Solomon Islands newly-elected Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele has pledged to tackle the country’s collapsing economy as he took on the task of leading his nation of 700,000 people for the next four years.
In his victory speech today, Manele highlighted rebuilding the economy as a priority his new government will undertake in the coming months.
The last DCGA Government, which Manele was part of, left the economy in a “precarious state”, prompting the Central Bank Governor Dr Luke Forau to recently call for urgent reforms by the incoming government.
“The recent report by CBSI on the state of our economy is concerning and calls for a more focused and aggressive approach,” Manele said.
He assured the public of his administration’s commitment to engage with all relevant stakeholders in charting a course for economic recovery.
“It is not an easy task but we will be reaching out to all relevant stakeholders as we progress on our road to recovery,” the Hograno-Kia-Havulei MP added.
Launching the 2023 Central Bank Annual Report last week, Forau said the state of Solomons economy remains in a “Precarious” situation.
“We urgently need a major economic reform program if the economy were to prosper in the medium to long term,” Forau said.
“The reform program must be specific, targeted and measurable. The incoming government is in a better position to initiate this reform.
“We have a fast-growing population, with a population rate of growth higher than the average economic growth rate,” he added.
“This is dangerously not good and is a serious concern. We need to grow the economy faster than the growth of the population.
“The ultimate goal of any economic reform program must be to grow the economy.
“There is no way around this, we must grow the economy in order to support and meet the ever-growing needs of the population.”
Manele said he will establish a Cabinet sub-committee to spearhead the nation’s recovery efforts.
Meanwhile, he said his immediate task is to appoint his Cabinet ministers.
He said Cabinet would meet soon “to decide on the priority legislative and policy programs for 2024, which includes whether we need to revise the 2024 Budget.”
Manele was a former diplomat who previously served at various Solomon Islands diplomatic missions abroad.
In the last government, he was Foreign Affairs minister.
He received 31 votes in today’s election, beating his only rival Matthew Wale, who collected 18 votes. He was sworn-in by the Governor General Sir David Vunagi immediately following his election.
The MP for Temotu Vatud, Freda Tuki, could not make it to parliament. She’s reportedly stranded in her constituency after the election due to transport difficulties.