Honduras

republicIndependence 15 September 1821 (from Spain)

Honduras as the 1991 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 69 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalTegucigalpa
Area112,090 km2
1991

Every edition of Honduras

Populationas each edition published it
4.95 million July 1991 · 5.26m in 1990
Population growth% a year
Not in this edition 2.8% in 1993
Median ageyears
Not in this edition 18.8 yrs in 2003
Life expectancyyears at birth
Not in this edition 67.17 yrs in 1993
Fertility ratechildren per woman
5 children per woman 1991 · 4.8 in 1990
Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births
56 deaths per 1,000 live births 1991 · 62 in 1990
GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars
Not in this edition $1,090 in 1993
GDP real growth% a year
Not in this edition 3.6% in 1993

Geography

10 fields
Total area
112,090km2
land area: 111,890 km2Comparative area: slightly larger than Tennessee
Land boundaries
1,520km total
Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km

Coastline

  • 820 km Contiguous zone: 24 nm;
  • Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation;
  • Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
  • Territorial sea: 12 nm

Disputes

  • dispute with El Salvador over several sections of the land boundary;
  • dispute over Golfo de Fonseca maritime boundary because of disputed sovereignty of islands;
  • unresolved maritime boundary with Nicaragua

Climate

subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains

Terrain

mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains

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%;
  • includes irrigated 1%

Environment

  • subject to frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes;
  • damaging hurricanes and floods along Caribbean coast;
  • deforestation;
  • soil erosion

People

14 fields
Population
4,949,275
(July 1991), growth rate 2.9% (1991)

Per 1,000 population(1991)

Birth
38Death
7

Ethnic divisions

mestizo (mixed Indian and European) 90%Indian 7%black 2%white 1%
Literacy
73%
(male 76%, female 71%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Net migration rate

- 2 migrants/1,000 population (1991)

Infant mortality rate

56 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

Life expectancy at birth

64 years male, 68 years female (1991)

Total fertility rate

5.0 children born/woman (1991)

Nationality

noun--Honduran(s); adjective--Honduran

Religion

Roman Catholic about 97%; small Protestant minority

Language

Spanish, Indian dialects

Labor force

1,300,000; agriculture 62%, services 20%, manufacturing 9%, construction 3%, other 6% (1985)

Organized labor

40% of urban labor force, 20% of rural work force (1985)

Government

Republic

17 fields

Presidential electionpercent of vote

51%
Rafael Leonardo CALLEJAS (PNH) 51%Carlos FLORES Facusse (PLH) 43.3%other 5.7%26 November 1989 (next to be held November 1993)

National Congress, 128 seats, elected 26 November 1989one dot, one seat

PNH 71PLH 55PINU 2

Percent of vote

PNH 51%PLH 43%PDCH 1.9%PINU 1.5%other 2.6%

Long-form name

Republic of Honduras

Type

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)

Constitution

11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982

National holiday

Independence Day, 15 September (1821)

Executive branch

president, Council of Ministers (cabinet)

Legislative branch

unicameral National Congress (Congreso Nacional)

Judicial branch

  • Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justica) Chief of State and Head of Government--Rafael Leonardo CALLEJAS Romero (since 26 January 1990) Liberal Party (PLH)--faction leaders, Carlos FLORES Facusse (leader of Florista Liberal Movement), Carlos MONTOYA (Azconista subfaction), Ramon VILLEDA Bermudez and Jorge Arturo REINA (M-Lider faction);
  • National Party (PNH), Jose Celin DISCUA, party president;
  • PNH faction leaders--Oswaldo RAMOS Soto and Rafael Leonardo CALLEJAS (Monarca faction);
  • National Innovation and Unity Party-Social Democrats (PINU-SD), Enrique AGUILAR Cerrato Paz;
  • Christian Democratic Party (PDCH), Jorge ILLESCAS;
  • Democratic Action (AD), Walter LOPEZ Reyes

Suffrage

  • universal and compulsory at age 18 President--last held on 26 November 1989 (next to be held November 1993);
  • results--Rafael Leonardo CALLEJAS (PNH) 51%, Carlos FLORES Facusse (PLH) 43.3%, other 5.7%;
  • National Congress--last held on 26 November 1989 (next to be held November 1993);
  • results--PNH 51%, PLH 43%, PDCH 1.9%, PINU 1.5%, other 2.6%;
  • seats--(128 total) PNH 71, PLH 55, PINU 2

Communists

up to 1,500; Honduran leftist groups--Communist Party of Honduras (PCH), Party for the Transformation of Honduras (PTH), Morazanist Front for the Liberation of Honduras (FMLH), People's Revolutionary Union/Popular Liberation Movement (URP/MPL), Popular Revolutionary Forces-Lorenzo Zelaya (FPR/LZ), Socialist Party of Honduras Central American Workers Revolutionary Party (PASO/PRTC)

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)

Member of

BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), LORCS, OAS, OPANAL, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO

Diplomatic representation

  • Ambassador Jorge Ramon HERNANDEZ Alcerro;
  • Chancery at Suite 100, 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008;
  • telephone (202) 966-7700 through 7702;
  • there are Honduran Consulates General in Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco, and Consulates in Baton Rouge, Boston, Detroit, Houston, and Jacksonville;
  • US--Ambassador S. Crescencio ARCOS;
  • Embassy at Avenida La Paz, Tegucigalpa (mailing address is APO Miami 34022);
  • telephone [504] 32-3120

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 words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom, centered in the white band

Economy

Honduras is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere.

17 fields
GDP, purchasing power parity
$4.9billion
per capita $960; real growth rate -1.0% (1990)
Unemployment rate
15%unemployed
30-40% underemployed (1989)
External debt
$2.8billion
(1990)

Budget

Revenues
$1.4 billionExpenditures
$1.9 billion
expenditures, including capital expenditures of $511 million (1990 est.)

Overview

Honduras is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. Agriculture, the most important sector of the economy, accounts for nearly 30% of GDP, employs 62% of the labor force, and produces two-thirds of exports. Productivity remains low. Industry, still in its early stages, employs nearly 9% of the labor force, accounts for 15% of GDP, and generates 20% of exports.

The service sectors, including public administration, account for 50% of GDP and employ nearly 20% of the labor force. Basic problems facing the economy include rapid population growth, high unemployment, sharply increased 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.

Despite government efforts at reform and large-scale foreign assistance, the economy still is unable to take advantage of its sizable natural resources.

Exports

  • $939 million (f.o.b., 1990);
  • commodities--bananas, coffee, shrimp, lobster, minerals, lumber;
  • partners--US 52%, FRG 11%, Japan, Italy, Belgium

Imports

  • $1.1 billion (c.i.f. 1990);
  • commodities--machinery and transport equipment, chemical products, manufactured goods, fuel and oil, foodstuffs;
  • partners--US 39%, Japan 9%, CACM, Venezuela, Mexico

Industrial production

growth rate 2.9% (1989); accounts for 15% of GDP

Electricity

668,000 kW capacity; 2,023 million kWh produced, 380 kWh per capita (1990)

Industries

agricultural processing (sugar and coffee), textiles, clothing, wood products

Agriculture

  • most important sector, accounting for nearly 30% of GDP, over 60% of the labor force, and two-thirds of exports;
  • principal products include bananas, coffee, timber, beef, citrus fruit, shrimp;
  • importer of wheat

Illicit drugs

illicit producer of cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used principally for local consumption; transshipment point for cocaine

Economic aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $1.4 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $1,027 million

Currency

lempira (plural--lempiras); 1 lempira (L) = 100 centavos

Exchange rates

lempiras (L) per US$1--5.30 (fixed rate); 5.70 parallel black-market rate (November 1990)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

8 fields

Merchant marine, 173 ships by type

passenger-cargo 2cargo 107refrigerated cargo 12container 9roll-on/roll-off cargo 1petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker 20chemical tanker 1specialized tanker 2vehicle carrier 1bulk; note--a flag of convenience registry; the USSR owns one ship under the Honduran flag 18173 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 527,481 GRT/812,095 DWT

Airports, 175 total, 134 usable

permanent-surface runways
8runways over 3,659 m
nonerunways 2,440-3,659 m
4runways 1,220-2,439 m
13

Networkskm

Highways
8,950Railroads
785Inland waterways
465
Highways: ; 1,700 km paved, 5,000 km otherwise improved, 2,250 km unimproved earth · Railroads: ; 508 km 1.067-meter gauge, 277 km 0.914-meter gauge

Railroads

785 km total; 508 km 1.067-meter gauge, 277 km 0.914-meter gauge

Highways

8,950 km total; 1,700 km paved, 5,000 km otherwise improved, 2,250 km unimproved earth

Ports

Puerto Castilla, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo

Civil air

9 major transport aircraft

Telecommunications

  • improved, but still inadequate;
  • connection into Central American Microwave System;
  • 35,100 telephones;
  • stations--176 AM, no FM, 28 TV, 7 shortwave;
  • 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations

Defense Forces

Army, Navy (including Marines), Air Force, Public Security Forces (FUSEP)

3 fields
Defense expenditures
$82.5million
1.9% of GDP (1990 est.)

Branches

Army, Navy (including Marines), Air Force, Public Security Forces (FUSEP)

Manpower availability

  • males 15-49, 1,106,630;
  • 659,520 fit for military service;
  • 58,953 reach military age (18) annually

Central Intelligence Agency. “Honduras.” The World Factbook 1991. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/honduras/1991.

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