Honduras
Republic of Honduras
Capital: Tegucigalpa
History
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. Since then, the economy has slowly rebounded.
Geography
Metric Units
|
Total Area
|
112,090
sq km
|
| Land Boundaries |
1,520
km
|
| Border Countries |
Guatemala 256 km, El Salvador 342 km, Nicaragua 922 km |
| Coastline |
669
km
|
| Terrain |
mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains |
| Minimum Elevation |
0
m
|
| Maximum Elevation |
2,870
m
|
| Climate |
subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains |
| Natural Resources |
timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, hydropower |
| Arable Land |
9.07% |
| Permanent Crops |
3.91% |
Economy
Budget & Debt
Trade
| Exports |
$6.95 billion |
| Export Items |
apparel, coffee, shrimp, automobile wire harnesses, cigars, bananas, gold, palm oil, fruit, lobster, lumber |
| Export Partners |
US 33.1%, Germany 10.9%, El Salvador 7.3%, Belgium 6.5%, Guatemala 6.2% (2011) |
| Imports |
$10.66 billion |
| Import Items |
machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs |
| Import Partners |
US 46%, Guatemala 8.8%, Mexico 5.7%, El Salvador 5.4%, China 4.1%, Costa Rica 4% (2011) |
People
Energy
