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Honduras
Vital Statistics
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Once part of Spain's vast empire in the New World,
Honduras became an independent nation in 1821. After two
and a half decades of mostly military rule, a freely
elected civilian government came to power in 1982.
During the 1980s, Honduras proved a haven for
anti-Sandinista contras fighting the Marxist Nicaraguan
Government and an ally to Salvadoran Government forces
fighting leftist guerrillas. The country was devastated
by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, which killed about 5,600
people and caused approximately $2 billion in damage.
Since then, the economy has slowly rebounded.
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Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between
Guatemala and Nicaragua and bordering the Gulf of
Fonseca (North Pacific Ocean), between El Salvador and
Nicaragua
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15 00 N, 86 30 W
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total:
112,090 sq km
country
comparison to the world:
102
land:
111,890 sq km
water:
200 sq km
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slightly larger than Tennessee
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total:
1,520 km
border countries:
Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km
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820 km
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territorial sea:
12 nm
contiguous zone:
24 nm
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
continental shelf:
natural extension of territory or to 200 nm
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subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains
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mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains
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lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point:
Cerro Las Minas 2,870 m
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timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore,
antimony, coal, fish, hydropower
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arable land:
9.53%
permanent crops:
3.21%
other:
87.26% (2005)
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800 sq km (2003)
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95.9 cu km (2000)
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total:
0.86 cu km/yr (8%/12%/80%)
per capita:
119 cu m/yr (2000)
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frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; extremely
susceptible to damaging hurricanes and floods along the
Caribbean coast
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urban population expanding; deforestation results from
logging and the clearing of land for agricultural
purposes; further land degradation and soil erosion
hastened by uncontrolled development and improper land
use practices such as farming of marginal lands; mining
activities polluting Lago de Yojoa (the country's
largest source of fresh water), as well as several
rivers and streams, with heavy metals
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party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous
Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical
Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
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has only a short Pacific coast but a long Caribbean
shoreline, including the virtually uninhabited eastern
Mosquito Coast
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7,989,415
country
comparison to the world:
93
note:
estimates for this country explicitly take into account
the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can
result in lower life expectancy, higher infant
mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth
rates, and changes in the distribution of population by
age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2010
est.)
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0-14 years:
38% (male 1,521,006/female 1,457,790)
15-64 years:
58.4% (male 2,290,300/female 2,280,848)
65 years and over:
3.6% (male 127,187/female 156,565) (2010 est.)
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total:
20.7 years
male:
20.3 years
female:
21.1 years (2010 est.)
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1.935% (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
62 |
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25.61 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
59 |
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4.99 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
187 |
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-1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
165 |
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urban population:
52% of total population (2010)
rate of urbanization:
3.1% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
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at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years:
1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over:
0.81 male(s)/female
total population:
1.01 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
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total:
21.04 deaths/1,000 live births
country
comparison to the world:
97
male:
23.82 deaths/1,000 live births
female:
18.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
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total population:
70.51 years
country
comparison to the world:
143
male:
68.82 years
female:
72.28 years (2010 est.)
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3.17 children born/woman (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
59 |
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0.7% (2007 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
65 |
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28,000 (2007 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
71 |
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1,900 (2007 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
60 |
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degree of risk:
high
food or waterborne diseases:
bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases:
dengue fever and malaria
water contact disease:
leptospirosis (2009)
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noun:
Honduran(s)
adjective:
Honduran
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mestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian
7%, black 2%, white 1%
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Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant 3%
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Spanish (official), Amerindian dialects
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definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population:
80%
male:
79.8%
female:
80.2% (2001 census)
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total:
11 years
male:
11 years
female:
12 years (2008)
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3.8% of GDP (1991)
country
comparison to the world:
119 |
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conventional long form:
Republic of Honduras
conventional short form:
Honduras
local long form:
Republica de Honduras
local short form:
Honduras
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democratic constitutional republic
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name:
Tegucigalpa
geographic coordinates:
14 06 N, 87 13 W
time difference:
UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard
Time)
daylight saving time:
+1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday
in November
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18 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento);
Atlantida, Choluteca, Colon, Comayagua, Copan, Cortes,
El Paraiso, Francisco Morazan, Gracias a Dios, Intibuca,
Islas de la Bahia, La Paz, Lempira, Ocotepeque, Olancho,
Santa Barbara, Valle, Yoro
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15 September 1821 (from Spain)
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Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
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11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended many
times
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rooted in Roman and Spanish civil law with increasing
influence of English common law; recent judicial reforms
include abandoning Napoleonic legal codes in favor of
the oral adversarial system; accepts ICJ jurisdiction
with reservations
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18 years of age; universal and compulsory
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chief of state:
President Porfirio LOBO Sosa (since 27 January 2010);
Vice President Maria Antonieta Guillen de BOGRAN (since
27 January 2010); note - the president is both the chief
of state and head of government
head of government:
President Porfirio LOBO Sosa (since 27 January 2010);
Vice President Maria Antonieta Guillen de BOGRAN (since
27 January 2010)
cabinet:
Cabinet appointed by president
(For more information visit the
World Leaders website  )
elections:
president elected by popular vote for a four-year term;
election last held on 29 November 2009 (next to be held
in November 2013)
election results:
Porfirio "Pepe" LOBO Sosa elected president; percent of
vote - Porfirio "Pepe" LOBO Sosa 56.3%, Elvin SANTOS
Lozano 38.1%, other 5.6%
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unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (128
seats; members elected proportionally by department to
serve four-year terms)
elections:
last held on 29 November 2009 (next to be held in
November 2013)
election results:
percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PNH 71,
PL 45, PDC 5, PUD 4, PINU 3
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Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia
(15 judges are elected for seven-year terms by the
National Congress)
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Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Felicito AVILA
Ordonez]; Democratic Unification Party or PUD [Cesar
HAM]; Liberal Party or PL [Roberto MICHELETTI Bain];
National Party or PN [Antonio ALVAREZ Arias]; Social
Democratic Innovation and Unity Party or PINU [Jorge
Rafael AGUILAR Paredes]
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Beverage and Related Industries Syndicate or STIBYS;
Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Honduras or
CODEH; Confederation of Honduran Workers or CTH;
Coordinating Committee of Popular Organizations or CCOP;
General Workers Confederation or CGT; Honduran Council
of Private Enterprise or COHEP; National Association of
Honduran Campesinos or ANACH; National Union of
Campesinos or UNC; Popular Bloc or BP; United
Confederation of Honduran Workers or CUTH
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BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC (suspended), IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITSO,
ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, NAM,
OAS (suspended), OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, PetroCaribe, RG
(suspended), SICA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union
Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCO (suspended), WFTU, WHO, WIPO,
WMO, WTO
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chief of mission:
Ambassador Jorge Ramon HERNANDEZ Alcerro
chancery:
Suite 4-M, 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
[1] (202) 966-2604
FAX:
[1] (202) 966-9751
consulate(s) general:
Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New
Orleans, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco
honorary consulate(s):
Jacksonville
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chief of mission:
Ambassador Hugo LLORENS
embassy:
Avenida La Paz, Apartado Postal No. 3453, Tegucigalpa
mailing address:
American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa
telephone:
[504] 236-9320, 238-5114
FAX:
[504] 238-4357
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three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and
blue, with five blue, five-pointed stars arranged in an
X pattern centered in the white band; the stars
represent the members of the former Federal Republic of
Central America - Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala,
Honduras, and Nicaragua; the blue bands symbolize the
Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea; the white band
represents the land between the two bodies of water and
the peace and prosperity of its people
note:
similar to the flag of El Salvador, which features a
round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL
SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL centered in the white
band; also similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which
features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE
NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom,
centered in the white band
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name:
"Himno Nacional de Honduras" (National Anthem of
Honduras)
lyrics/music:
Augusto Constancio COELLO/Carlos HARTLING
note:
adopted 1915; the anthem's seven verses chronicle
Honduran history; on official occasions, only the chorus
and last verse are sung
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Honduras, the second poorest country in Central America,
suffers from extraordinarily unequal distribution of
income, as well as high underemployment. While
historically dependent on the export of bananas and
coffee, Honduras has diversified its export base to
include apparel and automobile wire harnessing. Nearly
half of Honduras's economic activity is directly tied to
the US, with exports to the US equivalent to 30% of GDP
and remittances for another 20%. The US-Central America
Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) came into force in 2006 and
has helped foster foriegn direct investment, but
physical and political insecurity may deter potential
investors; about 70% of FDI is from US firms. The
economy registered marginally positive economic growth
in 2010, insufficient to improve living standards for
the nearly 60% of the population in poverty. The LOBO
administration inherited a difficult fiscal position
with off-budget debts accrued in previous
administrations and government salaries nearly
equivalent to tax collections. His government has
displayed a commitment to improving tax collection and
cutting expenditures. This enabled Tegucigalpa to secure
an IMF Precautionary Stand-By agreement in October 2010.
The IMF agreement has helped renew multilateral and
bilateral donor confidence in Honduras following the
ZELAYA administration's economic mismanagement and the
political coup.
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$33.77 billion (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
104
$32.94 billion (2009 est.)
$33.65 billion (2008 est.)
note:
data are in 2010 US dollars
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$15.34 billion (2010 est.)
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2.5% (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
140
-2.1% (2009 est.)
4.2% (2008 est.)
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$4,200 (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
158
$4,200 (2009 est.)
$4,400 (2008 est.)
note:
data are in 2010 US dollars
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agriculture:
12.4%
industry:
26.9%
services:
60.8% (2010 est.)
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3.394 million (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
98 |
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agriculture:
39.2%
industry:
20.9%
services:
39.8% (2005 est.)
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5.1% (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
48
3.2% (2009 est.)
note:
about 36% are unemployed or underemployed
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65% (2010)
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lowest 10%:
0.7%
highest 10%:
42.2% (2006)
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53.8 (2003)
country
comparison to the world:
15
56.3 (1998)
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23.3% of GDP (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
54 |
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26.1% of GDP (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
93
23.7% of GDP (2009 est.)
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4.6% (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
136
5.5% (2009 est.)
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NA% (31 December 2009)
NA% (31 December 2008)
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19.16% (31 December 2009 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
28
17.94% (31 December 2008 est.)
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$1.296 billion (31 December 2010 est)
country
comparison to the world:
129
$1.564 billion (31 December 2009 est)
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$7.618 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
110
$7.064 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
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$7.581 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
105
$7.029 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
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$NA
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bananas, coffee, citrus, corn, African palm; beef;
timber; shrimp, tilapia, lobster
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sugar, coffee, woven and knit apparel, wood products,
cigars
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2.4% (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
124 |
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6.58 billion kWh (2009 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
103 |
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6.54 billion kWh
country
comparison to the world:
102
note:
approximately 1.5 billion kWh in transmission and
distribution losses (2009 est.)
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0 kWh (2008 est.)
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11.8 million kWh (2007 est.)
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0 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
186 |
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56,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
95 |
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0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
147 |
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46,130 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
88 |
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0 bbl (1 January 2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
170 |
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0 cu m (2008 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
100 |
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0 cu m (2008 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
144 |
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0 cu m (2008 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
172 |
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0 cu m (2008 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
161 |
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0 cu m (1 January 2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
168 |
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-$1.048 billion (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
139
-$1.327 billion (2009 est.)
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$5.879 billion (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
105
$5.09 billion (2009 est.)
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apparel, coffee, shrimp, wire harnessing, cigars,
bananas, gold, palm oil, fruit, lobster, lumber
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US 59.6%, El Salvador 5.61%, Guatemala 5.28%, Mexico
4.19%, Germany 4.04% (2009)
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$8.878 billion (2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
94
$5.924 billion (2009 est.)
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machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw
materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs
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US 46.81%, Guatemala 8.92%, El Salvador 7.13%, Mexico
5.54%, Costa Rica 4.91% (2009)
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$2.302 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
92
$2.127 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
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$3.54 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
120
$3.311 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
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lempiras (HNL) per US dollar - 18.9 (2010), 18.895
(2009), 18.983 (2008), 18.9 (2007), 18.895 (2006)
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Communications ::Honduras |
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830,000 (2009)
country
comparison to the world:
84 |
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7.714 million (2009)
country
comparison to the world:
75 |
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general assessment:
the number of fixed-line connections are increasing but
still limited; competition among multiple providers of
mobile-cellular services is contributing to a sharp
increase in the number of subscribers
domestic:
beginning in 2003, private sub-operators allowed to
provide fixed-lines in order to expand telephone
coverage contributing to an increase in fixed-line
teledensity to roughly 10 per 100 persons;
mobile-cellular subscribership reached 100 per 100
persons in 2009
international:
country code - 504; landing point for both the Americas
Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) and the MAYA-1
fiber optic submarine cable system that together provide
connectivity to South and Central America, parts of the
Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth stations - 2
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American
Microwave System
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multiple privately-owned terrestrial television
networks, supplemented by multiple cable TV networks;
Radio Honduras is the lone government-owned radio
network; roughly 300 privately-owned radio stations
(2007)
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.hn
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16,075 (2010)
country
comparison to the world:
115 |
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731,700 (2009)
country
comparison to the world:
108 |
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Transportation ::Honduras |
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104 (2010)
country
comparison to the world:
56 |
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total:
12
2,438 to 3,047 m:
3
1,524 to 2,437 m:
2
914 to 1,523 m:
4
under 914 m:
3 (2010)
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total:
92
1,524 to 2,437 m:
2
914 to 1,523 m:
16
under 914 m:
74 (2010)
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total:
75 km
country
comparison to the world:
128
narrow gauge:
75 km 1.067-m gauge (2009)
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total:
14,239 km
country
comparison to the world:
123
paved:
3,159 km
unpaved:
11,080 km (1,420 km summer only) (2009)
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465 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2010)
country
comparison to the world:
86 |
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total:
104
country
comparison to the world:
49
by type:
bulk carrier 8, cargo 50, carrier 2, chemical tanker 7,
container 1, passenger 3, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum
tanker 22, refrigerated cargo 6, roll on/roll off 3
foreign-owned:
49 (Bahrain 5, Canada 1, China 2, Egypt 2, Greece 4,
Hong Kong 1, Israel 1, Japan 4, Lebanon 2, Mexico 1,
Montenegro 2, Panama 1, Singapore 12, South Korea 6,
Taiwan 2, Tanzania 1, UK 1, Vietnam 1) (2010)
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La Ceiba, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo, Tela
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Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry), Honduran Air Force
(Fuerza Aerea Hondurena, FAH) (2008)
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18 years of age for voluntary 2 to 3-year military
service (2004)
|
|
|
|
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males age 16-49:
1,989,556
females age 16-49:
1,939,462 (2010 est.)
|
|
|
|
|
|
males age 16-49:
1,483,292
females age 16-49:
1,502,788 (2010 est.)
|
|
|
|
|
|
male:
94,501
female:
90,757 (2010 est.)
|
|
|
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|
0.6% of GDP (2006 est.)
country
comparison to the world:
156 |
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Transnational Issues ::Honduras |
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International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on the
delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El
Salvador-Honduras border in 1992 with final settlement
by the parties in 2006 after an Organization of American
States (OAS) survey and a further ICJ ruling in 2003;
the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution to a
maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca with
consideration of Honduran access to the Pacific; El
Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not
mentioned in the ICJ ruling, off Honduras in the Gulf of
Fonseca; Honduras claims the Belizean-administered
Sapodilla Cays off the coast of Belize in its
constitution, but agreed to a joint ecological park
around the cays should Guatemala consent to a maritime
corridor in the Caribbean under the OAS-sponsored 2002
Belize-Guatemala Differendum; memorials and
countermemorials were filed by the parties in
Nicaragua's 1999 and 2001 proceedings against Honduras
and Colombia at the ICJ over the maritime boundary and
territorial claims in the western Caribbean Sea - final
public hearings are scheduled for 2007
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transshipment point for drugs and narcotics; illicit
producer of cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used
principally for local consumption; corruption is a major
problem; some money-laundering activity
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