The document provides an assessment of the e-commerce readiness and ICT infrastructure in the Solomon Islands, highlighting the country's low e-commerce utilization despite its potential for growth. It includes recommendations for improving digital payment systems, legal frameworks, and infrastructure to enhance e-commerce adoption. The Solomon Islands government aims to transition to digital payments by 2020, indicating a movement towards a more robust digital economy.

1. PHONE & DATA SUBSCRIPTIONS (PER 100 INHABITANTS)
KEY ICT INDICATORS FOR SOLOMON ISLANDS
Population:
0.6 million (2016)
GDP:
$1134 million (2016, USD)
Growth:
(GDP, 2016)
Internet
users
SOLOMON ISLANDS
WORLD AVERAGE
15.9%5.8%
SOLOMON ISLANDS LDCS
30.8%
% FIRMS IDENTIFYING ACCESS TO FINANCE AS A MAJOR
CONSTRAINT 2013–17
≈100,000
+4%
IN 2015, SOLOMON ISLANDERS CONDUCTED
AT LEAST SEVEN TIMES MORE MOBILE
BANKING TRANSACTIONS THAN THEIR PACIFIC
ISLANDS AND SMALL STATES COUNTERPARTS
INTERNATIONAL INTERNET BANDWIDTH (mbps)
0
400
800
275 mbps
452 mbps
717 mbps
900 mbps
UTILIZATION OF ONLINE PLATFORMS BY BUSINESS (N: 28)
CHOICE OF SHIPPING VENDOR (N: 27)
PAYMENT SYSTEM OFFERED BY BUSINESSES TO CUSTOMERS (N: 27)
7x
80%
THE SOLOMON
ISLANDS
GOVERNMENT
HAS COMMITTED
TO CONVERT
OF ITS PAYMENTS TO
DIGITAL CHANNELS
BY 2020 (JOINING
THE BETTER THAN
CASH ALLIANCE)
eTrade Readiness Assessment
SOURCE: Telecommunications Commission Solomon Islands (TCSI) http://www.tcsi.org.sb/market-competition/market-statistics.html
E-commerce legislation
Electronic transactions:
Consumer protection:
Privacy & data protection:
Cybercrime:
*Legislation requires updating 157/176
Rank, ITU' information
& communication
technology development
index:½*
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
NOE-COMMERCE
PLATFORM
UTILIZEDCURRENTLY
WEBSITETO
PURELYADVERTISE/
PROMOTEOUR
PRODUCTS&
SERVICES
WEBSITEFOR
ORDERING/BOOKING
+PAYMENTOPTIONS
FORDOMESTICSALES
WEBSITEFOR
ORDERING/BOOKING
+PAYMENTOPTIONS
FORDOMESTICAND
CROSS-BORDER
SALES
THIRD-PARTYWEBSITE
FORORDERING/
BOOKING(SUCHAS
EXPEDIA,
BOOKING.COM)+
PAYMENTINPERSON
OTHER
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
2010 2014 2015 2016 2017
2014 2015 2016 2017
FIXED-TELEPHONEMOBILE CELLULAR
FIXED BROADBAND (ADSL)ACTIVE MOBILE-BROADBAND
POST OFFICE PRIVATE SHIPPING
COMPANY SUCH AS
DHL
SELF-OPERATED
DELIVERY SERVICE
THIRD-PARTY
DELIVERY SERVICE
OTHER
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
CASH ON DELIVERY
ONLINE (MASTERCARD, VISA)
MOBILE MONEY OPTIONS
PAYPAL
unctad.org | enhancedif.org

2. The current low use of e-commerce in Solomon
Islands belies significant potential for the sector to
grow swiftly and make economic and socioeconomic
contributions to the country.
- UNCTAD Solomon Islands Rapid eTrade Readiness Assessment
Ensure future strategies include
market-side and e-commerce
components.
Strengthen public-private dialogue on
ICT development with focus on
e-commerce and digital economy
E-COMMERCE READINESS
ASSESSMENT AND STRATEGY
FORMULATION
ICT INFRASTRUCTURE
AND SERVICES
TRADE LOGISTICS AND
TRADE FACILITATION
PAYMENT SOLUTIONS
LEGAL AND REGULATORY
FRAMEWORK
E-COMMERCE SKILLS
DEVELOPMENT
Develop institutional collaboration mechanism to
communicate skills requirements between private
and public sectors and skills-providers.
Advocate for demand-side adoption of
'what3words' addressing system and accelerate
adoption of national post code system.
Improve financial literacy, especially outside capital city, to
encourage consumer appreciation of benefits of cash-less
financial transactions.
Adopt legislation on e-transactions, data protection
and cybercrime law; adapt the Consumer Protection
Act to reflect e-transactions.
Facilitate paperless
trade and institutional
cooperation.
Implement submarine cable project, deploy
fair-play model, and provide diverse services via
high-speed broadband.
ACCESS TO FINANCING
Strengthen linkages between commercial lenders and sector
associations, focusing on e-commerce early adopters (e.g.
tourism, agro-industry).
RECOMMENDATIONS
This document is based on the
UNCTAD Solomon Islands Rapid
eTrade Readiness Assessment
unctad.org/en/PublicationsLibrary/dtlstict2018d6_en.pdf enhancedif.org/en/country-profile/solomon-islands