THE Honiara urban centre population is likely to reach more than 350,000 people by 2050, says the Minister for Lands, Housing & Survey Hon. Moses Garu.
He uttered this at the opening of the three days Solomon Islands National Urban Conference (SINUC) which started yesterday in Honiara.
“The statistic office has predicted continued and rapid population increase of Honiara and urban areas in Guadalcanal, so by the year 2050 we could see a combined greater Honiara population of more than 350,000 people,” he said.
This follows the rapid movement of people from homes to urban Honiara centre.
“We know from censes reports that the number of Solomon Islands living in urban areas is increasing all the time.
“We also know that the proportion of Solomon Islanders who live in Honiara and other urban centres is growing, while the proportion of us living in villages is actually decreasing,” he said.
He added that despite all the efforts towards rural development, this trend will inevitably continue.
“At the time of the latest censes there were about 70,000 people living in Honiara, and another 16,000 living in nearby urban parts of Guadalcanal province adding the statistic office has predicted continuous increase and rapid population increase of Honiara and urban areas in Guadalcanal, so that by 2015 we could see a combined greater Honiara population of more than 350,000 people,” he revealed.
By STEPHEN DIISANGO
