Honduras

• 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

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

none of the selected agreements

0-14 years:

42% (male 1,248,291; female 1,204,574)

15-64 years:

55% (male 1,591,995; female 1,615,449)

65 years and over:

3% (male 96,017; female 105,629) (July 1998 est.)

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.99 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.91 male(s)/female (1998 est.)

noun:

Honduran(s)

adjective:

Honduran

conventional long form:

Republic of Honduras

conventional short form:

Honduras

local long form:

Republica de Honduras

local short form:

Honduras

• 18 departments (departamentos, singular-departamento) plus probable Central District (Tegucigalpa);
• 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

• rooted in Roman and Spanish civil law;
• some influence of English common law;
• accepts ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

chief of state:

• President Carlos Roberto FLORES Facusse (since 27 January 1998);
• First Vice President William HANDAL;
• Second Vice President Gladys CABALLERO de Arevalo;
• Third Vice President Hector Vidal CERRATO Hernandez;
• note-the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:

• President Carlos Roberto FLORES Facusse (since 27 January 1998);
• First Vice President William HANDAL;
• Second Vice President Gladys CABALLERO de Arevalo;
• Third Vice President Hector Vidal CERRATO Hernandez;
• note-the president is both the chief of state and head of government

cabinet:

Cabinet

elections:

president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 30 November 1997 (next to be held NA November 2001)

election results:

Carlos FLORES Facusse elected president; percent of vote-Carlos FLORES Facusse (PLH) 53%, Nora de MELGAR (PNH) 42%, other 5%

• Liberal Party (PLH), Raphael PINEDA Ponce, president;
• National Party of Honduras (PNH), Nora MELGAR, president;
• National Innovation and Unity Party-Social Democratic Party (PINU-SD), Olban VALLADARES, president;
• Christian Democratic Party (PDCH)

• 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)

chief of mission:

Ambassador Edgardo DUMAS Rodriguez

chancery:

3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 966-7702, 2604, 5008, 4596

chief of mission:

Ambassador James Francis CREAGAN (29 July 1996)

embassy:

Avenida La Paz, Apartado Postal No. 3453, Tegucigalpa

mailing address:

American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa

telephone:

[504] 36-9320, 38-5114

• 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

total:

1.3 million (1997 est.)

by occupation:

agriculture 62%, services 20%, manufacturing 9%, construction 3%, other 6% (1985)

• bananas, coffee, citrus;
• beef;
• timber;
• shrimp;

total value:

$1.3 billion (f.o.b., 1996)

commodities:

bananas, coffee, shrimp, lobster, minerals, meat, lumber

partners:

US 54%, Germany 7%, Belgium 5%, Japan 4%, Spain 3% (1995)

total value:

$1.8 billion (c.i.f. 1996)

commodities:

machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, manufactured goods, fuel and oil, foodstuffs

partners:

US 43%, Guatemala 5%, Japan 5%, Germany 4%, Mexico 3%, El Salvador 3% (1995)

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

total:

15,400 km

paved:

3,126 km

unpaved:

12,274 km (1996 est.)

• land boundary dispute with El Salvador mostly resolved by 11 September 1992 International Court of Justice (ICJ) decision;
• the presidents of El Salvador and Honduras signed in January 1998 an agreement allowing citizens in the 1992 demarcated areas to choose Salvadoran or Honduran citizenship;
• the two countries also agreed to a final demarcation of the border within one year;
• the agreement awaits ratification by the legislative assemblies of both countries;
• 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

• transshipment point for drugs and narcotics, mostly along the Caribbean coastline;
• illicit producer of cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used principally for local consumption HONG KONG (special administrative region of China)