By Georgina Kekea
Solomon Islands was COVID-19 free until December 2021. Despite recording positive cases in isolation centres, the spread to the community was avoided. It was not until January 2022 that Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare announced the country’s first case of community transmission.
Despite the government’s efforts to keep the virus from spreading in communities, the illegal movement of people between Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands finally exposed these communities to COVID-19, as had long been feared. With the dilapidated state of its clinics and hospitals, 2022 will see the health system crack if the virus spreads widely. Solomon Islands is bracing for the worst.
Only 20% of the country’s population are fully vaccinated despite the government’s efforts. With the news of community transmission, people are now queuing at the vaccination tents to get their first jab.
This situation will greatly affect the much-anticipated work associated with the 2023 Pacific Games. Solomon Islands has less than two years to prepare for its hosting duties. While work on the facilities is progressing well, the administrative preparation is also important at this point in time.
The government will need at least 200 more administrative workers to fill in the gap. The question now is whether it will be able to afford this, given there is community transmission and the health system will need to respond. Which will be the government’s priority: the health sector or the 2023 Pacific Games?
The government really needs to be strategic in how they plan out their work in order to achieve its goal for the 2023 Games and simultaneously address the issue of COVID-19 with the very limited resources they have. While lockdowns are important to restrict the movement of people and limit the spread of the virus, there has to be a way to ensure economic activities also thrive, even during lockdowns.
In an economic sense, the outlook for Solomon Islands is very grim.
In November 2021, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) report said the main risk for Solomon Islands is the community transmission of COVID-19 given the low vaccination rate and the weaknesses in health infrastructure.
“Delays to border reopening pose a risk to the economic recovery. Vulnerabilities are exacerbated by a weaker fiscal position, owing largely to the impact of the pandemic on revenues and expenditures. Solomon Islands remain vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and natural disasters,” the IMF stated.
In addition to COVID-19 impacts, the riot and protests of November 2021 have also weakened the Solomon Islands economy, prompting the Central Bank of Solomon Islands (CBSI) to reverse its positive forecast of 0.4% growth. It says the economy will instead contract by 0.6% in 2021.
“The extent of the adverse impact on the economy is extensive and estimated to have reached SI$534 million, up from the SI$227 million initially estimated,” the Bank stated.
It said 63 buildings had been burnt or looted, and that some 1000 people would lose their jobs as a result. “As a result, the government is expected to lose around 31% of its monthly revenue or a net loss of around SI$80 million over the next three months,” it stated.
While the response to COVID-19 remains a priority, other important areas of work for 2022 include the upgrading of the international and domestic airports in Honiara, road upgrading in Honiara, and other infrastructure projects for the provinces.
The spread of COVID-19 in the community has greatly reshaped the outlook for Solomon Islands for 2022. Businesses who have prepared for this will be able to manoeuvre around this health crisis. Unlike Fiji and other Pacific Island countries with ongoing community transmission, Solomon Islands has had two years to prepare for this. The country’s first State of Emergency declaration was in March 2020 and the country has been in a State of Emergency ever since.
2022 will be the year for Solomon Islanders to implement their response plans to tackle COVID-19 while ensuring they are able to put food on the table for their families and that their children have good education in a stringent environment. While other Pacific Island countries with COVID-19 cases are moving on, now is the time to see how the many Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) imposed by the Solomon Islands government will see this country through this pandemic.
While the first half of 2022 will be challenging indeed, hopefully towards the second half of this year, the country will be able to find its footing and adjust properly to this pandemic. The government really needs to be proactive and more strategic in how they implement their work and where they will prioritise their spending.
