Solomon Islands advances marine management and national data collection

The Solomon Islands is advancing its national capacity in both environmental management and social data collection.

In marine conservation, the government has completed a validation workshop to finalize the Marine Managed Area/Marine Protected Area (MMA/MPA) Management Effectiveness Assessment Guide. Developed with technical support from the Coral Triangle Initiative, the guide uses scorecards to measure management progress across four levels: Initiated, Established, Effectively Managed, and Sustainable & Self-Reliant. The initiative involves several organizations, including the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources, the Ministry of Environment, WorldFish, and The Nature Conservancy.

Simultaneously, the Solomon Islands National Statistics Office (SINSO), in partnership with UNICEF, has launched a training program to prepare for the country’s first Multi-Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) in 2026. This globally recognized survey tool will provide comparable data on the well-being of women and children. The training aims to establish a baseline for large-scale data collection, ensure quality assurance in field protocols, and strengthen national expertise in data processing and analysis.