Honduras - Country Code 504
IDD Code: 00
Country Code: 504
ISO: HN
ISO3: HND
Helpful Information About Honduras
Time
Thursday, November 21, 2024
Capital: Tegucigalpa
Time Zone
UTC-06:00
Time Difference
Tegucigalpa, Honduras is ()
Daylight Savings Time
Honduras does not follow DST
Weather
Country Map
Country Flag
About Honduras Country NameHonduras
ContinentNorth America
Lat/Long15.19999900, -86.24190500
BackgroundOnce 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. Since then, the economy has slowly rebounded.
Population8,893,259
LanguagesSpanish (official), Amerindian dialects
ReligionsRoman Catholic 97%, Protestant 3%
Ethnic GroupsMestizo (mixed Amerindian and European) 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1%
Economy
EconomyHonduras, the second poorest country in Central America, suffers from extraordinarily unequal distribution of income, as well as high underemployment. While historically dependent on the export of bananas and coffee, Honduras has diversified its export base to include apparel and automobile wire harnessing.
Honduras’s economy depends heavily on US trade and remittances. The US-Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement came into force in 2006 and has helped foster foreign direct investment, but physical and political insecurity, as well as crime and perceptions of corruption, may deter potential investors; about 15% of foreign direct investment is from US firms.
The economy registered modest economic growth of 3.1%-3.6% from 2010 to 2016, insufficient to improve living standards for the nearly 65% of the population in poverty. In 2016, Honduras faced rising public debt but its economy has performed better than expected due to low oil prices and improved investor confidence. The IMF continues to monitor the three-year standby arrangement signed in December 2014, aimed at easing Honduras’s poor fiscal position.
Honduras’s economy depends heavily on US trade and remittances. The US-Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement came into force in 2006 and has helped foster foreign direct investment, but physical and political insecurity, as well as crime and perceptions of corruption, may deter potential investors; about 15% of foreign direct investment is from US firms.
The economy registered modest economic growth of 3.1%-3.6% from 2010 to 2016, insufficient to improve living standards for the nearly 65% of the population in poverty. In 2016, Honduras faced rising public debt but its economy has performed better than expected due to low oil prices and improved investor confidence. The IMF continues to monitor the three-year standby arrangement signed in December 2014, aimed at easing Honduras’s poor fiscal position.
GDP$20.93 billion (2016 est.)
CurrencyLempira
Communications
Internet TLD.hn
Internet Users1.781 million
Land Lines497,072
Mobile Phones8.048 million
Broadcast MediaMultiple privately owned terrestrial TV networks, supplemented by multiple cable TV networks; Radio Honduras is the lone government-owned radio network; roughly 300 privately owned radio stations (2007)