Ireland (2001) | Honduras (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 26 counties; Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Limerick, Longford, Louth, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, Tipperary, Waterford, Westmeath, Wexford, Wicklow | 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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
21.57% (male 425,328; female 403,204) 15-64 years: 67.08% (male 1,290,002; female 1,286,312) 65 years and over: 11.35% (male 188,868; female 247,124) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 41.6% (male 1,414,791; female 1,357,537)
15-64 years: 54.8% (male 1,811,757; female 1,843,456) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 114,791; female 127,457) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | turnips, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, wheat; beef, dairy products | bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp |
Airports | 44 (2000 est.) | 115 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
17 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.) |
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) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
27 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 25 (2000 est.) |
total: 103
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 18 under 914 m: 83 (2002) |
Area | total:
70,280 sq km land: 68,890 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 112,090 sq km
land: 111,890 sq km water: 200 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly larger than Tennessee |
Background | A failed 1916 Easter Monday Rebellion touched off several years of guerrilla warfare that in 1921 resulted in independence from the UK for the 26 southern counties; the six northern counties (Ulster) remained part of Great Britain. In 1948 Ireland withdrew from the British Commonwealth; it joined the European Community in 1973. Irish governments have sought the peaceful unification of Ireland and have cooperated with Britain against terrorist groups. A peace settlement for Northern Ireland, approved in 1998, was implemented the following year. | 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. |
Birth rate | 14.57 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 31.67 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$25.7 billion expenditures: $19.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $2 billion (2000) |
revenues: $607 million
expenditures: $411.9 million, including capital expenditures of $106 million (1999 est.) |
Capital | Dublin | Tegucigalpa |
Climate | temperate maritime; modified by North Atlantic Current; mild winters, cool summers; consistently humid; overcast about half the time | subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains |
Coastline | 1,448 km | 820 km |
Constitution | 29 December 1937; adopted 1 July 1937 by plebiscite | 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Ireland |
conventional long form: Republic of Honduras
conventional short form: Honduras local long form: Republica de Honduras local short form: Honduras |
Currency | Irish pound (IEP); euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in Ireland at a fixed rate of 0.787564 Irish pounds per euro and will replace the local currency for all transactions in 2002 |
lempira (HNL) |
Death rate | 8.07 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.44 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $11 billion (1998) | $5.4 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael J. SULLIVAN embassy: 42 Elgin Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [353] (1) 668-7122/668-8777 FAX: [353] (1) 668-9946 |
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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Sean O'HUIGINN chancery: 2234 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 462-3939 FAX: [1] (202) 232-5993 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, New York, and San Francisco |
chief of mission: Ambassador Mario Miguel CANAHUATI
chancery: Suite 4-M, 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-2604 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): Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Jacksonville |
Disputes - international | Northern Ireland issue with the UK (historic peace agreement signed 10 April 1998); disputes with Iceland, Denmark, and the UK over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM | in 1992, ICJ ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras border, but they still remain largely undemarcated; in 2002, El Salvador filed an application to the ICJ to revise the decision on a section of bolsones; the ICJ also advised a tripartite resolution to a maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca with consideration of Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador claims tiny Conejo Island, not mentioned by the ICJ, off Honduras in the Golfo de 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 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 |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $245 million (2000) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $557.8 million (1999) |
Economy - overview | Ireland is a small, modern, trade-dependent economy with growth averaging a robust 9% in 1995-2000. Agriculture, once the most important sector, is now dwarfed by industry, which accounts for 38% of GDP and about 80% of exports and employs 28% of the labor force. Although exports remain the primary engine for Ireland's robust growth, the economy is also benefiting from a rise in consumer spending and recovery in both construction and business investment. Over the past decade, the Irish government has implemented a series of national economic programs designed to curb inflation, reduce government spending, increase labor force skills, and promote foreign investment. Ireland joined in launching the euro currency system in January 1999 along with 10 other EU nations. The Irish economy is in danger of overheating, with the tight labor market driving up wage demands and inflation. | 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 reduction of the high crime rate. |
Electricity - consumption | 18.414 billion kWh (1999) | 3.822 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 50 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 290 million kWh (1999) | 308 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 19.542 billion kWh (1999) | 3.778 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
94.42% hydro: 4.23% nuclear: 0% other: 1.35% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 50.2%
hydro: 49.8% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Carrauntoohil 1,041 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro Las Minas 2,870 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution, especially of lakes, from agricultural runoff | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Marine Life Conservation |
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 |
Ethnic groups | Celtic, English | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1% |
Exchange rates | Irish pounds per US dollar - 1.0658 (January 2001), 1.0823 (2000), 0.9374 (1999), 0.7014 (1998), 0.6588 (1997), 0.6248 (1996) | lempiras per US dollar - 16.43 (2002), 15.47 (2001), 14.84 (2000), 14.21 (1999), 13.39 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Mary MCALEESE (since 11 November 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Bertie AHERN (since 26 June 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president with previous nomination by the prime minister and approval of the House of Representatives elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 31 October 1997 (next to be held NA November 2004); prime minister nominated by the House of Representatives and appointed by the president election results: Mary MCALEESE elected president; percent of vote - Mary MCALEESE 44.8%, Mary BANOTTI 29.6% note: government coalition - Fianna Fail and the Progressive Democrats |
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% |
Exports | $73.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, computers, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; live animals, animal products | coffee, bananas, shrimp, lobster, meat; zinc, lumber (2000) |
Exports - partners | EU 59% (UK 19%, Germany 9%, France 7%), US 20% (2000) | US 69.5%, El Salvador 3%, Guatemala 2% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and orange; similar to the flag of Cote d'Ivoire, which is shorter and has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green; also similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter and has colors of green (hoist side), white, and red | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $81.9 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $16.29 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
4% industry: 38% services: 58% (1999) |
agriculture: 14%
industry: 32% services: 54% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $21,600 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 9.9% (2000 est.) | 2.5% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 8 00 W | 15 00 N, 86 30 W |
Geography - note | strategic location on major air and sea routes between North America and northern Europe; over 40% of the population resides within 97 km of Dublin | has only a short Pacific coast but a long Caribbean shoreline, including the virtually uninhabited eastern Mosquito Coast |
Highways | total:
92,500 km paved: 87,043 km (including 115 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,457 km (1999 est.) |
total: 13,603 km
paved: 2,775 km unpaved: 10,828 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2% highest 10%: 27.3% (1997) |
lowest 10%: 0.6%
highest 10%: 42.7% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for and consumer of hashish from North Africa to the UK and Netherlands and of European-produced synthetic drugs; minor transshipment point for heroin and cocaine destined for Western Europe | 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 |
Imports | $45.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | data processing equipment, other machinery and equipment, chemicals; petroleum and petroleum products, textiles, clothing | machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs (2000) |
Imports - partners | EU 54% (UK 29%, Germany 6%, France 5%), US 18%, Japan 5%, Singapore 4% (2000) | US 55.3%, El Salvador 4.3%, Mexico 4.2% (2002) |
Independence | 6 December 1921 (from UK by treaty) | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 14% (2000 est.) | 4% (1999 est.) |
Industries | food products, brewing, textiles, clothing; chemicals, pharmaceuticals, machinery, transportation equipment, glass and crystal; software | sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products |
Infant mortality rate | 5.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 29.96 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 33.6 deaths/1,000 live births female: 26.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.6% (2000) | 7.7% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC | BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, 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), MINURSO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 22 (2000) | 8 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 760 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister and cabinet) | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are elected for seven-year terms by the National Congress) |
Labor force | 1.82 million (2000 est.) | 2.3 million (1997 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 64%, industry 28%, agriculture 8% (2000 est.) | agriculture 34%, industry 21%, services 45% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
360 km border countries: UK 360 km |
total: 1,520 km
border countries: Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km |
Land use | arable land:
13% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 68% forests and woodland: 5% other: 14% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 15.15%
permanent crops: 3.13% other: 81.72% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English is the language generally used, Irish (Gaelic) spoken mainly in areas located along the western seaboard | Spanish, Amerindian dialects |
Legal system | based on English common law, substantially modified by indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | 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 |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Oireachtas consists of the Senate or Seanad Eireann (60 seats - 49 elected by the universities and from candidates put forward by five vocational panels, 11 are nominated by the prime minister; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Dail Eireann (166 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held NA August 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); House of Representatives - last held 6 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Fianna Fail 29, Fine Gael 16, Labor Party 4, Progressive Democrats 4, others 7; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Fianna Fail 76, Fine Gael 53, Labor Party 19, Progressive Democrats 4, Democratic Left 4, Green Alliance 2, Sinn Fein 1, independents 7; note - seats by party in the House of Representatives as of 1 January 2001 were as follows: Fianna Fail 76, Fine Gael 54, Labor Party 21, Progressive Democrats 4, Green Alliance 2, Socialist Party 1, Sinn Fein 1, independents 7 |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
76.99 years male: 74.23 years female: 79.93 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 66.65 years
male: 65.31 years female: 68.06 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% (1981 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 76.2% male: 76.1% female: 76.3% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Europe, occupying five-sixths of the island of Ireland in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Great Britain | Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Nicaragua and bordering the Gulf of Fonseca (North Pacific Ocean), between El Salvador and Nicaragua |
Map references | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
not specified exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: natural extension of territory or to 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
29 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 115,554 GRT/135,391 DWT ships by type: bulk 4, cargo 22, container 2, short-sea passenger 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 250 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 680,784 GRT/765,815 DWT
ships by type: bulk 18, cargo 140, chemical tanker 4, container 7, livestock carrier 2, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 55, refrigerated cargo 10, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 4, specialized tanker 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, UK 1, US 5, Vanuatu 1, Vietnam 1, Virgin Islands (UK) 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army (includes Naval Service and Air Corps), National Police (Garda Siochana) | Army, Navy (including marines), Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $738 million (2001 est.) | $35 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.75% (2001 est.) | 0.6% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,004,469 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,594,266 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
809,808 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 948,957 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 17 years of age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
32,287 (2001 est.) |
males: 74,895 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Saint Patrick's Day, 17 March | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
Nationality | noun:
Irishman(men), Irishwoman(women), Irish (collective plural) adjective: Irish |
noun: Honduran(s)
adjective: Honduran |
Natural hazards | NA | frequent, but generally mild, earthquakes; extremely susceptible to damaging hurricanes and floods along the Caribbean coast |
Natural resources | zinc, lead, natural gas, barite, copper, gypsum, limestone, dolomite, peat, silver | timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 4.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -2.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | natural gas 7,592 km (transmission 1,158 km; distribution 6,434 km) (2000) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Left [Proinsias DE ROSSA]; Fianna Fail [Bertie AHERN]; Fine Gael [Michael NOONAN]; Green Party [Mary BOWERS]; Labor Party [Ruairi QUINN]; Progressive Democrats [Mary HARNEY]; Sinn Fein [Gerry ADAMS]; Socialist Party [Joe HIGGINS]; The Workers' Party [Tom FRENCH] | 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | 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 |
Population | 3,840,838 (July 2001 est.) | 6,669,789
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 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 10% (1997 est.) | 53% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.12% (2001 est.) | 2.32% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Arklow, Cork, Drogheda, Dublin, Foynes, Galway, Limerick, New Ross, Waterford | La Ceiba, Puerto Castilla, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo, Tela, Puerto Lempira |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 9, FM 106, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 241, FM 53, shortwave 12 (1998) |
Radios | 2.55 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
1,947 km broad gauge: 1,947 km 1.600-m gauge (38 km electrified; 485 km double track) (1998) |
total: 699 km
narrow gauge: 279 km 1.067-m gauge; 420 km 0.914-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 91.6%, Church of Ireland 2.5%, other 5.9% (1998) | Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant minority |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
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 (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment:
modern digital system using cable and microwave radio relay domestic: microwave radio relay international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: inadequate system
domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.59 million (2001) | 234,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2 million (2001) | 14,427 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (many low-power repeaters) (2001) | 11 (plus 17 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly level to rolling interior plain surrounded by rugged hills and low mountains; sea cliffs on west coast | mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains |
Total fertility rate | 1.9 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.07 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.1% (2000) | 28% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 700 km (limited facilities for commercial traffic) (1998) | 465 km (navigable by small craft) |