Honduras (2001) | Brunei (2005) | |
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 | 4 districts (daerah-daerah, singular - daerah); Belait, Brunei and Muara, Temburong, Tutong |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
42.22% (male 1,381,823; female 1,322,684) 15-64 years: 54.21% (male 1,719,593; female 1,753,003) 65 years and over: 3.57% (male 108,271; female 120,678) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 28.6% (male 54,342/female 52,084)
15-64 years: 68.4% (male 134,908/female 119,814) 65 years and over: 3% (male 5,301/female 5,912) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp | rice, vegetables, fruits, chickens, water buffalo |
Airports | 119 (2000 est.) | 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
12 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
107 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 21 under 914 m: 84 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
112,090 sq km land: 111,890 sq km water: 200 sq km |
total: 5,770 sq km
land: 5,270 sq km water: 500 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Tennessee | slightly smaller than Delaware |
Background | Part of Spain's vast empire in the New World, Honduras became an independent nation in 1821. After two and one-half decades of mostly military rule, a freely elected civilian government came to power in 1982. During the 1980s, Honduras proved a haven for anti-Sandinista contras fighting the Marxist Nicaraguan Government and an ally to Salvadoran Government forces fighting against leftist guerrillas. | The Sultanate of Brunei's influence peaked between the 15th and 17th centuries when its control extended over coastal areas of northwest Borneo and the southern Philippines. Brunei subsequently entered a period of decline brought on by internal strife over royal succession, colonial expansion of European powers, and piracy. In 1888, Brunei became a British protectorate; independence was achieved in 1984. The same family has ruled Brunei for over six centuries. Brunei benefits from extensive petroleum and natural gas fields, the source of one of the highest per capita GDPs in the developing world. |
Birth rate | 31.94 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 19.01 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$607 million expenditures: $411.9 million, including capital expenditures of $106 million (1999 est.) |
revenues: $4.9 billion
expenditures: $4.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.35 billion (2003 est.) |
Capital | Tegucigalpa | Bandar Seri Begawan |
Climate | subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains | tropical; hot, humid, rainy |
Coastline | 820 km | 161 km |
Constitution | 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995 | 29 September 1959 (some provisions suspended under a State of Emergency since December 1962, others since independence on 1 January 1984) |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Honduras conventional short form: Honduras local long form: Republica de Honduras local short form: Honduras |
conventional long form: Negara Brunei Darussalam
conventional short form: Brunei |
Currency | lempira (HNL) | - |
Death rate | 5.52 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 3.42 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.4 billion (2000) | $0 |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Frank ALMAGUER embassy: Avenida La Paz, Apartado Postal No. 3453, Tegucigalpa mailing address: American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa telephone: [504] 238-5114, 236-9320 FAX: [504] 236-9037 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Emil SKODON
embassy: Third Floor, Teck Guan Plaza, Jalan Sultan, Bandar Seri Begawan mailing address: PSC 470 (BSB), FPO AP 96507 telephone: [673] (2) 229670 FAX: [673] (2) 225293 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Hugo NOE PINO chancery: Suite 4-M, 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-7702 FAX: [1] (202) 966-9751 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico) honorary consulate(s): Boston, Detroit, and Jacksonville |
chief of mission: Ambassador Pengiran Anak Dato PUTEH
chancery: 3520 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 237-1838 FAX: [1] (202) 885-0560 |
Disputes - international | with respect to the maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca, the ICJ referred to the line determined by the 1900 Honduras-Nicaragua Mixed Boundary Commission and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua likely would be required; the maritime boundary dispute with Nicaragua in the Caribbean Sea is before the ICJ | in 2003 Brunei and Malaysia ceased gas and oil exploration in their disputed offshore and deepwater seabeds and negotiations have stalemated prompting consideration of international legal adjudication; Malaysia's land boundary with Brunei around Limbang is in dispute; Brunei established an exclusive economic fishing zone encompassing Louisa Reef in southern Spratly Islands in 1984 but makes no public territorial claim to the offshore reefs; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions in the Spratly Islands but falls short of a legally binding "code of conduct" desired by several of the disputants |
Economic aid - recipient | $557.8 million (1999) | NA |
Economy - overview | Honduras, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere, is banking on expanded trade privileges under the Enhanced Caribbean Basin Initiative and on debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. While reconstruction from 1998's Hurricane Mitch is at an advanced stage, and the country has met most of its macroeconomic targets, it failed to meet the IMF's goals to liberalize its energy and telecommunications sectors. Economic growth has rebounded nicely since the hurricane and should continue in 2001. | This small, well-to-do economy encompasses a mixture of foreign and domestic entrepreneurship, government regulation, welfare measures, and village tradition. Crude oil and natural gas production account for nearly half of GDP. Per capita GDP is far above most other Third World countries, and substantial income from overseas investment supplements income from domestic production. The government provides for all medical services and free education through the university level and subsidizes rice and housing. Brunei's leaders are concerned that steadily increased integration in the world economy will undermine internal social cohesion, although it became a more prominent player by serving as chairman for the 2000 APEC (Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation) forum. Plans for the future include upgrading the labor force, reducing unemployment, strengthening the banking and tourist sectors, and, in general, further widening the economic base beyond oil and gas. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.232 billion kWh (1999) | 2.286 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 145 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 3.319 billion kWh (1999) | 2.458 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
44.71% hydro: 55.29% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Cerro Las Minas 2,870 m |
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Bukit Pagon 1,850 m |
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 fresh water) as well as several rivers and streams with heavy metals; severe Hurricane Mitch damage | seasonal smoke/haze resulting from forest fires in Indonesia |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, 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 |
party to: Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1% | Malay 67%, Chinese 15%, indigenous 6%, other 12% |
Exchange rates | lempiras per US dollar - 15.1407 (December 2000), 15.1407 (2000), 14.5039 (1999), 13.8076 (1998), 13.0942 (1997), 12.8694 (1996) | Bruneian dollars per US dollar - 1.6902 (2004), 1.7422 (2003), 1.7906 (2002), 1.7917 (2001), 1.724 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Carlos Roberto FLORES Facusse (since 27 January 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; First Vice President William HANDAL (since NA); Second Vice President Gladys CABALLERO de Arevalo (since NA); Third Vice President Hector Vidal CERRATO Hernandez (since NA) head of government: President Carlos Roberto FLORES Facusse (since 27 January 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; First Vice President William HANDAL (since NA); Second Vice President Gladys CABALLERO de Arevalo (since NA); Third Vice President Hector Vidal CERRATO Hernandez (since NA) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 30 November 1997 (next to be held 25 November 2001) election results: Carlos Roberto FLORES Facusse elected president; percent of vote - Carlos Roberto FLORES Facusse (PL) 50%, Nora de MELGAR (PN) 40%, other 10% |
chief of state: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Cabinet Ministers appointed and presided over by the monarch; deals with executive matters; note - there is also a Religious Council (members appointed by the monarch) that advises on religious matters, a Privy Council (members appointed by the monarch) that deals with constitutional matters, and the Council of Succession (members appointed by the monarch) that determines the succession to the throne if the need arises elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
Exports | $2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 199,000 bbl/day (2003) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, bananas, shrimp, lobster, meat; zinc, lumber | crude oil, natural gas, refined products |
Exports - partners | US 35.4%, Germany 7.5%, El Salvador 6.4%, Guatemala 5.8%, Nicaragua 4.8% (1999) | Japan 38.1%, South Korea 14%, Australia 11.2%, US 8.6%, Thailand 7.9%, Indonesia 5.9%, China 4.5% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | 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 | yellow with two diagonal bands of white (top, almost double width) and black starting from the upper hoist side; the national emblem in red is superimposed at the center; the emblem includes a swallow-tailed flag on top of a winged column within an upturned crescent above a scroll and flanked by two upraised hands |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $17 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
16.2% industry: 31.9% services: 51.9% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 45% services: 50% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $23,600 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 3.2% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 86 30 W | 4 30 N, 114 40 E |
Geography - note | - | close to vital sea lanes through South China Sea linking Indian and Pacific Oceans; two parts physically separated by Malaysia; almost an enclave of Malaysia |
Heliports | - | 3 (2004 est.) |
Highways | total:
15,400 km paved: 3,126 km unpaved: 12,274 km (1999 est.) |
total: 2,525 km
paved: 2,525 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1.2% highest 10%: 42.1% (1996) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for drugs and narcotics; illicit producer of cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used principally for local consumption; corruption is a major problem; vulnerable to money laundering | drug trafficking and illegally importing controlled substances are serious offenses in Brunei and carry a mandatory death penalty |
Imports | $2.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, chemicals |
Imports - partners | US 47.1%, Guatemala 7.4%, El Salvador 5.9%, Mexico 4.8%, Japan 4.7% (1999) | Singapore 32.7%, Malaysia 21.2%, UK 8.3%, Japan 7.2% (2004) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 1 January 1984 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (1999 est.) | 5% (2002 est.) |
Industries | sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products | petroleum, petroleum refining, liquefied natural gas, construction |
Infant mortality rate | 30.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 12.61 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 11% (2000 est.) | 0.3% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | APEC, APT, ARF, ASEAN, C, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFRCS, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 740 sq km (1993 est.) | 10 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are elected for four-year terms by the National Congress) | Supreme Court (chief justice and judges are sworn in by the monarch for three-year terms) |
Labor force | 2.3 million (1997 est.) | 158,000
note: includes foreign workers and military personnel; temporary residents make up about 40% of labor force (2002 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 29%, industry 21%, services 50% (1998 est.) | agriculture, forestry, and fishing 10%, production of oil, natural gas, services, and construction 42%, government 48% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,520 km border countries: Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km |
total: 381 km
border countries: Malaysia 381 km |
Land use | arable land:
15% permanent crops: 3% permanent pastures: 14% forests and woodland: 54% other: 14% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0.57%
permanent crops: 0.76% other: 98.67% (2001) |
Languages | Spanish, Amerindian dialects | Malay (official), English, Chinese |
Legal system | rooted in Roman and Spanish civil law with increasing influence of English common law; recent judicial reforms include abandoning Napoleonic legal codes in favor of the oral adversarial system; accepts ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on English common law; for Muslims, Islamic Shari'a law supersedes civil law in a number of areas |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (128 seats; members are elected proportionally to the number of votes their party's presidential candidate receives to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 30 November 1997 (next to be held 25 November 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - PL 46%, PN 38%, PINU-SD 4%, PDC 2%, PUD 2%; seats by party - PL 67, PN 55, PINU-SD 3, PDC 2, PUD 1 |
Legislative Council met on 25 September 2004 for first time in 20 years with 21 members appointed by the Sultan; passed constitutional amendments calling for a 45-seat council with 15 elected members; Sultan dissolved council on 1 September 2005 and appointed a new council with 29 members as of 2 September 2005
elections: last held in March 1962 (date of next election NA) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
69.35 years male: 67.51 years female: 71.28 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 74.8 years
male: 72.36 years female: 77.36 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 72.7% male: 72.6% female: 72.7% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.9% male: 96.3% female: 91.4% (2002) |
Location | Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Nicaragua and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Nicaragua | Southeastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and Malaysia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: natural extension of territory or to 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm or to median line |
Merchant marine | total:
313 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 760,819 GRT/820,582 DWT ships by type: bulk 21, cargo 187, chemical tanker 7, container 4, livestock carrier 2, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 52, refrigerated cargo 17, roll on/roll off 8, short-sea passenger 5, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Russia 4, Singapore 2, Vietnam 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 465,937 GRT/413,393 DWT
by type: liquefied gas 8 foreign-owned: 8 (United Kingdom 8) (2005) |
Military branches | Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force | Royal Brunei Armed Forces: Royal Brunei Land Forces, Royal Brunei Navy, Royal Brunei Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $35 million (FY99) | $290.7 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (FY99) | 5.1% (2004) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,515,101 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
902,220 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
72,335 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | National Day, 23 February (1984); note - 1 January 1984 was the date of independence from the UK, 23 February 1984 was the date of independence from British protection |
Nationality | noun:
Honduran(s) adjective: Honduran |
noun: Bruneian(s)
adjective: Bruneian |
Natural hazards | frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; damaging hurricanes and floods along Caribbean coast | typhoons, earthquakes, and severe flooding are rare |
Natural resources | timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, hydropower | petroleum, natural gas, timber |
Net migration rate | -2.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 3.45 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 665 km; oil 439 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Efrain DIAZ Arrivillaga, president]; Democratic Unification Party or PUD [Marias FUNES Valladares, president]; Liberal Party or PL [Carlos Roberto FLORES Facusse, president]; National Innovation and Unity Party-Social Democratic Party or PINU-SD [Olban VALLADARES, president]; National Party of Honduras or PN [Carlos URBIZO, president] | National Development Party (NDP) [Yassin AFFENDI]; National Unity Party of Brunei (PPKB) [leader NA]; People's Awareness Party (PAKAR) [leader NA]
note: parties are small and inactive (2005) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Honduras or CODEH; Confederation of Honduran Workers or CTH; Coordinating Committee of Popular Organizations or CCOP; General Workers Confederation or CGT; Honduran Council of Private Enterprise or COHEP; National Association of Honduran Campesinos or ANACH; National Union of Campesinos or UNC; Popular Bloc or BP; United Federation of Honduran Workers or FUTH | NA |
Population | 6,406,052
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
372,361 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 53% (1993 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.43% (2001 est.) | 1.9% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | La Ceiba, Puerto Castilla, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo, Tela, Puerto Lempira | Lumut, Muara, Seria |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 241, FM 53, shortwave 12 (1998) | AM 3, FM 10, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 2.45 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
595 km narrow gauge: 349 km 1.067-m gauge; 246 km 0.914-m gauge (1999) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant minority | Muslim (official) 67%, Buddhist 13%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs and other 10% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.13 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 1.09 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | none |
Telephone system | general assessment:
inadequate system domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
general assessment: service throughout the country is excellent; international service is good to East Asia, Europe, and the US
domestic: every service available international: country code - 673; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean); digital submarine cable links to Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 234,000 (1997) | 90,000 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 14,427 (1997) | 137,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus 17 repeaters) (1997) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains | flat coastal plain rises to mountains in east; hilly lowland in west |
Total fertility rate | 4.15 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.3 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 28% (2000 est.) | 3.2% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 465 km (navigable by small craft) | 209 km (navigable by craft drawing less than 1.2 m) (2004) |