1993 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1993 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Area
total area: 112,090 km2 land area: 111,890 km2 comparative area: slightly larger than Tennessee
Climate
subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains
Coastline
820 km
Environment
subject to frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; damaging hurricanes and floods along Caribbean coast; deforestation; soil erosion
International disputes
land boundary dispute with El Salvador mostly resolved by 11 September 1992 International Court of Justice (ICJ) decision; ICJ referred the maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca to an earlier agreement in this century and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua likely would be required
Irrigated land
900 km2 (1989 est.)
Land boundaries
total 1,520 km, Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km
Land use
arable land: 14% permanent crops: 2% meadows and pastures: 30% forest and woodland: 34% other: 20%
Location
Central America, between Guatemala and Nicaragua
Map references
Central America and the Caribbean, North America, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims
contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200 m depth or to depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
Natural resources
timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish
Terrain
mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains
People and Society
Birth rate
35.82 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate
6.44 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Ethnic divisions
mestizo (mixed Indian and European) 90%, Indian 7%, black 2%, white 1%
Infant mortality rate
47.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Labor force
1.3 million by occupation: agriculture 62%, services 20%, manufacturing 9%, construction 3%, other 6% (1985)
Languages
Spanish, Indian dialects
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 67.17 years male: 64.82 years female: 69.62 years (1993 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1990) total population: 73% male: 76% female: 71%
Nationality
noun: Honduran(s) adjective: Honduran
Net migration rate
-1.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Population
5,170,108 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate
2.8% (1993 est.)
Religions
Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant minority
Total fertility rate
4.87 children born/woman (1993 est.)
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
Chief of State and Head of Government
President Rafael Leonardo CALLEJAS Romero (since 26 January 1990)
Constitution
11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982
Digraph
HO
Diplomatic representation in US
chief of mission: Ambassador Rene Arturo BENDANA-VALENZUELA chancery: 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 966-7702 consulates general: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco consulates: Baton Rouge, Boston, Detroit, Houston, and Jacksonville
Executive branch
president, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
FAX
[504] 32-0027
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
Independence
15 September 1821 (from Spain)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justica)
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)
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
Names
conventional long form: Republic of Honduras conventional short form: Honduras local long form: Republica de Honduras local short form: Honduras
National Congress
last held on 26 November 1989 (next to be held November 1993); results - PNH 51%, PLH 43%, PDCH 1.9%, PINU-SD 1.5%, other 2.6%; seats - (128 total) PNH 71, PLH 55, PINU-SD 2
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), Carlos Roberto REINA, presidential candidate, Rafael PINEDA Ponce, president; National Party (PN) has two factions: Movimiento Nacional de Reivindication Callejista (Monarca), Rafael Leonardo CALLEJAS, and Oswaldista, Oswaldo RAMOS SOTO, presidential candidate; National Innovation and Unity Party (PINU), German LEITZELAR, president; Christian Democratic Party (PDCH), Efrain DIAZ Arrivillaga, president
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%
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Type
republic
US diplomatic representation
chief of mission: Ambassador William Bryce (since 28 May 1993) embassy: Avenida La Paz, Tegucigalpa mailing address: APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa telephone: [504] 32-3120
Economy
Agriculture
most important sector, accounting for more than 25% of GDP, more than 60% of the labor force, and two-thirds of exports; principal products include bananas, coffee, timber, beef, citrus fruit, shrimp; importer of wheat
Budget
revenues $1.4 billion; expenditures $1.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $511 million (1990 est.)
Currency
1 lempira (L) = 100 centavos
Economic aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $1.4 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $1.1 billion
Electricity
575,000 kW capacity; 2,000 million kWh produced, 390 kWh per capita (1992)
Exchange rates
lempiras (L) per US$1 - 5.4 (fixed rate); 5.70 parallel black-market rate (November 1990); the lempira was allowed to float in 1992; current rate about US$1 - 5.65
Exports
$1.0 billion (f.o.b., 1991) commodities: bananas, coffee, shrimp, lobster, minerals, meat, lumber partners: US 65%, Germany 9%, Japan 8%, Belgium 7%
External debt
$2.8 billion (1990)
Fiscal year
calendar year
Illicit drugs
illicit producer of cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used principally for local consumption; transshipment point for cocaine
Imports
$1.3 billion (c.i.f. 1991) commodities: machinery and transport equipment, chemical products, manufactured goods, fuel and oil, foodstuffs partners: US 45%, Japan 9%, Netherlands 7%, Mexico 7%, Venezuela 6%
Industrial production
growth rate 0.8% (1990 est.); accounts for 15% of GDP
Industries
agricultural processing (sugar and coffee), textiles, clothing, wood products
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
8% (1992 est.)
National product
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $5.5 billion (1992 est.)
National product per capita
$1,090 (1992 est.)
National product real growth rate
3.6% (1992 est.)
Overview
Honduras is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. Agriculture, the most important sector of the economy, accounts for more than 25% 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, 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 President CALLEJAS in 1990 is beginning to take hold.
Unemployment rate
15% (30-40% underemployed) (1989)
Communications
Airports
total: 165 usable: 137 with permanent-surface runways: 11 with runways over 3,659 m: with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 4 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 14
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
252 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 819,100 GRT/1,195,276 DWT; includes 2 passenger-cargo, 162 cargo, 20 refrigerated cargo, 10 container, 6 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 22 oil tanker, 1 chemical tanker, 2 specialized tanker, 22 bulk, 3 passenger, 2 short-sea passenger; note - a flag of convenience registry; Russia owns 10 ships under the Honduran flag
Ports
Puerto Castilla, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo
Railroads
785 km total; 508 km 1.067-meter gauge, 277 km 0.914-meter gauge
Telecommunications
inadequate system with only 7 telephones per 1,000 persons; international services provided by 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earch stations and the Central American microwave radio relay system; broadcast stations - 176 AM, no FM, 7 SW, 28 TV
Military and Security
Branches
Army, Navy (including Marines), Air Force, Public Security Forces (FUSEP)
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $45 million, about 1% of GDP (1993 est.)
Manpower availability
males age 15-49 1,185,072; fit for military service 706,291; reach military age (18) annually 58,583 (1993 est.)