1994 Edition

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

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

Airports

total: 160 usable: 133 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

Area

total area: 112,090 sq km land area: 111,890 sq km comparative area: slightly larger than Tennessee

Birth rate

34.97 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Branches

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

Budget

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

Capital

Tegucigalpa

Climate

subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains

Coastline

820 km

Constitution

11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982

Currency

1 lempira (L) = 100 centavos

Death rate

6.22 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $42.8 million, about 1.3% of GDP (1993 est.)

Digraph

HO

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission: Ambassador Rene Arturo BENDANA chancery: 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 966-7702, 2604, 5008, 4596

Economic aid

recipient: 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

capacity: 575,000 kW production: 2 billion kWh consumption per capita: 390 kWh (1992)

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: subject to frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; damaging hurricanes and floods along Caribbean coast international agreements: party to - Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Tropical Timber

Ethnic divisions

mestizo (mixed Indian and European) 90%, Indian 7%, black 2%, white 1%

Exchange rates

lempiras (L) per US$1 - 7.2600 (December 1993), 7.2600 (1993), 5.8300 (1992), 5.4000 (1991); 2.0000 (fixed rate until 1991) 5.70 parallel black-market rate (November 1990); the lempira was allowed to float in 1992

Executive branch

chief of state and head of government: President Carlos Roberto REINA Idiaquez (since 27 January 1994); election last held on 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

Exports

$850 million (f.o.b., 1993 est) commodities: bananas, coffee, shrimp, lobster, minerals, meat, lumber partners: US 53%, Germany 11%, Belgium 8%, UK 5%

External debt

$2.8 billion (1990)

FAX

(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

[504] 32-0027

Fiscal year

calendar year

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

Highways

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

Illicit drugs

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

Imports

$1.1 billion (c.i.f. 1993 est) commodities: machinery and transport equipment, chemical products, manufactured goods, fuel and oil, foodstuffs partners: US 50%, Mexico 8%, Guatemala 6%

Independence

15 September 1821 (from Spain)

Industrial production

growth rate 0.8% (1990 est.); accounts for 15% of GDP

Industries

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

Infant mortality rate

45.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

13% (1993 est.)

Inland waterways

465 km navigable by small craft

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 sq km (1989 est.)

Judicial branch

Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justica)

Labor force

1.3 million by occupation: agriculture 62%, services 20%, manufacturing 9%, construction 3%, other 6% (1985)

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%

Languages

Spanish, Indian dialects

Legal system

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

Legislative branch

unicameral

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 67.6 years male: 65.23 years female: 70.08 years (1994 est.)

Literacy

age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) total population: 73% male: 76% female: 71%

Location

Middle America, between Guatemala and Nicaragua

Manpower availability

males age 15-49 1,229,777; fit for military service 732,866; reach military age (18) annually 60,445 (1994 est.)

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

Member of

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

Merchant marine

270 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 831,856 GRT/1,248,186 DWT, bulk 25, cargo 177, chemical tanker 2, combination bulk 1, container 7, liquified gas 1, oil tanker 22, passenger 2, passenger-cargo 2, refrigerated cargo 20, roll-on/roll-off cargo 6, short-sea passenger 2, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 1 note: a flag of convenience registry; Russia owns 14 ships under the Honduran flag

Names

conventional long form: Republic of Honduras conventional short form: Honduras local long form: Republica de Honduras local short form: Honduras

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

National holiday

Independence Day, 15 September (1821)

National product

GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $10 billion (1993 est.)

National product per capita

$1,950 (1993 est.)

National product real growth rate

3.7% (1993 est.)

Nationality

noun: Honduran(s) adjective: Honduran

Natural resources

timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish

Net migration rate

-1.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)

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)

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 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 former President CALLEJAS in 1990 is beginning to take hold. In 1993 the large fiscal deficit emerged as a key economic problem, the result of improvident state spending.

Political parties and leaders

Liberal Party (PLH), 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), Olban VALLADARES, president; Christian Democratic Party (PDCH), Efrain DIAZ Arrivillaga, president

Population

5,314,794 (July 1994 est.)

Population growth rate

2.73% (1994 est.)

Ports

Puerto Castilla, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo

Railroads

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

Religions

Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant minority

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Telecommunications

inadequate system with only 7 telephones per 1,000 persons; international services provided by 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations and the Central American microwave radio relay system; broadcast stations - 176 AM, no FM, 7 SW, 28 TV

Terrain

mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains

Total fertility rate

4.71 children born/woman (1994 est.)

Type

republic

Unemployment rate

10%; underemployed 30%-40% (1992)

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission: Ambassador William PRYCE embassy: Avenida La Paz, Tegucigalpa mailing address: American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa telephone: [504] 32-3120