Honduras (2002) | Belgium (2007) | |
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 | 10 provinces (French: provinces, singular - province; Dutch: provincies, singular - provincie) and 3 regions* (French: regions; Dutch: gewesten); Brussels* (Bruxelles) capital region; Flanders* region (five provinces): Antwerpen (Antwerp), Limburg, Oost-Vlaanderen (East Flanders), Vlaams-Brabant (Flemish Brabant), West-Vlaanderen (West Flanders); Wallonia* region (five provinces): Brabant Wallon (Walloon Brabant), Hainaut, Liege, Luxembourg, Namur
note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 41.8% (male 1,400,778; female 1,340,834)
15-64 years: 54.6% (male 1,774,619; female 1,806,568) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 112,100; female 125,709) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 16.5% (male 873,130/female 836,785)
15-64 years: 66.1% (male 3,467,044/female 3,406,030) 65 years and over: 17.4% (male 746,969/female 1,062,268) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp | sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco; beef, veal, pork, milk |
Airports | 117 (2001) | 43 (2007) |
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: 3 under 914 m: 4 (2002) |
total: 27
over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 9 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 103
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 18 under 914 m: 83 (2002) |
total: 16
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 15 (2007) |
Area | total: 112,090 sq km
land: 111,890 sq km water: 200 sq km |
total: 30,528 sq km
land: 30,278 sq km water: 250 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Tennessee | about the size of Maryland |
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 country was devastated by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, which killed about 5,600 people and caused almost $1 billion in damage. | Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830; it was occupied by Germany during World Wars I and II. The country prospered in the past half century as a modern, technologically advanced European state and member of NATO and the EU. Tensions between the Dutch-speaking Flemings of the north and the French-speaking Walloons of the south have led in recent years to constitutional amendments granting these regions formal recognition and autonomy. |
Birth rate | 31.21 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.29 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $607 million
expenditures: $411.9 million, including capital expenditures of $106 million (1999 est.) |
revenues: $193.6 billion
expenditures: $193.2 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | Tegucigalpa | name: Brussels
geographic coordinates: 50 50 N, 4 20 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Climate | subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains | temperate; mild winters, cool summers; rainy, humid, cloudy |
Coastline | 820 km | 66.5 km |
Constitution | 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995 | 7 February 1831; amended many times; revised 14 July 1993 to create a federal state |
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: Kingdom of Belgium
conventional short form: Belgium local long form: Royaume de Belgique/Koninkrijk Belgie local short form: Belgique/Belgie |
Currency | lempira (HNL) | - |
Death rate | 5.74 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.32 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.6 billion (2001) (2001) | $1.053 trillion (30 June 2006 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Larry Leon PALMER
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 Sam FOX
embassy: Regentlaan 27 Boulevard du Regent, B-1000 Brussels mailing address: PSC 82, Box 002, APO AE 09710 telephone: [32] (2) 508-2111 FAX: [32] (2) 511-2725 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mario Miguel CANAHUATI
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, Phoenix, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Tampa honorary consulate(s): Boston, Detroit, Jacksonville, and St. Louis |
chief of mission: Ambassador Dominique STRUYE DE SWIELANDE
chancery: 3330 Garfield Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 333-6900 FAX: [1] (202) 333-3079 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York consulate(s): Atlanta |
Disputes - international | Honduras claims Sapodilla Cays off the coast of Belize; El Salvador disputes tiny Conejo Island off Honduras in the Golfo de Fonseca; many of the "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary remain undemarcated despite ICJ adjudication in 1992; 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 a tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua; Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over disputed maritime boundary involving 50,000 sq km in the Caribbean Sea, including the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank | none |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $1.072 billion (2002) |
Economic aid - recipient | $557.8 million (1999) (1999) | - |
Economy - overview | Honduras, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere with an extraordinarily unequal distribution of income, 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 the country has met most of its macroeconomic targets, it failed to meet the IMF's goals to liberalize its energy and telecommunications sectors. Growth remains dependent on the status of the US economy, its major trading partner, on commodity prices, particularly coffee, and on containment of the recent rise in crime. | This modern, private-enterprise economy has capitalized on its central geographic location, highly developed transport network, and diversified industrial and commercial base. Industry is concentrated mainly in the populous Flemish area in the north. With few natural resources, Belgium must import substantial quantities of raw materials and export a large volume of manufactures, making its economy unusually dependent on the state of world markets. Roughly three-quarters of its trade is with other EU countries. Public debt is more than 90% of GDP. On the positive side, the government has succeeded in balancing its budget, and income distribution is relatively equal. Belgium began circulating the euro currency in January 2002. Economic growth in 2001-03 dropped sharply because of the global economic slowdown, with moderate recovery in 2004-06. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.593 billion kWh (2000) | 82.99 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 5 million kWh (2000) | 8.024 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 275 million kWh (2000) | 14.33 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 3.573 billion kWh (2000) | 80.84 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 37%
hydro: 63% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro Las Minas 2,870 m |
lowest point: North Sea 0 m
highest point: Signal de Botrange 694 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 | the environment is exposed to intense pressures from human activities: urbanization, dense transportation network, industry, extensive animal breeding and crop cultivation; air and water pollution also have repercussions for neighboring countries; uncertainties regarding federal and regional responsibilities (now resolved) have slowed progress in tackling environmental challenges |
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, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1% | Fleming 58%, Walloon 31%, mixed or other 11% |
Exchange rates | lempiras per US dollar - 16.0256 (January 2002), 15.9197 (2001), 15.1407 (2000), 14.5039 (1999), 13.8076 (1998), 13.0942 (1997) | euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Ricardo (Joest) MADURO (since 27 January 2002); First Vice President Vicente WILLIAMS Agasse (since 27 January 2002); Second Vice President Armida Villela Maria DE LOPEZ Contreras (since 27 January 2002); Third Vice President Alberto DIAZ Lobo (since 27 January 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Ricardo (Joest) MADURO (since 27 January 2002); First Vice President Vicente WILLIAMS Agasse (since 27 January 2002); Second Vice President Armida Villela Maria DE LOPEZ Contreras (since 27 January 2002); Third Vice President Alberto DIAZ Lobo (since 27 January 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 25 November 2001 (next to be held NA November 2005) election results: Ricardo (Joest) MADURO (PN) elected president - 52.2%, Raphael PINEDA Ponce (PL) 44.3%, others 3.5% |
chief of state: King ALBERT II (since 9 August 1993); Heir Apparent Prince PHILIPPE, son of the monarch
head of government: Prime Minister Guy VERHOFSTADT (since 13 July 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers formally appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary and constitutional; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch and then approved by parliament note: government coalition - Open VLD, MR, PS, SP.A-Spirit |
Exports | $2 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | 523,400 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, bananas, shrimp, lobster, meat; zinc, lumber | machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs |
Exports - partners | US 39.9%, El Salvador 9.2%, Germany 7.9%, Belgium 5.8%, Guatemala 5.4% (2000) | Germany 19.7%, France 16.9%, Netherlands 12%, UK 7.9%, US 6.2%, Italy 5.2% (2006) |
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 | three equal vertical bands of black (hoist side), yellow, and red; the design was based on the flag of France |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $17 billion (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 18%
industry: 32% services: 50% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 24.3% services: 74.7% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.1% (2001 est.) | 3% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 86 30 W | 50 50 N, 4 00 E |
Geography - note | has only a short Pacific coast but a long Caribbean shoreline, including the virtually uninhabited eastern Mosquito Coast | crossroads of Western Europe; majority of West European capitals within 1,000 km of Brussels, the seat of both the European Union and NATO |
Heliports | - | 1 (2007) |
Highways | total: 15,400 km
paved: 3,126 km unpaved: 12,274 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0%
highest 10%: 44% (1997) (1997) |
lowest 10%: 3.4%
highest 10%: 28.1% (2000) |
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; some money-laundering activity | growing producer of synthetic drugs and cannabis; transit point for US-bound ecstasy; source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for cocaine, heroin, hashish, and marijuana entering Western Europe; despite a strengthening of legislation, the country remains vulnerable to money laundering related to narcotics, automobiles, alcohol, and tobacco; significant domestic consumption of ecstasy |
Imports | $2.7 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | 1.109 million bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs | machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, transportation equipment, oil products |
Imports - partners | US 46.1%, Guatemala 8.2%, El Salvador 6.6%, Mexico 4.7%, Japan 4.6% (2000) | Netherlands 18.3%, Germany 17.3%, France 11.2%, UK 6.6%, Ireland 5.7%, US 5.4% (2006) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 4 October 1830 (a provisional government declared independence from the Netherlands); 21 July 1831 (King LEOPOLD I ascended to the throne) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (1999 est.) | 3% (2006 est.) |
Industries | sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products | engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, transportation equipment, scientific instruments, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum |
Infant mortality rate | 30.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 4.56 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.13 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 9.7% (2001 est.) | 1.8% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNITAR, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 760 sq km (1998 est.) | 400 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are elected for seven-year terms by the National Congress) | Supreme Court of Justice or Hof van Cassatie (in Dutch) or Cour de Cassation (in French) (judges are appointed for life by the government; candidacies have to be submitted by the High Justice Council) |
Labor force | 2.3 million (1997 est.) | 4.9 million (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 34%, industry 21%, services 45% (2001 est.) | agriculture: 1.3%
industry: 24.5% services: 74.2% (2003 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,520 km
border countries: Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km |
total: 1,385 km
border countries: France 620 km, Germany 167 km, Luxembourg 148 km, Netherlands 450 km |
Land use | arable land: 15.15%
permanent crops: 3.13% other: 81.72% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 27.42%
permanent crops: 0.69% other: 71.89% note: includes Luxembourg (2005) |
Languages | Spanish, Amerindian dialects | Dutch (official) 60%, French (official) 40%, German (official) less than 1%, legally bilingual (Dutch and French) |
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 civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
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 25 November 2001 (next to be held NA November 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PN 61, PL 55, PUD 5, PDC 4, PINU-SD 3 |
bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate or Senaat in Dutch, Senat in French (71 seats; 40 members are directly elected by popular vote, 31 are indirectly elected; to serve four-year terms) and a Chamber of Deputies or Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers in Dutch, Chambre des Representants in French (150 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate and Chamber of Deputies - last held 10 June 2007 (next to be held June 2011) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - CDV/N-VA 19.4%, Open VLD 12.4%, MR 12.3%, VB 11.9%, PS 10.2%, SP.A-Spirit 10%, CDH 5.9%, Ecolo 5.8%, GROEN! 3.6%, List Dedecker 3.4%, FN 2.3%, other 2.8%; seats by party - CDV/N-VA 9, Open VLD 5, MR 6, VB 5, PS 4, SP.A-Spririt 4, CDH 2, Ecolo 2, GROEN! 1, List Dedecker 1, FN 1 (note - there are also 31 indirectly elected senators); Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - CDV/N-VA 18.5%, MR 12.5%, VB 12%, Open VLD 11.8%, PS 10.9%, SP.A-Spirit 10.3%, CDH 6.1%, Ecolo 5.1%, List Dedecker 4%, GROEN! 4%, FN 2%, other 2.8%; seats by party - CDV/N-VA 30, MR 23, VB 17, Open VLD 18, PS 20, SP.A-Spirit 14, CDH 10, Ecolo 8, List Dedecker 5, GROEN! 4, FN 1 note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities; this reality leaves six governments each with its own legislative assembly |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.77 years
male: 67.11 years female: 70.51 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 78.92 years
male: 75.75 years female: 82.24 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 74% male: 74% female: 74.1% (1999) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.) |
Location | Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Nicaragua and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Nicaragua | Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between France and the Netherlands |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
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
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: geographic coordinates define outer limit continental shelf: median line with neighbors |
Merchant marine | total: 284 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 749,243 GRT/846,942 DWT
ships by type: bulk 20, cargo 166, chemical tanker 5, container 6, livestock carrier 1, passenger 3, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 54, refrigerated cargo 12, roll on/roll off 8, short-sea passenger 4, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Argentina 1, Bahrain 1, Belize 1, British Virgin Islands 1, Bulgaria 1, China 8, Costa Rica 1, Cyprus 1, Egypt 6, El Salvador 1, Germany 1, Greece 18, Hong Kong 3, Indonesia 2, Italy 1, Japan 7, Lebanon 4, Liberia 4, Maldives 2, Marshall Islands 1, Mexico 1, Nigeria 1, Norway 1, Panama 14, Philippines 1, Romania 2, Russia 1, Saint Kitts and Nevis 3, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, Singapore 24, South Korea 12, Spain 1, Syria 1, Taiwan 4, Tanzania 1, Trinidad and Tobago 1, Turkey 2, Turks and Caicos Islands 1, United Arab Emirates 6, United Kingdom 1, United States 5, Vanuatu 1, Vietnam 1, Virgin Islands (UK) 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 68 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,786,089 GRT/6,074,664 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 20, cargo 5, chemical tanker 2, container 9, liquefied gas 16, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 10, roll on/roll off 5 foreign-owned: 9 (Denmark 3, France 1, Germany 1, Greece 4) registered in other countries: 123 (Bahamas 15, Bermuda 3, Cyprus 1, France 6, Gibraltar 3, Greece 16, Hong Kong 4, Liberia 1, Luxembourg 9, Malta 10, Marshall Islands 1, Mozambique 2, Netherlands 2, Netherlands Antilles 1, Panama 11, Portugal 9, Russia 6, Sierra Leone 1, Singapore 8, St Kitts and Nevis 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 9, Vanuatu 4) (2007) |
Military branches | Army, Navy (including marines), Air Force | Belgian Armed Forces: Land Operations Command, Naval Operations Command, Air Operations Commands (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $35 million (FY99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (FY99) | 1.3% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,563,174 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 930,718 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 72,335 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | 21 July (1831) ascension to the Throne of King Leopold I |
Nationality | noun: Honduran(s)
adjective: Honduran |
noun: Belgian(s)
adjective: Belgian |
Natural hazards | frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; extremely susceptible to damaging hurricanes and floods along the Caribbean coast | flooding is a threat along rivers and in areas of reclaimed coastal land, protected from the sea by concrete dikes |
Natural resources | timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, hydropower | construction materials, silica sand, carbonates |
Net migration rate | -2.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 1.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 1,561 km; oil 158 km; refined products 535 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Dr. Hernan CORRALES Padilla]; Democratic Unification Party or PUD [leader NA]; Liberal Party or PL [Roberto MICHELETTI Bain]; National Innovation and Unity Party-Social Democratic Party or PINU-SD [Olban F. VALLADARES]; National Party of Honduras or PN [Raphael CALLEJAS] | Flemish parties: Christian Democrats and Flemish or CDV [Jo VANDEURZEN]; Flemish Liberals and Democrats or Open VLD [Bart SOMERS]; GROEN! [Vera DUA] (formerly AGALEV, Flemish Greens); List Dedecker [Jean-Marie DEDECKER]; New Flemish Alliance or N-VA [Bart DE WEVER]; Social Progressive Alternative or SP.A [Johan Vande LANOTTE]; Spirit [Geert LAMBERT] (new party now associated with SP.A); Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) or VB [Frank VANHECKE]
Francophone parties: Ecolo (Francophone Greens) [Jean-Michel JAVAUX, Isabelle DURANT, Claude BROUIR]; Humanist and Democratic Center of CDH [Joelle MILQUET]; National Front or FN [Daniel FERET]; Reform Movement or MR [Didier REYNDERS]; Socialist Party or PS [Elio DI RUPO]; other minor parties |
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 | Christian, Socialist, and Liberal Trade Unions; Federation of Belgian Industries; numerous other associations representing bankers, manufacturers, middle-class artisans, and the legal and medical professions; various organizations represent the cultural interests of Flanders and Wallonia; various peace groups such as Pax Christi and groups representing immigrants |
Population | 6,560,608
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 2002 est.) |
10,392,226 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 53% (1993 est.) | 4% (1989 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.34% (2002 est.) | 0.12% (2007 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 7, FM 79, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 2.45 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total: 595 km
narrow gauge: 318 km 1.067-m gauge; 277 km 0.914-m gauge (2000) |
total: 3,536 km
standard gauge: 3,536 km 1.435-m gauge (2,950 km electrified) (2006) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant minority | Roman Catholic 75%, other (includes Protestant) 25% |
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: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.018 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.703 male(s)/female total population: 0.959 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: inadequate system
domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
general assessment: highly developed, technologically advanced, and completely automated domestic and international telephone and telegraph facilities
domestic: nationwide cellular telephone system; extensive cable network; limited microwave radio relay network international: country code - 32; landing point for a number of submarine cables that provide links to Europe, the Middle East, and Asia; satellite earth stations - 7 (Intelsat - 3) (2007) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 234,000 (1997) | 4.719 million (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 14,427 (1997) | 9.66 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus 17 repeaters) (1997) | 25 (plus 10 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains | flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills, rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast |
Total fertility rate | 4.03 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.64 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 28% (2001 est.) | 8.1% (2006 est.) |
Waterways | 465 km (navigable by small craft) | 2,043 km (1,528 km in regular commercial use) (2006) |