Honduras (2004) | Zambia (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 | 9 provinces; Central, Copperbelt, Eastern, Luapula, Lusaka, Northern, North-Western, Southern, Western |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 41.2% (male 1,434,555; female 1,376,216)
15-64 years: 55.1% (male 1,866,219; female 1,896,027) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 118,404; female 132,147) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 45.7% (male 2,633,578/female 2,608,714)
15-64 years: 51.9% (male 2,969,913/female 2,990,923) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 116,818/female 157,501) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp | corn, sorghum, rice, peanuts, sunflower seed, vegetables, flowers, tobacco, cotton, sugarcane, cassava (tapioca), coffee; cattle, goats, pigs, poultry, milk, eggs, hides |
Airports | 115 (2003 est.) | 107 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 104
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 18 under 914 m: 84 (2004 est.) |
total: 98
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 64 under 914 m: 29 (2007) |
Area | total: 112,090 sq km
land: 111,890 sq km water: 200 sq km |
total: 752,614 sq km
land: 740,724 sq km water: 11,890 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Tennessee | slightly larger than 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. The country was devastated by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, which killed about 5,600 people and caused approximately $2 billion in damage. | The territory of Northern Rhodesia was administered by the [British] South Africa Company from 1891 until it was taken over by the UK in 1923. During the 1920s and 1930s, advances in mining spurred development and immigration. The name was changed to Zambia upon independence in 1964. In the 1980s and 1990s, declining copper prices and a prolonged drought hurt the economy. Elections in 1991 brought an end to one-party rule, but the subsequent vote in 1996 saw blatant harassment of opposition parties. The election in 2001 was marked by administrative problems with three parties filing a legal petition challenging the election of ruling party candidate Levy MWANAWASA. The new president launched an anticorruption task force in 2002, but the government has yet to make a prosecution. The Zambian leader was reelected in 2006 in an election that was deemed free and fair. |
Birth rate | 31.04 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 40.78 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.342 billion
expenditures: $1.744 billion, including capital expenditures of $106 million (2003) |
revenues: $2.309 billion
expenditures: $2.486 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | Tegucigalpa | name: Lusaka
geographic coordinates: 15 25 S, 28 17 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains | tropical; modified by altitude; rainy season (October to April) |
Coastline | 820 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995 | 24 August 1991; amended in 1996 to establish presidential term limits |
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: Republic of Zambia
conventional short form: Zambia former: Northern Rhodesia |
Currency | lempira (HNL) | - |
Death rate | 6.64 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 21.46 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.246 billion (2003) | $2.513 billion (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 Carmen M. MARTINEZ
embassy: corner of Independence and United Nations Avenues, Lusaka mailing address: P. O. Box 31617, Lusaka telephone: [260] (1) 250-955 FAX: [260] (1) 252-225 |
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 honorary consulate(s): Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Jacksonville |
chief of mission: Ambassador Inonge MBIKUSITA-LEWANIKA
chancery: 2419 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-9717 through 9719 FAX: [1] (202) 332-0826 |
Disputes - international | in 1992, ICJ ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras border, and the OAS is assisting with a technical resolution of bolsones; in 2003, the ICJ rejected El Salvador's request to revise its decision on one bolsone; the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution to a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca with consideration of Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not mentioned by the ICJ, off Honduras in the Gulf of Fonseca; Honduras claims Sapodilla Cays off the coast of Belize but agreed to creation of a joint ecological park and Guatemalan corridor in the Caribbean in the failed 2002 Belize-Guatemala Differendum; Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over a complex maritime dispute in the Caribbean Sea | in 2004, Zimbabwe dropped objections to plans between Botswana and Zambia to build a bridge over the Zambezi River, thereby de facto recognizing a short, but not clearly delimited, Botswana-Zambia boundary in the river; 42,250 Congolese refugees in Zambia are offered voluntary repatriation in November 2006, most of whom are expected to return in the next two years; Angolan refugees too have been repatriating but 26,450 still remain with 90,000 others from other neighboring states in 2006 |
Economic aid - recipient | $557.8 million (1999) | $945 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | Honduras, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere with an extraordinarily unequal distribution of income and massive unemployment, 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 has 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 reduction of the high crime rate. | Despite progress in privatization and budgetary reform, Zambia's economic growth in 2005-06 remained somewhat below the 6-7% per year needed to reduce poverty significantly. Privatization of government-owned copper mines relieved the government from covering mammoth losses generated by the industry and greatly improved the chances for copper mining to return to profitability and spur economic growth. Copper output has increased steadily since 2004, due to higher copper prices and the opening of new mines. The maize harvest was good again in 2005, helping to boost GDP and agricultural exports. Cooperation continues with international bodies on programs to reduce poverty, including a new lending arrangement with the IMF in the second quarter of 2004. A tighter monetary policy will help cut inflation, but Zambia still has a serious problem with high public debt. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.822 billion kWh (2001) | 8.655 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 243 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 308 million kWh (2001) | 465 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 3.778 billion kWh (2001) | 8.85 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro Las Minas 2,870 m |
lowest point: Zambezi river 329 m
highest point: unnamed location in Mafinga Hills 2,301 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 | air pollution and resulting acid rain in the mineral extraction and refining region; chemical runoff into watersheds; poaching seriously threatens rhinoceros, elephant, antelope, and large cat populations; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; lack of adequate water treatment presents human health risks |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1% | African 98.7%, European 1.1%, other 0.2% |
Exchange rates | lempiras per US dollar - 17.3453 (2003), 16.4334 (2002), 15.4737 (2001), 14.8392 (2000), 14.2132 (1999) | Zambian kwacha per US dollar - 3,601.5 (2006), 4,463.5 (2005), 4,778.9 (2004), 4,733.3 (2003), 4,398.6 (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 27 November 2005) election results: Ricardo (Joest) MADURO (PN) elected president - 52.2%, Raphael PINEDA Ponce (PL) 44.3%, others 3.5% |
chief of state: President Levy MWANAWASA (since 2 January 2002); Vice President Rupiah BANDA (since 9 October 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Levy MWANAWASA (since 2 January 2002); Vice President Rupiah BANDA (since 9 October 2006) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 28 September 2006 (next to be held in 2011); vice president appointed by the president election results: Levy MWANAWASA reelected president; percent of vote - Levy MWANAWASA 43.0%, Michael SATA 29.4%, Hakainde HICHILEMA 25.3%, Godfrey MIYANDA 1.6%, Winright NGONDO 0.8% |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | coffee, bananas, shrimp, lobster, meat; zinc, lumber (2000) | copper/cobalt 64%, cobalt, electricity; tobacco, flowers, cotton |
Exports - partners | US 65.5%, El Salvador 3.5%, Guatemala 2.4% (2003) | Switzerland 38.4%, South Africa 21.6%, China 10.3%, UK 7.6%, Tanzania 6.4% (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 | green with a panel of three vertical bands of red (hoist side), black, and orange below a soaring orange eagle, on the outer edge of the flag |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $17.55 billion (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 12.8%
industry: 31.9% services: 55.3% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 18%
industry: 25.7% services: 56.3% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2003 est.) | 5.8% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 86 30 W | 15 00 S, 30 00 E |
Geography - note | has only a short Pacific coast but a long Caribbean shoreline, including the virtually uninhabited eastern Mosquito Coast | landlocked; the Zambezi forms a natural riverine boundary with Zimbabwe |
Highways | total: 13,603 km
paved: 2,775 km unpaved: 10,828 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.6%
highest 10%: 42.7% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 1.2%
highest 10%: 38.8% (2004) |
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 | transshipment point for moderate amounts of methaqualone, small amounts of heroin, and cocaine bound for southern Africa and possibly Europe; a poorly developed financial infrastructure coupled with a government commitment to combating money laundering make it an unattractive venue for money launderers; major consumer of cannabis |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs (2000) | machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, electricity, fertilizer; foodstuffs, clothing |
Imports - partners | US 53.1%, El Salvador 4.5%, Mexico 3% (2003) | South Africa 47.3%, UAE 10.4%, Zimbabwe 5.7%, Norway 4% (2006) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 24 October 1964 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.7% (2003 est.) | 10.1% (2006 est.) |
Industries | sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products | copper mining and processing, construction, foodstuffs, beverages, chemicals, textiles, fertilizer, horticulture |
Infant mortality rate | total: 29.64 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 33.22 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 100.71 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 105.48 deaths/1,000 live births female: 95.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.7% (2003 est.) | 9% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 760 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,560 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 (the final court of appeal; justices are appointed by the president); High Court (has unlimited jurisdiction to hear civil and criminal cases) |
Labor force | 2.41 million (2003 est.) | 4.92 million (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 34%, industry 21%, services 45% (2001 est.) | agriculture: 85%
industry: 6% services: 9% (2004) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,520 km
border countries: Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km |
total: 5,664 km
border countries: Angola 1,110 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 1,930 km, Malawi 837 km, Mozambique 419 km, Namibia 233 km, Tanzania 338 km, Zimbabwe 797 km |
Land use | arable land: 9.55%
permanent crops: 3.22% other: 87.23% (2001) |
arable land: 6.99%
permanent crops: 0.04% other: 92.97% (2005) |
Languages | Spanish, Amerindian dialects | English (official), major vernaculars - Bemba, Kaonda, Lozi, Lunda, Luvale, Nyanja, Tonga, and about 70 other indigenous languages |
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 and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in an ad hoc constitutional council; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 27 November 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PN 61, PL 55, PUD 5, PDC 4, PINU-SD 3 |
unicameral National Assembly (158 seats; 150 members are elected by popular vote, 8 members are appointed by the president, to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 28 September 2006 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - MMD 72, PF 44, UDA 27, ULP 2, NDF 1, independents 2; seats not determined 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 66.15 years
male: 64.99 years female: 67.37 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 38.44 years
male: 38.34 years female: 38.54 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 76.2% male: 76.1% female: 76.3% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write English
total population: 80.6% male: 86.8% female: 74.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Nicaragua and bordering the Gulf of Fonseca (North Pacific Ocean), between El Salvador and Nicaragua | Southern Africa, east of Angola |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: natural extension of territory or to 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 238 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 598,600 GRT/616,158 DWT
by type: bulk 12, cargo 139, chemical tanker 5, combination bulk 1, container 5, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 3, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 54, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea/passenger 3 foreign-owned: Argentina 1, Bahrain 1, British Virgin Islands 1, Bulgaria 1, Cayman Islands 1, China 4, Costa Rica 1, Cyprus 1, Egypt 5, El Salvador 1, Greece 16, Hong Kong 3, Indonesia 2, Israel 1, Italy 1, Japan 2, Jordan 1, South Korea 9, Lebanon 4, Liberia 4, Maldives 2, Marshall Islands 3, Mexico 1, Nigeria 2, Panama 10, Philippines 1, Russia 1, Saint Kitts and Nevis 3, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, Saudi Arabia 1, Singapore 22, Spain 1, Taiwan 2, Tanzania 1, Thailand 1, Turkey 2, Turks and Caicos Islands 1, United States 7, Vanuatu 1, Vietnam 1 registered in other countries: 16 (2004 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Army, Navy (including Naval Infantry), Air Force | Zambian National Defense Force (ZNDF): Army, Air Force, Police, National Service |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $99.8 million (2003) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.5% (2003) | 1.8% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,642,029 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 977,130 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 76,143 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | Independence Day, 24 October (1964) |
Nationality | noun: Honduran(s)
adjective: Honduran |
noun: Zambian(s)
adjective: Zambian |
Natural hazards | frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; extremely susceptible to damaging hurricanes and floods along the Caribbean coast | periodic drought, tropical storms (November to April) |
Natural resources | timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, hydropower | copper, cobalt, zinc, lead, coal, emeralds, gold, silver, uranium, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -1.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -2.68 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | oil 771 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Juan Ramon VELAZQUEZ Nassar]; Democratic Unification Party or PUD [Matias FUNES]; 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 [Jose Celin DISCUA Elvir]; United Confederation of Honduran Workers or CUTH | All Peoples Congress Party [Winright NGONDO]; Forum for Democracy and Development or FDD [Edith NAWAKWI]; Heritage Party or HP [Godfrey MIYANDA]; Liberal Progressive Front or LPF [Roger CHONGWE]; Movement for Multiparty Democracy or MMD [Levy MWANAWASA]; National Democratic Focus or NDF; Patriotic Front or PF [Michael SATA]; Party of Unity for Democracy and Development or PUDD [Dan PULE]; Reform Party [Nevers MUMBA]; United Democratic Alliance or UDA; United Liberal Party or ULP [Sakwiba SIKOTA]; United National Independence Party or UNIP [Tilyenji KAUNDA]; United Party for National Development or UPND [Hakainde HICHILEMA]; Zambia Democratic Congress or ZADECO [Langton SICHONE]; Zambian Republican Party or ZRP [Benjamin MWILA] |
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 | 6,823,568
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 2004 est.) |
11,477,447
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 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 53% (1993 est.) | 86% (1993) |
Population growth rate | 2.24% (2004 est.) | 1.664% (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 19, FM 5, shortwave 4 (2001) |
Railways | total: 699 km
narrow gauge: 279 km 1.067-m gauge; 420 km 0.914-m gauge (2003) |
total: 2,157 km
narrow gauge: 2,157 km 1.067-m gauge note: includes 891 km of the Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) (2006) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant minority | Christian 50%-75%, Muslim and Hindu 24%-49%, indigenous beliefs 1% |
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 (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.993 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.742 male(s)/female total population: 0.994 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: inadequate system
domestic: NA international: country code - 504; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
general assessment: facilities are aging but still among the best in Sub-Saharan Africa
domestic: high-capacity microwave radio relay connects most larger towns and cities; several cellular telephone services in operation; Internet service is widely available; very small aperture terminal (VSAT) networks are operated by private firms international: country code - 260; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 322,500 (2002) | 94,700 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 326,500 (2002) | 949,600 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus 17 repeaters) (1997) | 9 (2001) |
Terrain | mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains | mostly high plateau with some hills and mountains |
Total fertility rate | 3.97 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 5.31 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.5% (2003 est.) | 50% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 465 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2004) | 2,250 km (includes Lake Tanganyika and the Zambezi and Luapula rivers) (2005) |