||
| Government effectiveness (WGI) | 34.5 | 81.7 | Very High | |||
| Regulatory quality (WGI) | 40.9 | 83.2 | Very High | |||
| Rule of law (WGI) | 59.6 | 44.2 | Medium | |||
| Control of corruption (WGI) | 45.0 | 46.6 | Medium | |||
| Political stability & absence of violence/terrorism (WGI PV) | 78.7 | 26.8 | Medium | |||
| Economic Resilience | ||||||
| GDP growth (3-yr average, %) | 3.2% (3-yr avg) | 45.0 | Medium | |||
| Growth volatility (10-yr std dev, pp) | ±2.8 pp | 37.3 | Medium | |||
| Government net debt (% of GDP) | 28.7 | 15.0 | Low | |||
| Inflation (CPI %, vs income-group target) | 3.4 | 10.0 | Low | |||
| Current account (3-yr average, % of GDP) | -10.3% (3-yr avg) | 85.0 | Very High | |||
| FX reserves (months of import cover) | 8.9 months | 10.0 | Low | |||
| GDP per capita (PPP, current intl $) | $2,788 | 94.2 | Very High | |||
| Financial & Currency Risk | ||||||
| Capital-account openness (Chinn-Ito KAOPEN) | 0.16 | 78.0 | Very High | |||
| Currency stability (regime-aware classification) | Pegged — credible (reserve-backed, low inflation gap) | 12.0 | Low | |||
| Sovereign credit risk (OECD country risk classification) | — | — | Insufficient data | |||
| FATF listing (grey / black list status) | Not listed | 0.0 | Low | |||
| Double-tax agreement with Australia | None in force | 100.0 | Very High | |||
| Business Environment | ||||||
| FDI regulatory restrictiveness (OECD FDIRRI) | — | — | Insufficient data | |||
| Logistics performance (World Bank LPI) | 2.8 | 53.6 | High | |||
| Business readiness (World Bank B-READY pillar average) | — | — | Insufficient data | |||
| Investment protection with Australia in force (BIT or FTA investment chapter) | In force | 0.0 | Low | |||
| Security & Crime | ||||||
| Armed-conflict intensity (battle deaths per 100k, 5-yr) | 0.0 | 29.7 | Medium | |||
| Intentional homicide rate (per 100k) | 3.7 | — | Insufficient data | |||
| Organised crime pervasiveness (GI-TOC criminality score) | 4.5 | 32.8 | Medium | |||
| DFAT Smartraveller advisory level | Level 1 — Exercise normal safety precautions | 10.0 | Low | |||
| Climate & Social Compliance | ||||||
| Physical climate vulnerability (ND-GAIN vulnerability) | 0.622 | 96.6 | Very High | |||
| Disaster risk (INFORM Risk Index) | 4.4 | 66.0 | High | |||
| Modern-slavery prevalence (per 1,000) | — | — | Insufficient data | |||
| Modern-slavery vulnerability score | — | — | Insufficient data | |||
| Technology & Digital | ||||||
| E-government development (UN EGDI) | 0.4 | 84.7 | Very High | |||
| Internet users (% of population) | 29.0 | 91.1 | Very High | |||
| Cybercrime origination (World Cybercrime Index) | 0.0 | 10.0 | Low | |||
| Secure internet servers (per million people) | 80.6 | 80.7 | Very High | |||
Per-indicator ratings are quartile bands of the 0–100 risk score. The Australia column shows the same indicator’s raw value for the Australian baseline in this snapshot.
Cultural distance
GLOBE 2004 societal practices · rated on distance from Australia · not in the overall score
Context — not scored
Unemployment
1.4%
Displayed, never scored: ambiguous for an entrant and unreliable where informal employment dominates. (2025, ILO modelled)
Trade agreement
Free trade agreement with Australia in force
Market access is decision-relevant but a benefit, not a risk — kept out of the rating.
Regional advisories
Higher levels apply in some areas (up to Level 2)
DFAT Smartraveller sub-national advice where it exceeds the overall level.
Compare with
A score means little on its own. These economies scored closest to Solomon Islands in this snapshot, which is the fastest way to see whether the rating is telling you something specific or something regional.