1990 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1990 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Climate
subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains
Coastline
820 km
Comparative area
slightly larger than Tennessee
Contiguous zone
24 nm;
Continental shelf
200 meters or to depth of exploitation;
Disputes
several sections of the boundary with El Salvador are in dispute
Environment
subject to frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; damaging hurricanes along Caribbean coast; deforestation; soil erosion
Extended economic zone
200 nm;
Land boundaries
1,520 km total; Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km
Land use
14% arable land; 2% permanent crops; 30% meadows and pastures; 34% forest and woodland; 20% other; includes 1% irrigated
Natural resources
timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish
Terrain
mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains
Territorial sea
12 nm
Total area
112,090 km2; land area: 111,890 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
37 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate
7 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Ethnic divisions
90% mestizo (mixed Indian and European), 7% Indian, 2% black, 1% white
Infant mortality rate
62 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Labor force
1,300,000; 62% agriculture, 20% services, 9% manufacturing, 3% construction, 6% other (1985)
Language
Spanish, Indian dialects
Life expectancy at birth
64 years male, 67 years female (1990)
Literacy
56%
Nationality
noun--Honduran(s); adjective--Honduran
Net migration rate
0 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Organized labor
40% of urban labor force, 20% of rural work force (1985)
Population
5,259,699 (July 1990), growth rate 3.0% (1990)
Religion
about 97% Roman Catholic; small Protestant minority
Total fertility rate
4.8 children born/woman (1990)
Government
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
Capital
Tegucigalpa
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)
Constitution
11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982
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 Crescencio ARCOS; Embassy at Avenida La Paz, Tegucigalpa (mailing address is APO Miami 34022); telephone [504] 32-3120
Elections
President--last held on 26 November 1989 (next to be held November 1993); results--Leonardo Rafael Callejas (PNH) 51%, Jose Azcona Hoyo (PLH) 43.3%, others 5.7%; National Congress--last held on 24 November 1985 (next to be held November 1993); results--PLH 51%, PNH 45%, PDCH 1.9%, PINU 1.5%, others 0.65; seats--(134 total) PLH 62, PNH 71, PINU 1
Executive branch
president, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
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
Independence
15 September 1821 (from Spain)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justica)
Leaders
Chief of State and Head of Government--Rafael Leonardo CALLEJAS Romero (since 26 January 1990)
Legal system
rooted in Roman and Spanish civil law; some influence of English common law; accepts ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch
unicameral National Congress (Congreso Nacional)
Long-form name
Republic of Honduras
Member of
CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IDB--Inter-American Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, ISO, ITU, OAS, PAHO, SELA, UN, UNESCO, UPEB, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO
National holiday
Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
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)
Political parties and leaders
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), Ricardo Maduro, 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
Type
republic
Economy
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
Aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $1.3 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $776 million
Budget
revenues $1,053 million; expenditures $949 million, including capital expenditures of $159 million (1989)
Currency
lempira (plural--lempiras); 1 lempira (L) = 100 centavos
Electricity
655,000 kW capacity; 1,980 million kWh produced, 390 kWh per capita (1989)
Exchange rates
lempiras (L) per US$1--2.00 (fixed rate); 3.50 parallel exchange and black-market rate (October 1989)
Exports
$1.0 billion (f.o.b., 1988); commodities--bananas, coffee, shrimp, lobster, minerals, lumber; partners--US 52%, FRG 11%, Japan, Italy, Belgium
External debt
$3.2 billion (December 1989)
Fiscal year
calendar year
GDP
$4.4 billion, per capita $890; real growth rate 4.0% (1988)
Illicit drugs
illicit producer of cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used principally for local consumption; transshipment point for cocaine
Imports
$1.4 billion (c.i.f. 1988); 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 5% (1988)
Industries
agricultural processing (sugar and coffee), textiles, clothing, wood products
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
11% (1989)
Overview
Honduras is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. Agriculture is the most important sector of the economy, accounting for nearly 30% of GDP, employing 62% of the labor force, and producing two-thirds of exports. Productivity remains low, however, leaving considerable room for improvement. Although industry is still in its early stages, it employs nearly 15% of the labor force, accounts for 23% of GDP, and generates 20% of exports. The service sectors, including public administration, account for 48% of GDP and employ nearly 20% of the labor force. Basic problems facing the economy include a high population growth rate, a high unemployment rate, a lack of basic services, a large and inefficient public sector, and an export sector dependent mostly on coffee and bananas, which are subject to sharp price fluctuations.
Unemployment rate
12% unemployed, 30-40% underemployed (1988)
Communications
Airports
180 total, 140 usable; 8 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 4 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 12 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Civil air
9 major transport aircraft
Highways
8,950 km total; 1,700 km paved, 5,000 km otherwise improved, 2,250 km unimproved earth
Inland waterways
465 km navigable by small craft
Merchant marine
149 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 438,495 GRT/660,990 DWT; includes 2 passenger-cargo, 87 cargo, 12 refrigerated cargo, 9 container, 1 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 17 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 2 liquefied gas, 1 specialized tanker, 1 vehicle carrier, 17 bulk; note--a flag of convenience registry
Ports
Puerto Castilla, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo
Railroads
785 km total; 508 km 1.067-meter gauge, 277 km 0.914-meter gauge
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
Military and Security
Branches
Armed Forces, Naval Forces, Air Force
Defense expenditures
1.9% of GDP, or $82.5 million (1990 est.)
Military manpower
males 15-49, 1,222,858; 727,851 fit for military service; 61,493 reach military age (18) annually