| Honiara | |
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| Main Street, Honiara | |
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Honiara
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| Coordinates: | |
| Country | Solomon Islands |
| Province | Honiara Town |
| Island | Guadalcanal |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Israel Maeoli |
| Population (2009) | |
| • Total | 78,190 |
| Time zone | UTC (UTC+11) |
Honiara, population 49,107 (1999 census), 78,190 (2009 estimate), is the capital of the Solomon Islands and of Guadalcanal Province, although it is a separately administered town. The name Honiara derives from naho ni ara which roughly translates as "facing the south-east wind" in one of the Guadalcanal languages.
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Honiara is located on the northern coast of the island of Guadalcanal and includes a sea port at Point Cruz. The town revolves around the Kukum Highway, which connects the Honiara International Airport (former known as Henderson Field) in the east of Honiara with the settlement of White River in the west, and passes the National Referral Hospital and the Chinatown (burnt down in 2006 election riot).
The climate is tropical, the average daytime temperature is about 28 degrees Celsius, the water temperatures between 26 and 29 degrees. Damper periods are predominantly between November and April. The average amount of precipitation per year is about 2,000 mm and thus somewhat lower than the average on the entire Solomon Islands (3,000 mm).
| Climate data for Honiara | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 31 (87) |
31 (87) |
30 (86) |
31 (87) |
31 (87) |
31 (87) |
30 (86) |
31 (87) |
31 (87) |
31 (87) |
31 (87) |
31 (87) |
30.5 (86.8) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 23 (73) |
23 (73) |
23 (73) |
23 (73) |
23 (73) |
22 (72) |
22 (72) |
22 (72) |
22 (72) |
23 (73) |
23 (73) |
23 (73) |
22.6 (72.7) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 274 (10.8) |
282 (11.1) |
358 (14.1) |
231 (9.1) |
130 (5.1) |
99 (3.9) |
99 (3.9) |
91 (3.6) |
94 (3.7) |
150 (5.9) |
137 (5.4) |
226 (8.9) |
2,172 (85.5) |
| Source: Weatherbase [1] | |||||||||||||
Honiara is served by the Honiara International Airport, located about 10 kilometers to the east of the city. The industry is in form of several beverage factories and a cookie factory. Major exports are timber, coconuts, copra and fish. The most important trade partners are Malaysia, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.
Honiara is the Solomon Islands' springboard for tourism activities. The country's tourist office, the Solomon Islands Visitors Bureau,[2] is located on Honiara's main thoroughfare, Mendana Avenue. Situated between the shady Yacht Club and the popular Solomon Kitano Mendana Hotel, its officers provide tourist information and can radio ahead to announce visitors' arrivals to guest houses in the remoter areas. Honiara has a harbour from which ferries depart to the various provinces. The gardens of the National Art Gallery are popular for afternoon strolls, while the reconstructed Government House and the National Museum exist. A botanical garden admits lots of orchids and shrubs. The spectacular Tenaru falls can be found a one hour's drive and a three-hour hike from Henderson International Airport.
Honiara is predominantly Christian and is served by the headquarters of the Church of the Province of Melanesia (Anglican), the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Honiara, the South Seas Evangelical Church, the United Church, the Seventh-day Adventist Church and other Christian churches. There are many congregations of American and Australian style charismatic and evangelical movements. There are also members of the Bahá'í Faith, Buddhist, Jehovah's Witness, Mormon and Muslim such as the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.[3]
What is now Honiara was close to the site of the Guadalcanal Campaign in World War II. It was built to replace the former capital of Tulagi at the end of that war. Honiara officially became the capital of the Solomon Islands in 1952. After violent rebellions in the year 2000, the protection of the population was promised by Australian units, since the Solomon Islands have no military. In 2006, riots broke out following the election of Snyder Rini as Prime Minister, destroying part of Chinatown and displacing more than 1000 Chinese residents.[4] Three National Parliament members, Charles Dausabea, Nelson Ne'e, and Patrick Vahoe,[5] were arrested during or as a result of the riots.
Honiara is divided into three parliamentary constituencies, electing three of the fifty Members of the National Parliament. These constituencies (East Honiara, Central Honiara and West Honiara) are three of only six constituencies in the country to have an electorate of over 10,000. East Honiara, with an electorate of 30,049 in 2006, is the only constituency in the country to consist in more than 20,000 voters. Following the 2006 general election, the city's representatives are[6][7][8]
| Constituency | Electorate | MP (party) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Honiara | 30,049 | Douglas Ete (Reformed Democratic Party) | National Election 4 August 2010 |
| Central Honiara | 19,539 | Moffat Fugui (Independent) | National Election 4 August 2010 |
| West Honiara | 13,128 | Namson Tran (Independent) | National Election 4 August 2010 |
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