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  Introduction
  Geography
  People
  Government
  Economy
  Communications
  Transportation
  Military
  Transnational Issues

In general, information available as of 1 January, 2004
was used in the preparation of The World Factbook 2004.


This page was last updated on 11 May, 2004


Map of Honduras

Legend: DefinitionDefinition Field ListingField Listing Rank OrderRank Order
   Introduction    Honduras
Background:
Definition Field Listing
Part of Spain's vast empire in the New World, Honduras became an independent nation in 1821. After two and one-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 against leftist guerrillas. The country was devastated by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, which killed about 5,600 people and caused approximately $2 billion in damage.
   Geography    Honduras
Location:
Definition Field Listing
Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Nicaragua and bordering the Gulf of Fonseca (North Pacific Ocean), between El Salvador and Nicaragua
Geographic coordinates:
Definition Field Listing
15 00 N, 86 30 W
Map references:
Definition Field Listing
Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 112,090 sq km
land: 111,890 sq km
water: 200 sq km
Area - comparative:
Definition Field Listing
slightly larger than Tennessee
Land boundaries:
Definition Field Listing
total: 1,520 km
border countries: Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km
Coastline:
Definition Field Listing
820 km
Maritime claims - as described in UNCLOS 1982 (see Notes and Definitions):
Definition Field Listing
territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: natural extension of territory or to 200 NM
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Climate:
Definition Field Listing
subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains
Terrain:
Definition Field Listing
mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains
Elevation extremes:
Definition Field Listing
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro Las Minas 2,870 m
Natural resources:
Definition Field Listing
timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, hydropower
Land use:
Definition Field Listing
arable land: 15.15%
permanent crops: 3.13%
other: 81.72% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
Definition Field Listing
760 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
Definition Field Listing
frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; extremely susceptible to damaging hurricanes and floods along the Caribbean coast
Environment - current issues:
Definition Field Listing
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
Environment - international agreements:
Definition Field Listing
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
Geography - note:
Definition Field Listing
has only a short Pacific coast but a long Caribbean shoreline, including the virtually uninhabited eastern Mosquito Coast
   People    Honduras
Population:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
6,823,568
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 and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2004 est.)
Age structure:
Definition Field Listing
0-14 years: 41.2% (male 1,434,555; female 1,376,216)
15-64 years: 55.1% (male 1,866,219; female 1,896,027)
65 years and over: 3.7% (male 118,404; female 132,147) (2004 est.)
Median age:
Definition Field Listing
total: 19 years
male: 18.6 years
female: 19.4 years (2004 est.)
Population growth rate:
Definition Field Listing
2.24% (2004 est.)
Birth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
31.04 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Death rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
6.64 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Net migration rate:
Definition Field Listing
-1.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Sex ratio:
Definition Field Listing
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 29.64 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 25.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 33.22 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total population: 66.15 years
male: 64.99 years
female: 67.37 years (2004 est.)
Total fertility rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3.97 children born/woman (2004 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.6% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
57,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3,300 (2001 est.)
Nationality:
Definition Field Listing
noun: Honduran(s)
adjective: Honduran
Ethnic groups:
Definition Field Listing
mestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1%
Religions:
Definition Field Listing
Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant minority
Languages:
Definition Field Listing
Spanish, Amerindian dialects
Literacy:
Definition Field Listing
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 76.2%
male: 76.1%
female: 76.3% (2003 est.)
   Government    Honduras
Country name:
Definition Field Listing
conventional long form: Republic of Honduras
conventional short form: Honduras
local short form: Honduras
local long form: Republica de Honduras
Government type:
Definition Field Listing
democratic constitutional republic
Capital:
Definition Field Listing
Tegucigalpa
Administrative divisions:
Definition Field Listing
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
Independence:
Definition Field Listing
15 September 1821 (from Spain)
National holiday:
Definition Field Listing
Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
Constitution:
Definition Field Listing
11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995
Legal system:
Definition Field Listing
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
Suffrage:
Definition Field Listing
18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch:
Definition Field Listing
chief of state: President Ricardo (Joest) MADURO (since 27 January 2002); First Vice President Vicente WILLIAMS Agasse (since 27 January 2002); Second Vice President Armida Villela Maria DE LOPEZ Contreras (since 27 January 2002); Third Vice President Alberto DIAZ Lobo (since 27 January 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Ricardo (Joest) MADURO (since 27 January 2002); First Vice President Vicente WILLIAMS Agasse (since 27 January 2002); Second Vice President Armida Villela Maria DE LOPEZ Contreras (since 27 January 2002); Third Vice President Alberto DIAZ Lobo (since 27 January 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 25 November 2001 (next to be held NA November 2005)
election results: Ricardo (Joest) MADURO (PN) elected president - 52.2%, Raphael PINEDA Ponce (PL) 44.3%, others 3.5%
Legislative branch:
Definition Field Listing
unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (128 seats; members are elected proportionally to the number of votes their party's presidential candidate receives to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 November 2001 (next to be held NA November 2005)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PN 61, PL 55, PUD 5, PDC 4, PINU-SD 3
Judicial branch:
Definition Field Listing
Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are elected for seven-year terms by the National Congress)
Political parties and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Juan Ramon VALAZQUEZ Nazzar]; Democratic Unification Party or PUD [Cesar David Adolfo HAM Pena]; Liberal Party or PL [Roberto MICHELETTI Bain]; National Innovation and Unity Party-Social Democratic Party or PINU-SD [Olban F. VALLADARES]; National Party of Honduras or PN [Jose Celin DISCUA Elvir]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
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 Federation of Honduran Workers or FUTH
International organization participation:
Definition Field Listing
BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Mario Miguel CANAHUATI
honorary consulate(s): Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Jacksonville
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco
FAX: [1] (202) 966-9751
telephone: [1] (202) 966-7702
chancery: Suite 4-M, 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
Diplomatic representation from the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Larry Leon PALMER
embassy: Avenida La Paz, Apartado Postal No. 3453, Tegucigalpa
mailing address: American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa
telephone: [504] 238-5114, 236-9320
FAX: [504] 236-9037
Flag description:
Definition Field Listing
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; 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 word REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom, centered in the white band
   Economy    Honduras
Economy - overview:
Definition Field Listing
Honduras, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere with an extraordinarily unequal distribution of income and massive unemployment, is banking on expanded trade privileges under the Enhanced Caribbean Basin Initiative and on debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. While the country has met most of its macroeconomic targets, it has failed to meet the IMF's goals to liberalize its energy and telecommunications sectors. Growth remains dependent on the status of the US economy, its major trading partner, on commodity prices, particularly coffee, and on reduction of the high crime rate.
GDP:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
purchasing power parity - $17.46 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.5% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
Definition Field Listing
agriculture: 13.5%
industry: 30.7%
services: 55.8% (2002 est.)
Population below poverty line:
Definition Field Listing
53% (1993 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Definition Field Listing
lowest 10%: 0.6%
highest 10%: 42.7% (1998)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
Definition Field Listing
56.3 (1998)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
7.7% (2003 est.)
Labor force:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.3 million (1997 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
Definition Field Listing
agriculture 34%, industry 21%, services 45% (2001 est.)
Unemployment rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
27.5% (2003 est.)
Budget:
Definition Field Listing
revenues: $607 million
expenditures: $411.9 million, including capital expenditures of $106 million (1999 est.)
Industries:
Definition Field Listing
sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products
Industrial production growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
7.7% (2003 est.)
Electricity - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3.778 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
Definition Field Listing
fossil fuel: 50.2%
hydro: 49.8%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3.822 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
Definition Field Listing
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
Definition Field Listing
308 million kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
29,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA
Oil - imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA
Agriculture - products:
Definition Field Listing
bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp
Exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$1.37 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
Exports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
coffee, bananas, shrimp, lobster, meat; zinc, lumber (2000)
Exports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
US 69%, El Salvador 3%, Guatemala 2% (2002)
Imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$3.11 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
Imports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs (2000)
Imports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
US 53.3%, Mexico 4.3%, El Salvador 4.2% (2002)
Debt - external:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$5.1 billion (2003)
Economic aid - recipient:
Definition Field Listing
$557.8 million (1999)
Currency:
Definition Field Listing
lempira (HNL)
Currency code:
Definition Field Listing
HNL
Exchange rates:
Definition Field Listing
lempiras per US dollar - 17.35 (2003), 16.43 (2002), 15.47 (2001), 14.84 (2000), 14.21 (1999)
Fiscal year:
Definition Field Listing
calendar year
   Communications    Honduras
Telephones - main lines in use:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
322,500 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
326,500 (2002)
Telephone system:
Definition Field Listing
general assessment: inadequate system
domestic: NA
international: country code - 504; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System
Radio broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
AM 241, FM 53, shortwave 12 (1998)
Television broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
11 (plus 17 repeaters) (1997)
Internet country code:
Definition Field Listing
.hn
Internet hosts:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
160 (2002)
Internet users:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
168,600 (2002)
   Transportation    Honduras
Railways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 699 km
narrow gauge: 279 km 1.067-m gauge; 420 km 0.914-m gauge (2002)
Highways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 13,603 km
paved: 2,775 km
unpaved: 10,828 km (1999 est.)
Waterways:
Definition Field Listing
465 km (navigable by small craft)
Ports and harbors:
Definition Field Listing
La Ceiba, Puerto Castilla, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo, Tela, Puerto Lempira
Merchant marine:
Definition Field Listing
total: 238 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 598,600 GRT/616,158 DWT
registered in other countries: 16 (2003 est.)
foreign-owned: Argentina 1, Bahrain 1, British Virgin Islands 1, Bulgaria 1, Cayman Islands 1, China 4, Costa Rica 1, Cyprus 1, Egypt 5, El Salvador 1, Greece 16, Hong Kong 3, Indonesia 2, Israel 1, Italy 1, Japan 2, Jordan 1, South Korea 9, Lebanon 4, Liberia 4, Maldives 2, Marshall Islands 3, Mexico 1, Nigeria 2, Panama 10, Philippines 1, Russia 1, Saint Kitts and Nevis 3, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, Saudi Arabia 1, Singapore 22, Spain 1, Taiwan 2, Tanzania 1, Thailand 1, Turkey 2, Turks and Caicos Islands 1, United States 7, Vanuatu 1, Vietnam 1
by type: bulk 12, cargo 139, chemical tanker 5, combination bulk 1, container 5, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 3, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 54, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea/passenger 3
Airports:
Definition Field Listing
115 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 12
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 4 (2003 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 103
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 18
under 914 m: 83 (2003 est.)
   Military    Honduras
Military branches:
Definition Field Listing
Army, Navy (including Naval Infantry), Air Force
Military manpower - military age:
Definition Field Listing
18 years of age (2004 est.)
Military manpower - availability:
Definition Field Listing
males age 15-49: 1,642,029 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
Definition Field Listing
males age 15-49: 977,130 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
Definition Field Listing
males: 76,143 (2004 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$99.8 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.5% (2003)
   Transnational Issues    Honduras
Disputes - international:
Definition Field Listing
in 1992, ICJ ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras border, and the OAS is assisting with a technical resolution of bolsones; in 2003, the ICJ rejected El Salvador's request to revise its decision on one bolsone; 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 by the ICJ, off Honduras in the Gulf of Fonseca; Honduras claims Sapodilla Cays off the coast of Belize but agreed to creation of a joint ecological park and Guatemalan corridor in the Caribbean in the failed 2002 Belize-Guatemala Differendum; Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over a complex maritime dispute in the Caribbean Sea
Illicit drugs:
Definition Field Listing
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

This page was last updated on 11 May, 2004


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