Geography
Location: Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala
and Nicaragua and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador
and Nicaragua
Geographic coordinates: 15 00 N, 86 30 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total area: 112,090 sq km
land area: 111,890 sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than Tennessee
Land boundaries:
total: 1,520 km
border countries: Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922
km
Coastline: 820 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: natural extension of territory or to 200 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: land boundary dispute with El Salvador mostly
resolved by 11 September 1992 International Court of Justice (ICJ) decision;
with respect to the maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca, ICJ referred
to an earlier agreement in this century and advised that some tripartite
resolution among El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua likely would be required;
maritime boundary dispute with Nicaragua
Climate: subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains
Terrain: mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro Las Minas 2,870 m
Natural resources: timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore,
antimony, coal, fish
Land use:
arable land: 14%
permanent crops: 2%
meadows and pastures: 30%
forest and woodland: 34%
other: 20%
Irrigated land: 900 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues: 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 freshwater) with
heavy metals as well as several rivers and streams
natural hazards: frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; damaging
hurricanes and floods along Caribbean coast
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone
Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified
- Desertification, Tropical Timber 94
People
Population: 5,605,193 (July 1996 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 43% (male 1,220,188; female 1,177,725)
15-64 years: 54% (male 1,496,625; female 1,520,918)
65 years and over: 3% (male 91,126; female 98,611) (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.6% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 33.38 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 5.83 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: -1.53 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Sex ratio:
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: 0.92 male(s)/female
all ages: 1 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 41.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 68.42 years
male: 66.01 years
female: 70.96 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 4.41 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Honduran(s)
adjective: Honduran
Ethnic divisions: mestizo (mixed Indian and European) 90%, Indian 7%,
black 2%, white 1%
Religions: Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant minority
Languages: Spanish, Indian dialects
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)
total population: 72.7%
male: 72.6%
female: 72.7%
Government
Name of country:
conventional long form: Republic of Honduras
conventional short form: Honduras
local long form: Republica de Honduras
local short form: Honduras
Data code: HO
Type of government: republic
Capital: Tegucigalpa
Administrative divisions: 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: 15 September 1821 (from Spain)
National holiday: Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
Constitution: 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982
Legal system: rooted in Roman and Spanish civil law; some influence
of English common law; accepts ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government: President Carlos Roberto REINA
Idiaquez (since 27 January 1994) was elected for a four-year term by a
simple majority of the people; First Vice President General (Ret.) Walter
LOPEZ; Second Vice President Juan DE LA CRUZ Avelar; Third Vice President
Guadeloupe JEREZANO; election last held 28 November 1993 (next to be held
November 1997); results - Carlos Roberto REINA Idiaquez (PLH) 53%, Oswaldo
RAMOS Soto (PNH) 41%, other 6%
cabinet: Cabinet
Legislative branch: unicameral
National Congress (Congreso Nacional): elections last held on 27 November
1993 (next to be held November 1997); results - PNH 53%, PLH 41%, PDCH
1.0%, PINU-SD 2.5%, other 2.5%; seats - (134 total) PNH 55, PLH 77, PINU-SD
2
Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justica),
judges are elected for four-year terms by the National Assembly
Political parties and leaders: Liberal Party (PLH), Rafael PINEDA Ponce,
president; National Party of Honduras (PNH), Oswaldo RAMOS Soto, president;
National Innovation and Unity Party (PINU), Olban VALLADARES, president;
Christian Democratic Party (PDCH), Efrain DIAZ Arrivillaga, president
Other political or pressure groups: National Association of Honduran
Campesinos (ANACH); Honduran Council of Private Enterprise (COHEP); Confederation
of Honduran Workers (CTH); National Union of Campesinos (UNC); General
Workers Confederation (CGT); United Federation of Honduran Workers (FUTH);
Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Honduras (CODEH); Coordinating
Committee of Popular Organizations (CCOP)
International organization participation: BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77,
IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat,
Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL,
PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIH,
UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Roberto FLORES Bermudez
chancery: 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 966-7702, 2604, 5008, 4596
FAX: [1] (202) 966-9751
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans,
New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
consulate(s): Boston, Detroit, and Jacksonville
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador William T. PRYCE
embassy: Avenida La Paz, Apartado Postal No 3453, Tegucigalpa
mailing address: American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa
telephone: [504] 36-9320, 38-5114
FAX: [504] 36-9037
Flag: 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
Economic overview: Honduras is one of the poorest countries in the Western
Hemisphere. Agriculture, the most important sector of the economy, employs
nearly two-thirds of the labor force and produces two-thirds of exports.
Productivity remains low. Manufacturing, still in its early stages, employs
about 9% of the labor force, and generates 20% of exports. Many basic problems
face the economy, including rapid population growth, high unemployment,
inflation, a lack of basic services, a large and inefficient public sector,
and the dependence of the export sector mostly on coffee and bananas, which
are subject to sharp price fluctuations. A far-reaching reform program,
initiated by former President CALLEJAS in 1990 and scaled back by President
REINA, is beginning to take hold.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $10.8 billion (1995 est.)
GDP real growth rate: 4% (1995 est.)
GDP per capita: $1,980 (1995 est.)
GDP composition by sector:
agriculture: 30%
industry: 20%
services: 50% (1995 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 30% (1994 est.)
Labor force: 1.3 million
by occupation: agriculture 62%, services 20%, manufacturing 9%, construction
3%, other 6% (1985)
Unemployment rate: 10%; underemployed 30%-40% (1992)
Budget:
revenues: $527 million
expenditures: $668 million, including capital expenditures of $166
million (1993 est.)
Industries: sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products
Industrial production growth rate: 10% (1992 est.)
Electricity:
capacity: 290,000 kW
production: 2.3 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 445 kWh (1993)
Agriculture: bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp;
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for narcotics; illicit producer
of cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used principally for local consumption
Exports: $843 million (f.o.b., 1994)
commodities: bananas, coffee, shrimp, lobster, minerals, meat, lumber
partners: US 53%, Germany 11%, Belgium 8%, UK 5%
Imports: $1.1 billion (c.i.f. 1994)
commodities: machinery and transport equipment, chemical products,
manufactured goods, fuel and oil, foodstuffs
partners: US 50%, Mexico 8%, Guatemala 6%
External debt: $3.7 billion (1994)
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $NA
Currency: 1 lempira (L) = 100 centavos
Exchange rates: lempiras (L) per US$1 - 10.3432 (December 1994), 10.3432
(1995), 9.4001 (1994), 7.2600 (1993), 5.8300 (1992), 5.4000 (1991); the
lempira was allowed to float in 1992
Fiscal year: calendar year
Transportation
Railways:
total: 595 km
narrow gauge: 190 km 1.067-m gauge; 128 km 1.057-m gauge; 277 km 0.914-m
gauge
note: in 1993, there was a total of 988 km of track (1995)
Highways:
total: 14,203 km
paved: 2,533 km
unpaved: 11,670 km (1993 est.)
Waterways: 465 km navigable by small craft
Ports: La Ceiba, Puerto Castilla, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo, Tela,
Puerto Lempira
Merchant marine:
total: 257 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 769,518 GRT/1,148,423
DWT
ships by type: bulk 29, cargo 165, chemical tanker 2, combination bulk
1, container 7, liquefied gas tanker 1, livestock carrier 3, oil tanker
19, passenger 1, passenger-cargo 3, refrigerated cargo 16, roll-on/roll-off
cargo 7, short-sea passenger 2, vehicle carrier 1
note: a flag of convenience registry; Russia owns 8 ships, Vietnam
4, North Korea 2, Greece 1, Japan 1, US 1, Iran 1 (1995 est.)
Airports:
total: 111
with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 3
with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 2
with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 5
with paved runways under 914 m: 79
with unpaved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 1
with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 21 (1995 est.)
Communications
Telephones: 105,000 (1992 est.)
Telephone system: inadequate system
domestic: NA
international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean);
connected to Central American Microwave System
Radio broadcast stations: AM 176, FM 0, shortwave 7
Radios: 2.115 million (1992 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 28
Televisions: 400,000 (1992 est.)
Defense
Branches: Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force, Public Security
Forces (FUSEP)
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49: 1,322,525
males fit for military service: 787,889
males reach military age (18) annually: 64,378 (1996 est.)
Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $41 million, about
0.4% of GDP (1994)