Jeremiah Manele
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Jeremiah Manele (born 1968) is a Solomon Island politician serving as
prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
following the
2024 Solomon Islands general election General elections were held in Solomon Islands on 17 April 2024 to determine the composition of the 12th Parliament. Initially planned for 2023, parliament voted in 2022 to delay the elections. Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare claimed the coun ...
. He is the first prime minister of the country to come from
Isabel Province Isabel Province (also spelled Ysabel) is one of the provinces of Solomon Islands. The province had a population of around 35,257 as of 2020, mostly concentrated on the main island, Santa Isabel Island. The capital of the province is Buala on Sant ...
.


Early life and education

Manele grew up in the village of Samasodu on the island of Santa Isabel. His high school education began at an Anglican school, Selwyn College, in
Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomons by area and the second- ...
, where he later taught, before completing his year 6 at King George VI School in
Honiara Honiara () is the capital and largest city of Solomon Islands, situated on the northwestern coast of Guadalcanal. , it had a population of 92,344 people. The city is served by Honiara International Airport and the seaport of Point Cruz, and lies ...
. He studied for a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Public Administration at the
University of Papua New Guinea The University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) is a university located in Port Moresby, capital of Papua New Guinea. It was established by ordinance of the Australian administration in 1965. This followed the Currie Commission which had enquired ...
, graduating in 1991. He returned to studies briefly in 1995–96, completing post graduate work at the
University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...
.


Civil service

In the start of his career, Manele represented the
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...
as a career diplomat. He was appointed to diplomatic postings as Counsellor and later Charge d'Affaires of the Solomon Islands Permanent Mission to the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
in New York. Afterwards, he held senior government positions, serving as the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Development Planning, Secretary to the Prime Minister and Cabinet, and Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade. He also served as Secretary to the Solomon Islands Government-RAMSI Intervention Taskforce.


Politics

Manele was first elected to parliament in 2014, representing the division of Hograno-Kia-Havulei. Following the election, the Solomon Islands People's Democratic Coalition, made up of the Democratic Alliance, the
Solomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement The Solomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement (SIPRA) is a political party in the Solomon Islands. It was founded in 2006 and is led by Gordon Darcy Lilo. The party was part of the National Coalition for Reform and Advancement, which governed ...
(SIPRA) and the People First Party, nominated Manele for prime minister. Manele was defeated in the 9 December parliamentary vote by Manasseh Sogavare, earning 19 votes to Sogavare's 31. Early in his Parliamentary career, he was the leader of the opposition in the 10th Parliament of Solomon Islands. He later joined government benches, serving as the Minister for Development Planning and Aid Coordination (2017–2018). He was re-elected in the 2019 general election and served as the minister for development planning and aid coordination in the 11th Parliament. Subsequently, Manele was made Minister of Foreign Affairs on 25 April 2019, travelling widely in the role. Later that year, he travelled to Beijing to formalise relations between the Solomon Islands and the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. In this role, Manele signed a security pact with China on 30 March 2022, though at the time, the details of the pact were not publicly known.


Prime minister

In the
2024 Solomon Islands general election General elections were held in Solomon Islands on 17 April 2024 to determine the composition of the 12th Parliament. Initially planned for 2023, parliament voted in 2022 to delay the elections. Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare claimed the coun ...
, Manele retained his seat under the banner of the
Ownership, Unity and Responsibility Party The Ownership, Unity and Responsibility Party (or OUR Party) is a political party in the Solomon Islands. It is headed by Jeremiah Manele and has competed in the 2010 and 2024 elections. History 2010 establishment The party was established ...
, though he had previously been affiliated with the Democratic Alliance Party. The party was unable to form an outright majority, and could not form a working coalition under its existing leader,
Manasseh Sogavare Manasseh Damukana Sogavare (born 17 January 1955) is a Solomon Islander politician serving as Minister of Finance since 2024. He served as the prime minister of Solomon Islands for a total of nine years from 2000–2001, 2006–2007, 2014–2017 ...
. Following the election, OUR Party renewed alliances with the Kadere and People First parties, forming the Coalition for National Unity and Transformation. Manele became OUR Party leader on 29 April, after Sogavare stepped down from role and declined to seek another term as prime minister. In a secret parliamentary ballot for prime minister on 2 May, Manele won 31 votes, defeating
Matthew Wale Matthew Cooper Wale (born 13 June 1968) is a Solomon Islands politician currently serving as the Leader of the Opposition. He is a member of the National Parliament of the Solomon Islands, and has represented the Aoke/Langalanga constituency on ...
. That day, he was invited to form a government by Governor-General
David Vunagi Sir David Okete Vuvuiri Vunagi, (5 September 1950 – 7 March 2025) was a Solomon Islands Anglican bishop who served as governor-general of Solomon Islands from 2019 to 2024. He was the archbishop of Melanesia and bishop of the Diocese of Ce ...
, and was sworn in as the prime minister. He is described as China-friendly as he has pledged to continue the
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...
' international policy that drew it closer to China. At the time of becoming Prime Minister, Western analysts, such as Meg Keen at the
Lowy Institute The Lowy Institute is an independent think tank founded in April 2003 by Frank Lowy to conduct original, policy-relevant research regarding international political, strategic and economic issues from an Australian perspective. It is based in ...
, assessed that Manele would be a "less fiery and combative leader for the West to manage but he will continue to pursue close relations with China". Manele's cabinet was sworn in on three different ceremonies, with the first 11 assuming office on 4 May. Manele appointed
Bradley Tovosia Bradley Tovosia (born 10 April 1967 in Sukiki Village, GuadalcanalBiography
on the website of the Parli ...
deputy prime minister while Sogavare became finance minister.


No confidence motions

In December 2024, Central Honiara MP and former Prime Minister
Gordon Darcy Lilo Gordon Darcy Lilo (born 28 August 1965) is a Solomon Islander politician who served as the prime minister of Solomon Islands from 16 November 2011 to 9 December 2014. He was a member of the National Parliament of the Solomon Islands, representin ...
introduced a
motion of no confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...
. Lilo later withdrew the motion due to a lack of support. On 28 April 2025, Lilo introduced a second no confidence motion. The motion follows political instability, including the resignation announcement of Deputy Prime Minister
Bradley Tovosia Bradley Tovosia (born 10 April 1967 in Sukiki Village, GuadalcanalBiography
on the website of the Parli ...
and reports of cabinet ministers defecting to the opposition. The motion is expected to be moved in
Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
around 6 May.


Personal life

Together with his wife Joycelyn, Manele has four daughters and two sons.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Manele, Jerry 1968 births Living people People from Isabel Province Prime ministers of the Solomon Islands Ministers of foreign affairs of the Solomon Islands Members of the National Parliament of the Solomon Islands Ownership, Unity and Responsibility Party politicians University of Papua New Guinea alumni 20th-century Solomon Islands people 21st-century Solomon Islands people Date of birth missing (living people)