Honduras (2006) | Venezuela (2004) | |
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 | 23 states (estados, singular - estado), 1 federal district* (distrito federal), and 1 federal dependency** (dependencia federal); Amazonas, Anzoategui, Apure, Aragua, Barinas, Bolivar, Carabobo, Cojedes, Delta Amacuro, Dependencias Federales**, Distrito Federal*, Falcon, Guarico, Lara, Merida, Miranda, Monagas, Nueva Esparta, Portuguesa, Sucre, Tachira, Trujillo, Vargas, Yaracuy, Zulia
note: the federal dependency consists of 11 federally controlled island groups with a total of 72 individual islands |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 39.9% (male 1,491,170/female 1,429,816)
15-64 years: 56.7% (male 2,076,727/female 2,077,975) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 113,747/female 137,061) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 30.5% (male 3,930,413; female 3,687,744)
15-64 years: 64.5% (male 8,107,382; female 8,034,905) 65 years and over: 5% (male 571,289; female 685,654) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp | corn, sorghum, sugarcane, rice, bananas, vegetables, coffee; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish |
Airports | 116 (2006) | 368 (2003 est.) |
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 (2006) |
total: 127
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 31 914 to 1,523 m: 61 under 914 m: 19 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 105
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 19 under 914 m: 84 (2006) |
total: 242
1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 88 under 914 m: 144 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 112,090 sq km
land: 111,890 sq km water: 200 sq km |
total: 912,050 sq km
land: 882,050 sq km water: 30,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Tennessee | slightly more than twice the size of California |
Background | Once part of Spain's vast empire in the New World, Honduras became an independent nation in 1821. After two and a 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 leftist guerrillas. The country was devastated by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, which killed about 5,600 people and caused approximately $2 billion in damage. | Venezuela was one of three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others being Colombia and Ecuador). For most of the first half of the 20th century, Venezuela was ruled by generally benevolent military strongmen, who promoted the oil industry and allowed for some social reforms. Democratically elected governments have held sway since 1959. Current concerns include: a polarized political environment, a divided military, drug-related conflicts along the Colombian border, increasing internal drug consumption, overdependence on the petroleum industry with its price fluctuations, and irresponsible mining operations that are endangering the rain forest and indigenous peoples. |
Birth rate | 28.24 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 19.34 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.693 billion
expenditures: $1.938 billion; including capital expenditures of $106 million (2005 est.) |
revenues: $19.33 billion
expenditures: $24.34 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.6 billion (2003) |
Capital | name: Tegucigalpa
geographic coordinates: 14 06 N, 87 13 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November; note - these new dates become effective in 2007 |
Caracas |
Climate | subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains | tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands |
Coastline | 820 km | 2,800 km |
Constitution | 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995 | 30 December 1999 |
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: Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
conventional short form: Venezuela local long form: Republica Bolivariana de Venezuela local short form: Venezuela |
Currency | - | bolivar (VEB) |
Death rate | 5.28 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 4.9 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.795 billion (2005 est.) | $32.51 billion (2003) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Charles A. FORD
embassy: Avenida La Paz, Apartado Postal No. 3453, Tegucigalpa mailing address: American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa telephone: [504] 236-9320, 238-5114 FAX: [504] 236-9037 |
chief of mission: Ambassador William R. BROWNFIELD
embassy: Calle F con Calle Suapure, Urbanizacion Colinas de Valle Arriba, Caracas 1080 mailing address: P. O. Box 62291, Caracas 1060-A; APO AA 34037 telephone: [58] (212) 975-9234, 975-6411 FAX: [58] (212) 975-8991 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Roberto FLORES Bermudez
chancery: Suite 4-M, 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-7702 FAX: [1] (202) 966-9751 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco honorary consulate(s): Boston, Detroit, Jacksonville |
chief of mission: Ambassador Bernardo ALVAREZ
chancery: 1099 30th Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 342-2214 FAX: [1] (202) 342-6820 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
Disputes - international | in 1992, International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras border, but despite Organization of American States (OAS) intervention and a further ICJ ruling in 2003, full demarcation of the border remains stalled; 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 in the ICJ ruling, 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, which the OAS is attempting to revive; Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over a complex dispute over islands and maritime boundaries in the Caribbean Sea | claims all of the area west of the Essequibo River, preventing any discussion of a maritime boundary; Guyana has expressed its intention to join Barbados in asserting claims before UNCLOS that the Trinidad and Tobago's maritime boundary with Venezuela extends into their waters; maritime boundary dispute with Colombia in the Gulf of Venezuela and the Caribbean Sea; US, France and the Netherlands recognize Venezuela's claim to give full effect to Aves Island, which creates a Venezuelan EEZ/continental shelf extending over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea; Dominica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines protest Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation and other states' recognition of it |
Economic aid - recipient | $557.8 million (1999) | $74 million (2000) |
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 under the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and on debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. The country has met most of its macroeconomic targets, and began a three-year IMF Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PGRF) program in February 2004. Growth remains dependent on the economy of the US, its largest trading partner, on continued exports of non-traditional agricultural products (such as melons, chiles, tilapia, and shrimp), and on reduction of the high crime rate. | Venezuela continues to be highly dependent on the petroleum sector, which accounts for roughly one-third of GDP, around 80% of export earnings, and more than half of government operating revenues. Despite higher oil prices at the end of 2002 and into 2003, domestic political instability, culminating in a disastrous two-month national oil strike from December 2002 to February 2003, temporarily halted economic activity. The economy remained in depression in 2003, declining by 9.2% after an 8.9% fall in 2002. In late 2003, President CHAVEZ committed himself to $1 billion in new social programs, money the government does not have. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.369 billion kWh (2003) | 81.47 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 335 million kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 4.338 billion kWh (2003) | 87.6 billion kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro Las Minas 2,870 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Pico Bolivar (La Columna) 5,007 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 | sewage pollution of Lago de Valencia; oil and urban pollution of Lago de Maracaibo; deforestation; soil degradation; urban and industrial pollution, especially along the Caribbean coast; threat to the rainforest ecosystem from irresponsible mining operations |
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: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands |
Ethnic groups | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1% | Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Arab, German, African, indigenous people |
Exchange rates | lempiras per US dollar - 18.92 (2005), 18.206 (2004), 17.345 (2003), 16.433 (2002), 15.474 (2001) | bolivares per US dollar - 1,607.79 (2003), 1,160.95 (2002), 723.666 (2001), 679.96 (2000), 605.717 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Manuel ZELAYA Rosales (since 27 January 2006); First Vice President Elvin Ernesto SANTOS Ordonez (since 27 January 2006); Second Vice President (vacant); Third Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Manuel ZELAYA Rosales (since 27 January 2006); First Vice President Elvin Ernesto SANTOS Ordonez (since 27 January 2006); Second Vice President (vacant); Third Vice President (vacant) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 27 November 2005 (next to be held November 2009) election results: Manuel ZELAYA Rosales (PL) elected president - 49.8%, Porfirio "Pepe" LOBO Sosa (PN) 46.1%, other 4.1% |
chief of state: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias (since 3 February 1999); Vice President Jose Vicente RANGEL (since 28 April 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias (since 3 February 1999); Vice President Jose Vicente RANGEL (since 28 April 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 30 July 2000 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: Hugo CHAVEZ Frias reelected president; percent of vote - 60% note: a special presidential recall vote on 15 August 2004 resulted in a victory for CHAVEZ; percent of vote - 58% in favor of CHAVEZ fulfilling the remaining two years of his term, 42% in favor of terminating his presidency immediately |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, shrimp, bananas, gold, palm oil, fruit, lobster, lumber | petroleum, bauxite and aluminum, steel, chemicals, agricultural products, basic manufactures |
Exports - partners | US 73.2%, Guatemala 2.9%, El Salvador 2.9% (2005) | US 52.9%, Netherlands Antilles 5%, Dominican Republic 3% (2003) |
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 horizontal bands of yellow (top), blue, and red with the coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band and an arc of seven white five-pointed stars centered in the blue band |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $117.9 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 13.9%
industry: 31.2% services: 54.9% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 50% services: 45% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $4,800 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.2% (2005 est.) | -9.2% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 86 30 W | 8 00 N, 66 00 W |
Geography - note | has only a short Pacific coast but a long Caribbean shoreline, including the virtually uninhabited eastern Mosquito Coast | on major sea and air routes linking North and South America; Angel Falls in the Guiana Highlands is the world's highest waterfall |
Highways | - | total: 96,155 km
paved: 32,308 km unpaved: 63,847 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.6%
highest 10%: 42.7% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 0.8%
highest 10%: 36.5% (1998) |
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 | small-scale illicit producer of opium and coca for the processing of opiates and coca derivatives; however, large quantities of cocaine, heroin, and marijuana transit the country from Colombia bound for US and Europe; significant narcotics-related money-laundering activity, especially along the border with Colombia and on Margarita Island; active eradication program primarily targeting opium; increasing signs of drug-related activities by Colombian insurgents on border |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs (2000) | raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, construction materials |
Imports - partners | US 53.1%, Guatemala 6.5%, El Salvador 4.1% (2005) | US 28.8%, Colombia 7%, Brazil 6.6%, Mexico 4.3% (2003) |
Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) | 5 July 1811 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.7% (2003 est.) | -15.4% (2003 est.) |
Industries | sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products | petroleum, iron ore mining, construction materials, food processing, textiles, steel, aluminum, motor vehicle assembly |
Infant mortality rate | total: 25.82 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 29 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: 22.99 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.18 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8.8% (2005 est.) | 31.1% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | 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, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | CAN, CDB, FAO, G-3, G-15, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 800 sq km (2003) | 540 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are elected for seven-year terms by the National Congress) | Supreme Tribunal of Justice or Tribuna Suprema de Justicia (magistrates are elected by the National Assembly for a single 12-year term) |
Labor force | 2.54 million (2005 est.) | 11.38 million (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 34%
industry: 21% services: 45% (2001 est.) |
agriculture 13%, industry 23%, services 64% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,520 km
border countries: Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km |
total: 4,993 km
border countries: Brazil 2,200 km, Colombia 2,050 km, Guyana 743 km |
Land use | arable land: 9.53%
permanent crops: 3.21% other: 87.26% (2005) |
arable land: 2.95%
permanent crops: 0.92% other: 96.13% (2001) |
Languages | Spanish, Amerindian dialects | Spanish (official), numerous indigenous dialects |
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 organic laws as of July 1999; open, adversarial court system; 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 27 November 2005 (next to be held November 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PL 62, PN 55, PUD 5, PDC 4, PINU 2 |
unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (165 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; three seats reserved for the indigenous peoples of Venezuela)
elections: last held 30 July 2000 (next to be held July 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - pro-government 108 (MVR 92, MAS 6, indigenous 3, other 7), opposition 57 (AD 33, COPEI 6, Justice First 5, other 13) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.33 years
male: 67.75 years female: 70.98 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 74.06 years
male: 71.02 years female: 77.32 years (2004 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
total population: 93.4% male: 93.8% female: 93.1% (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 | Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, between Colombia and Guyana |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | South America |
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 |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 15 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | total: 136 ships (1000 GRT or over) 405,984 GRT/557,179 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 11, cargo 61, chemical tanker 5, container 1, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 9, petroleum tanker 29, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 43 (Canada 1, China 3, Egypt 4, Greece 3, Hong Kong 2, Israel 1, Japan 4, South Korea 6, Lebanon 1, Mexico 1, Qatar 1, Singapore 11, Taiwan 2, Tanzania 1, US 1, Vietnam 1) (2006) |
total: 48 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 740,919 GRT/1,191,483 DWT
by type: bulk 6, cargo 7, container 2, liquefied gas 5, multi-functional large load carrier 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 16, roll on/roll off 8, short-sea/passenger 1 foreign-owned: Belgium 1, Denmark 2, Greece 2, Spain 1, United States 2 registered in other countries: 4 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy (includes naval infantry), Honduran Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Hondurena, FAH) (2006) | National Armed Forces (Fuerzas Armadas Nacionales or FAN) includes Ground Forces or Army (Fuerzas Terrestres or Ejercito), Naval Forces (Fuerzas Navales or Armada - including marines and Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerzas Aereas or Aviacion), Armed Forces of Cooperation or National Guard (Fuerzas Armadas de Cooperacion or Guardia Nacional) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $52.8 million (2005 est.) | $1,125.6 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.55% (2005 est.) | 1.3% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 6,886,775 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 4,953,803 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 250,730 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) | Independence Day, 5 July (1811) |
Nationality | noun: Honduran(s)
adjective: Honduran |
noun: Venezuelan(s)
adjective: Venezuelan |
Natural hazards | frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; extremely susceptible to damaging hurricanes and floods along the Caribbean coast | subject to floods, rockslides, mudslides; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, hydropower | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, bauxite, other minerals, hydropower, diamonds |
Net migration rate | -1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | -0.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | - | extra heavy crude 992 km; gas 5,262 km; oil 7,360 km; refined products 1,681 km; unknown (oil/water) 141 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Saul ESCOBAR Andrade]; Democratic Unification Party or PUD [Matias FUNES]; Liberal Party or PL [Patricia RODAS]; National Innovation and Unity Party or PINU [Olban F. VALLADARES]; National Party of Honduras or PN [Gilberto GOLDSTEIN] | Democratic Action or AD [Henry RAMOS Allup]; Fifth Republic Movement or MVR [Hugo CHAVEZ]; Homeland for All or PPT [Jose ALBORNOZ]; Justice First [Julio BORGES]; Movement Toward Socialism or MAS [Hector MUJICA]; National Convergence or Convergencia [Juan Jose CALDERA]; Radical Cause or La Causa R [Andres VELASQUEZ]; Social Christian Party or COPEI [Eduardo FERNANDEZ]; Venezuela Project or PV [Henrique SALAS Romer] |
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 Confederation of Honduran Workers or CUTH | FEDECAMARAS, a conservative business group; VECINOS groups; Venezuelan Confederation of Workers or CTV (labor organization dominated by the Democratic Action) |
Population | 7,326,496
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 2006 est.) |
25,017,387 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 53% (1993 est.) | 47% (1998 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.16% (2006 est.) | 1.44% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Amuay, Bajo Grande, El Tablazo, La Guaira, La Salina, Maracaibo, Matanzas, Palua, Puerto Cabello, Puerto la Cruz, Puerto Ordaz, Puerto Sucre, Punta Cardon |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 241, FM 53, shortwave 12 (1998) | AM 201, FM NA (20 in Caracas), shortwave 11 (1998) |
Railways | total: 699 km
narrow gauge: 279 km 1.067-m gauge; 420 km 0.914-m gauge (2005) |
total: 682 km
standard gauge: 682 km 1.435-m gauge (2003) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant 3% | nominally Roman Catholic 96%, Protestant 2%, other 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2004 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: modern and expanding
domestic: domestic satellite system with 3 earth stations; recent substantial improvement in telephone service in rural areas; substantial increase in digitalization of exchanges and trunk lines; installation of a national interurban fiber-optic network capable of digital multimedia services international: country code - 58; 3 submarine coaxial cables; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 PanAmSat; participating with Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia in the construction of an international fiber-optic network |
Telephones - main lines in use | 494,400 (2005) | 2,841,800 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.282 million (2005) | 6,463,600 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus 17 repeaters) (1997) | 66 (plus 45 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains | Andes Mountains and Maracaibo Lowlands in northwest; central plains (llanos); Guiana Highlands in southeast |
Total fertility rate | 3.59 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 2.31 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 28% (2005 est.) | 18% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | 465 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2005) | 7,100 km
note: Orinoco River and Lake de Maracaibo navigable by oceangoing vessels, Orinoco for 400 km (2004) |