Steve William Abana (born 1969 in Fourau, MalaitaBiography
on the website of the Parliament of Solomon Islands) is a

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...

politician. He is a former

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for Fataleka and was the

Leader Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets vi ...

of Her Majesty's

Opposition Opposition may refer to: Arts and media * ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars * The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band * '' The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Com ...

from August 2010 to March 2011. Abana studied at the Fiji College of Agriculture (FCA), where he obtained a Diploma in Tropical Agriculture. Before his political career, he was a teacher at the Honiara High School. He then entered business, exporting cocoa during the height of the ethnic tension. After being successful, he started Anolpha Enterprises and became the managing director. His career in national politics began when he was elected MP for Fataleka, a

constituency An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger State (polity), state (a country, administrative region, ...

in his native

Malaita Province Malaita Province is the most populous and one of the largest of the nine provinces of Solomon Islands. It is named after its largest island, Malaita (also known as "Big Malaita" or "Maramapaina"). Other islands include South Malaita Island (a ...

, in the April 2006 general election. In October, he benefited from a

reshuffle A cabinet reshuffle or shuffle occurs when a head of government rotates or changes the composition of ministers in their cabinet, or when the Head of State changes the head of government and a number of ministers. They are more common in parli ...

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier 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. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Manasseh Sogavare Manasseh Damukana Sogavare (born 17 January 1955) is the sixth and current Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands, serving since 24 April 2019. He previously held the office in 2000–2001, 2006—2007 and 2014–2017; in all he has served over ni ...

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, and was appointed Minister for National Planning and Aid Coordination. In November 2007, Sogavare dismissed him from office, accusing him of seeking support to oust him from the premiership. The following month, the Sogavare government was toppled by a

motion of no confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...

, and Abana supported new Prime Minister

Derek Sikua David Derek Sikua (born 10 October 1959Sikua CV at Parliament website
) served as th ...

, who re-appointed him as Minister for National Planning and Aid Coordination. As leader of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, Abana was a key member of Sikua's Coalition for National Unity and Rural Advancement government. Abana led the Democratic Party into the August 2010 general election, campaigning on a promise of "more recognition to tribal landowners by registering all tribal lands in the name of tribes"; "the implementation of a National Adaptation Plan to address Climate Change for the most vulnerable communities; a focus to improve the standard of living in villages consistent with the

Millennium Development Goals The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were eight international development goals for the year 2015 that had been established following the Millennium Summit of the United Nations in 2000, following the adoption of the United Nations Millenniu ...

"; a pledge "to ensure that 80 percent of energy in the country be produced from

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"; and electoral reform to introduce

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. The election was a comparative success for the Democrats: They obtained thirteen seats (out of fifty), whereas no other party obtained more than three, and Abana was re-elected MP for Fataleka. Abana then stood for the premiership, against

Danny Philip Danny Philip (born 5 August 1953) is a politician and diplomat from Solomon Islands. He was Prime Minister of Solomon Islands from 2010 to 2011. Previously he served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1995 to 1996 and again from July 2000 to Ju ...

of the breakaway Reformed Democratic Party. Abana received the support of twenty-three MPs, but Philip was elected Prime Minister with the support of twenty-six. Abana became the formal Leader of the Opposition, and appointed the Shadow Cabinet. He stepped down as Leader of the Opposition on 23 March 2011, stating briefly that the Opposition needed to "revive itself". Two weeks later, he joined the ranks of the government, bringing with him several other Opposition MPs."Govt builds numbers"
, ''Solomon Star'', 7 April 2011

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abana, Steve 1969 births Living people Members of the National Parliament of the Solomon Islands People from Malaita Province Government ministers of the Solomon Islands Leaders of the Opposition (Solomon Islands) Solomon Islands Democratic Party politicians

See also

References