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North & Central America and Caribbean
Honduras |
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Last reviewed: 02 November 2009 |
Country information
HONDURAS TODAY
Country Facts
Area: 112,492 sq km
Population: 7.7 million (2008, BCH)
Capital City: Tegucigalpa (1.5 million)
People: Many Hondurans are descended from 16th Century Spanish and other mainly European immigrants. The population is made up of : Mestizo (mixed Maya and European) 90%; Amerindian 7%; black 2%; white 1%.
Languages: Officially Spanish, though many business executives speak English. There are also indigenous dialects.
Religion(s): Roman Catholicism is the principal religion (97%).
Currency: Lempira
Major Political Parties: Partido Liberal (PL); Partido Nacional (PN); Partido Demócrata Cristiano (PDC); Partido de Innovacion Nacional y Unidad-Social Democrata (PINU-SD); Partido de Unificacion Democratica (PUD)
Government: Honduras has a republican system of government consisting of three separate and independent branches: the Executive Branch, headed by the President, who is advised by a Cabinet of Ministers; the Legislative Branch; and the Judicial Branch, headed by the Supreme Court. The President is directly elected for a four-year term.
Head of State: Jose Manuel Zelaya Rosales
Foreign Minister: Patricia Rodas
Membership of international groups/organisations: Honduras’s memberships include: United Nations (UN) and its specialised agencies; Organisation of American States (OAS) (suspended in July 2009); Central American Common Market; Central American Integration System (SICA); plus numerous institutions and programmes within the UN and OAS systems.
HEALTH
In Honduras the quality of and access to healthcare are directly tied to income levels. Adequate health care is available to those able to pay the high cost. Health care for the urban and rural poor is limited.
Health services are not readily accessible to a majority of the population. In the more isolated regions of Honduras, there are almost no physicians. Government clinics are often empty shells lacking adequate personnel, equipment and medicines.
Infectious and parasitic diseases are the leading causes of death. Gastro-enteritis and tuberculosis are serious problems. Diseases such as influenza, malaria, typhoid and pneumonia have returned because of a lack of preventive measures. HIV/AIDS is a growing problem in Honduras.
Life expectancy: (2001) Male 66 years; Female 71 years
Infant mortality rate: 29.64 per 1,000 live births (2004 est)
