Honduras (2001) | Greenland (2006) | |
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 | 3 districts (landsdele); Avannaa (Nordgronland), Tunu (Ostgronland), Kitaa (Vestgronland)
note: there are 18 municipalities in Greenland |
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: 24.5% (male 7,072/female 6,740)
15-64 years: 68.9% (male 20,904/female 17,919) 65 years and over: 6.6% (male 1,768/female 1,958) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp | forage crops, garden and greenhouse vegetables; sheep, reindeer; fish |
Airports | 119 (2000 est.) | 14 (2006) |
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: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 5 (2006) |
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: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
Area | total:
112,090 sq km land: 111,890 sq km water: 200 sq km |
total: 2,166,086 sq km
land: 2,166,086 sq km (410,449 sq km ice-free, 1,755,637 sq km ice-covered) (2000 est.) |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Tennessee | slightly more than three times the size of Texas |
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. | Greenland, the world's largest island, is about 81% ice-capped. Vikings reached the island in the 10th century from Iceland; Danish colonization began in the 18th century, and Greenland was made an integral part of Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community (now the EU) with Denmark in 1973 but withdrew in 1985 over a dispute over stringent fishing quotas. Greenland was granted self-government in 1979 by the Danish parliament. The law went into effect the following year. Denmark continues to exercise control of Greenland's foreign affairs. |
Birth rate | 31.94 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 15.93 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$607 million expenditures: $411.9 million, including capital expenditures of $106 million (1999 est.) |
revenues: $646 million
expenditures: $629 million; including capital expenditures of $85 million (1999) |
Capital | Tegucigalpa | name: Nuuk (Godthab)
geographic coordinates: 64 11 N, 51 44 W time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: Greenland is divided into four time zones |
Climate | subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains | arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters |
Coastline | 820 km | 44,087 km |
Constitution | 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995 | 5 June 1953 (Danish constitution) |
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: none
conventional short form: Greenland local long form: none local short form: Kalaallit Nunaat |
Currency | lempira (HNL) | - |
Death rate | 5.52 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.84 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.4 billion (2000) | $25 million (1999) |
Dependency status | - | part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979 |
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 |
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) |
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 |
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) |
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 | managed dispute between Canada and Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Canada's Ellesmere Island and Greenland |
Economic aid - recipient | $557.8 million (1999) | $380 million subsidy from Denmark (1997) |
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. | The economy remains critically dependent on exports of fish and substantial support from the Danish Government, which supplies about half of government revenues. The public sector, including publicly-owned enterprises and the municipalities, plays the dominant role in the economy. Despite several interesting hydrocarbon and mineral exploration activities, it will take a number of years before production can materialize. Tourism is the only sector offering any near-term potential, and even this is limited due to a short season and high costs. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.232 billion kWh (1999) | 225.3 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 145 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 3.319 billion kWh (1999) | 242.2 million kWh (2003) |
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: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Gunnbjorn 3,700 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 | protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1% | Greenlander 88% (Inuit and Greenland-born whites), Danish and others 12% (2000) |
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) | Danish kroner per US dollar - 5.9969 (2005), 5.9911 (2004), 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002), 8.3228 (2001) |
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: Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14 January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Soren MOLLER (since April 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Hans ENOKSEN (since 14 December 2002) cabinet: Home Rule Government is elected by the parliament (Landstinget) on the basis of the strength of parties elections: the monarchy is hereditary; high commissioner appointed by the monarch; prime minister is elected by parliament (usually the leader of the majority party); election last held 3 December 2002 (next to be held December 2006) election results: Hans ENOKSEN elected prime minister note: government coalition - Siumut and Inuit Ataqatigiit |
Exports | $2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | coffee, bananas, shrimp, lobster, meat; zinc, lumber | fish and fish products 94% (prawns 63%) |
Exports - partners | US 35.4%, Germany 7.5%, El Salvador 6.4%, Guatemala 5.8%, Nicaragua 4.8% (1999) | Denmark 62.5%, Japan 12.3%, China 5.3% (2005) |
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 | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a large disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half of the disk is red, the bottom half is white |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $17 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
16.2% industry: 31.9% services: 51.9% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 1.8% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 86 30 W | 72 00 N, 40 00 W |
Geography - note | - | dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe; sparse population confined to small settlements along coast, but close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk; world's second largest ice cap |
Highways | total:
15,400 km paved: 3,126 km unpaved: 12,274 km (1999 est.) |
- |
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 | - |
Imports | $2.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US 47.1%, Guatemala 7.4%, El Salvador 5.9%, Mexico 4.8%, Japan 4.7% (1999) | Denmark 66.8%, Sweden 19.3%, Ireland 3.6% (2005) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Industries | sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products | fish processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut); gold, niobium, tantalite, uranium, iron and diamond mining; handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards |
Infant mortality rate | 30.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 15.4 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 11% (2000 est.) | 1.6% (1999 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 | Arctic Council, NC, NIB, UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 740 sq km (1993 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are elected for four-year terms by the National Congress) | High Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the Ostre Landsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or Supreme Court in Copenhagen) |
Labor force | 2.3 million (1997 est.) | 24,500 (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 29%, industry 21%, services 50% (1998 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | total:
1,520 km border countries: Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
15% permanent crops: 3% permanent pastures: 14% forests and woodland: 54% other: 14% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | Spanish, Amerindian dialects | Greenlandic (East Inuit), Danish, English |
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 | Danish |
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 |
unicameral Parliament or Landstinget (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 15 November 2005 (next to be held by December 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - Siumut 30.7%, Demokratiit 22.8%, Inuit Ataqatigiit 22.6%, Atassut Party 19.1%; Katusseqatigiit 4.1%, other 0.7%; seats by party - Siumut 10, Demokratiit 7, Inuit Ataqatigiit 7, Atassut 6, Katusseqatigiit 1 note: two representatives were elected to the Danish Parliament or Folketing on 8 February 2005 (next to be held February 2009); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Siumut 1, Inuit Ataqatigiit 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
69.35 years male: 67.51 years female: 71.28 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 69.94 years
male: 66.36 years female: 73.6 years (2006 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: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (2001 est.) |
Location | Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Nicaragua and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Nicaragua | Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Arctic Region |
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: 3 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or 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: 3 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,540 GRT/2,540 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger 2 registered in other countries: 2 (Cyprus 1, Denmark 1) (2006) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of Denmark |
Military branches | Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $35 million (FY99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (FY99) | - |
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) | June 21 (longest day) |
Nationality | noun:
Honduran(s) adjective: Honduran |
noun: Greenlander(s)
adjective: Greenlandic |
Natural hazards | frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; damaging hurricanes and floods along Caribbean coast | continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island |
Natural resources | timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, hydropower | coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, gold, platinum, uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas |
Net migration rate | -2.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -8.37 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
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] | Atassut Party (Solidarity, a conservative party favoring continuing close relations with Denmark) [Finn KARLSEN]; Demokratiit [Per BERTHELSEN]; Inuit Ataqatigiit or IA (Eskimo Brotherhood, a leftist party favoring complete independence from Denmark rather than home rule) [Josef MOTZFELDT]; Issituup (Polar Party) [Nicolai HEINRICH]; Kattusseqatigiit (Candidate List, an independent right-of-center party with no official platform; Siumut (Forward Party, a social democratic party advocating more distinct Greenlandic identity and greater autonomy from Denmark) [Hans ENOKSEN] |
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.) |
56,361 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 53% (1993 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.43% (2001 est.) | -0.03% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | La Ceiba, Puerto Castilla, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo, Tela, Puerto Lempira | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 241, FM 53, shortwave 12 (1998) | AM 5, FM 12, 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 | Evangelical Lutheran |
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: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.17 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
inadequate system domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
general assessment: adequate domestic and international service provided by satellite, cables and microwave radio relay; totally digitalized in 1995
domestic: microwave radio relay and satellite international: country code - 299; satellite earth stations - 12 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 2 Americom GE-2 (all Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 234,000 (1997) | 25,300 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 14,427 (1997) | 32,200 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus 17 repeaters) (1997) | 1 publicly-owned station, some local low-power stations, and three AFRTS (US Air Force) stations (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains | flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow, mountainous, barren, rocky coast |
Total fertility rate | 4.15 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.4 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 28% (2000 est.) | 10% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 465 km (navigable by small craft) | - |