The Complete Guide to Using AI in the Government Industry in Solomon Islands in 2025

As the Solomon Islands moves toward a more connected public sector in 2025, AI sits squarely between promise and policy gaps: a May 2025 review notes there is no dedicated AI legislation yet, even as the government advances digital and e‑government plans and pushes AI literacy and education reforms; national leaders have publicly urged caution and faster policy work while engaging in international dialogues like the 6th World Media Summit.

That mix - ambition without a full legal framework - means ministries need practical, job‑ready skills now, from prompt writing to safe tool use; the AI Essentials for Work bootcamp offers a 15‑week, workplace‑focused syllabus to build those capabilities.

For a concise legal snapshot see the Solomon Islands AI law review and local reporting on national concerns and leadership warnings.

“Today, even toddlers have smart phones in their hands.”

AI matters for the Solomon Islands government because it can turn persistent problems - manual backlogs, slow citizen response times and limited predictive capacity - into faster, more targeted public services, but doing so requires policy and people in step: as of May 2025 there's no dedicated AI law in the country, even while ministries push e‑government and AI literacy in schools (see the Solomon Islands AI law review), and leaders are already framing AI at international forums and bilateral talks (read the minister's remarks on youth and governance).

Practical gains are immediate and local - chatbots can speed citizen queries and lower call‑centre costs, and workforce skill‑gap analytics help plan training and predict vacancies - so short, job‑focused adoption can boost efficiency while reducing fiscal waste (explore citizen service chatbots and workforce analytics use cases).

That “why” is both pragmatic and urgent: without clearer data‑privacy rules and governance, the same tools that enable faster services could expose sensitive citizen data, so investment in skills, oversight and regulation must move alongside deployment.

Current policy momentum in Solomon Islands is centered on the National E‑commerce Strategy (NECS 2022–2027), a whole‑of‑government roadmap designed to unlock online markets, boost MSME growth and strengthen digital connectivity across the islands (National E‑commerce Strategy (NECS) 2022–2027 roadmap - Solomon Islands e‑commerce policy); launched jointly by the Ministries of Communication and Aviation and Commerce, the plan highlights pilots such as telecentres that provide internet access and computer labs - and

“could also be used as e‑commerce hubs” -

so a small producer in Temotu can reach customers in Honiara and beyond (Telecentres and NECS launch - telecentres enable market access in Solomon Islands).

Implementation has attracted support from partners including Australia, UNCTAD and UNCDF, and this e‑commerce foundation is already the practical platform for near‑term AI applications the public sector needs - think chatbots to speed citizen queries and workforce skill‑gap analytics to plan training - so ministries should link NECS delivery to targeted AI pilots that reduce backlogs while protecting data and inclusion (AI chatbots for government citizen services in Solomon Islands - use cases and benefits).

Legal and governance gaps in the Solomon Islands are stark and practical: there is, as of May 2025, no dedicated AI law or national AI strategy to anchor the country's growing digital plans, leaving data protection and privacy frameworks thin just as ministries push e‑government pilots and AI literacy work (see the Solomon Islands AI law review); regionally, Pacific research flags weak AI readiness and few active national AI strategies across island states.

The problem isn't only policy absence but operational fragility - global survey data shows many organisations rush AI into use without the safeguards to match: 75% report AI usage policies but only 59% have dedicated governance roles, 54% keep AI‑specific incident playbooks and fewer than half (48%) monitor systems for accuracy or drift, with small organisations especially vulnerable.

That combination - eagerness to deploy chatbots and automation while under‑resourced for oversight - creates real risk to citizen data and service reliability, so immediate steps like naming governance officers, publishing incident response playbooks and linking pilots to the National E‑commerce Strategy should be priorities to convert ambition into safe, accountable practice (read the 2025 AI Governance Survey for the full findings).

“This survey exposes a growing disconnect between AI policy and practice. Organizations that don't address it are playing with fire and they know it,” said David Talby, CEO, Pacific AI.

With no dedicated AI law in place and rolling e‑government pilots underway, the Solomon Islands faces real ethical, privacy and security trade‑offs: small, low‑cost tools can slip past slow procurement and governance -

Forrester warns that “shadow AI” (think $20/month microtransactions) creates a pathway to data breaches, accidental exposure and thorny data‑sovereignty questions - risks that matter in an island state where citizen records and telecentre pilots are increasingly digitised.

Beyond theft or leaks, AI can entrench bias in decision systems and erode trust if models make whitened or unexplained choices about benefits, policing, or social services, so clear guardrails and workforce training are essential (see practical detection and light‑touch review steps in Forrester's shadow AI guidance).

Ministries can reduce harm by mapping where AI is used, publishing approved tools and training staff on safe prompts and privacy controls, while piloting chatbots only behind vetted, auditable platforms that keep data onshore where possible - otherwise efficiency gains from chatbots for citizen services can become a costly privacy liability.

For a digest of the shadow‑AI risk picture see Forrester's analysis on shadow AI use in government and practical chatbot use cases for Solomon Islands public services.

Solomon Islands policymakers can draw clear, practical lessons from the EU and U.S. debates: the EU's risk‑based AI Act shows how to pair ambition with guardrails by banning the gravest uses (think predictive policing, real‑time biometric ID and even emotion inference in classrooms or workplaces) while imposing stepped obligations for high‑risk systems and transparency rules for chatbots and other limited‑risk tools - details that are worth reviewing in the EU AI Act regulatory framework overview (EU AI Act official overview).

The law also introduced an AI literacy duty (effective from early 2025) requiring providers and deployers to train staff on safe AI use, and it pairs enforcement with heavy penalties - up to tens of millions of euros - so governments know compliance is serious (see the implementation milestone summary at Alston Privacy: Alston Privacy: First milestone in the implementation of the EU AI Act).

For Solomon Islands, the takeaway is pragmatic: adopt a proportional, risk‑tiered rulebook rather than a one‑size‑fits‑all ban; mandate basic AI literacy across ministries; designate a national oversight role (or partner with regional bodies) to coordinate enforcement; and create light regulatory sandboxes and SME supports so public‑sector pilots - chatbots for citizen services or workforce skill‑gap tools - can improve efficiency without turning a small island's digital leap into a big privacy breach.

Agencies should move from ambition to action with a stepwise, risk‑aware playbook: begin by assembling an Integrated Product Team (IPT) to own each AI project and run an internal prototype or pilot so value is visible before buying (see the GSA AI Guide for Government: How to Start an AI Project); when procurement is required, apply acquisition best practices - do market research, pick the right solicitation form (SOO for uncertain, PWS for clear specs), require technical tests, include data‑rights and IP clauses, and write clauses that avoid vendor lock‑in and force portability and interoperability (detailed in the Defense Acquisition University webinar: Best Practices in Government Acquisition of AI).

Build test‑and‑evaluation into every stage (model, integrated system and operational T&E), name a project owner and sunset criteria, and keep a lightweight incident playbook so small teams know how to respond to failures.

Pair pilots with concrete use cases the public sector already needs - approved chatbots for citizen services to cut call‑centre wait times or workforce skill‑gap analytics to plan training - and publish a short list of approved tools plus mandatory staff training to reduce shadow AI risks (see the Nucamp AI Essentials for Work chatbot use-case guide and the Nucamp AI Essentials for Work workforce analytics use-case guide).

Where capacity or procurement complexity is a barrier, tap existing partner channels and donor procurement mechanisms to accelerate pilots while preserving government ownership and oversight (review public procurement notices and partner opportunities to align tenders and funding).

Building an AI‑ready education and workforce in the Solomon Islands means turning policy intent into classroom practice: Hon. Tozen Leokana has argued that AI can personalise learning and deliver real‑time feedback, but hard gaps remain - more than 80% of teachers report no access to digital resources, so teacher‑centred AI will fail without reliable devices, connectivity and sustained professional development (see ACER's analysis on teacher access and AI in education).

The 2019–23 ICT in Education Master Plan already provides a practical scaffold - iKonect for connectivity, iTeach for teacher standards and iResource for digital content - and those programs should be refocused on co‑design with teachers, short, job‑aligned AI literacy courses, and hands‑on pilots that keep teachers in the loop (review the Solomon Islands ICT in Education Master Plan).

When training, curriculum updates and modest tech investments move together - imagine adaptive tutors delivering tailored exercises aligned to teacher lesson plans - the islands can bridge the gap between aspiration and measurable workforce readiness.

“AI is not just a future concept; it's here, and it's reshaping the way we teach and learn,”

To convert ambition into a clear, deliverable roadmap, Solomon Islands should prioritise passing a comprehensive Data Protection Act and standing up a dedicated regulator while leaning on existing momentum and partners: UNCTAD is already supporting the Ministry of Communication and Aviation to draft national Data Protection and Privacy legislation (see the UNCTAD project page), and donors such as Australia can be tasked to fund implementation and capacity building; next steps include formally adopting the Data Protection Bill now under consideration, embedding the Telecommunications Act 2009 and Electronic Transactions Act 2010 provisions into a single, modern framework, and linking the new law to the National Cybersecurity Policy so incident response and data‑sovereignty questions are covered; require prompt breach notification (the draft framework contemplates notifying authorities and affected individuals within 72 hours) and set up an Office of the Privacy Commissioner to enforce standards and advise ministries (see the Solomon Islands privacy law overview); finally, follow regional guidance from the Pacific gap analysis to align rules with UNCITRAL/ international best practice, invest in legal and technical training, and create a proportional, risk‑based compliance timeline so pilots like chatbots and workforce analytics can scale without exposing citizen records to avoidable harm (read the Gap Analysis of Cyberlaws in Pacific SIDS for recommended priorities).

The next steps for Solomon Islands in 2025 are practical and actionable: accept the reality that there is no dedicated AI law today (see the Solomon Islands AI law review) and move fast on complementary measures - adopt a Data Protection Act, name a national oversight role, and embed breach‑notification and data‑sovereignty rules into procurement so pilots don't outpace safeguards; link AI pilots to the National E‑commerce Strategy so telecentres and connectivity investments support inclusive deployment; start with low‑risk, high‑impact pilots such as vetted chatbots to cut call‑centre wait times and workforce skill‑gap analytics to plan training and predict vacancies; mandate basic AI literacy across ministries and fund short, job‑focused training (practical upskilling is available in the AI Essentials for Work syllabus) so staff can prompt, audit and oversee tools safely; and use regional benchmarks like the Government AI Readiness Index to track progress - by pairing legal fixes, focused pilots and real training, Solomon Islands can turn current ambition into accountable, citizen‑first AI outcomes.