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=Country Name: Honduras=

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Topic 1. Geography and Climate Honduras is not a very big country. In area, it is only slightly larger than the state of Tennessee. Its total area is 43,277 square miles. It has borders on the Pacific Ocean and theCaribbean Sea. It borders the countries Nicaraguato the southeast,Guatemalato the west, and El Salvador to the southwest. The country’s major physical features are mountains in the west, and low costal plains in the east. In the mountains the climate is temperate and in the lowland the temperature is very tropical. The countrywide average temperature per month ranges from 86 degrees Fahrenheit in the hottest month to 77 degrees Fahrenheit in the coldest month. This warm climate has made the northern part ofHondurasvery fertile and good for growing bananas, cotton, and sugar. Also, along the northern coast, there is a lot of shoreline and therefore there is a big shrimp and lobster industry there. In the mountains there is considerably less growth. The main cause is that since this part of the country is so high up, it is hard to grow anything except coffee and cocoa beans. Also, due to the fact thatHonduras contains the largest pine forest inLatin America, there is a major lumber industry there.Hondurasalso has several large mines that mine gold and other metals. However, these mines have taken a massive environmental toll because the government doesn’t have many rules restricting mining and what it can do as far as what it does its waste. Consequently, there have been several instances where a major river of forest has been contaminated due to massive cyanide spills. One such spill in 2003 resulted in the contamination of the drinking water in a major nearby town.Honduras’ climate has served it well in the past but if the country doesn’t crack down on environmental impact, it may not be there much longer.

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Topic 2: economy Hondurasis a very poor country. It is the second poorest country in the western hemisphere. InHonduras, an appalling 65% of the population lives below the poverty line. The country’s GDP per capita is about 4,200$.One cause of this is that they have a very one-dimensional economy. The vast majority of people there are farmers. They farm bananas and coffee. Other big jobs are miners and fisherman. They also are trying to grow the tourism industry. This economic plan worked until they were hit by hurricane Mitch in 1998. The country is still trying to get back on track after the massive devastation caused by the hurricane. Another cause for the economic turmoil is that they have had trouble finding a secure form of government that doesn’t face a coup after 10 or so years, which has been the case in the past. The country has a lot of essential goods that it imports, a sign that it has trouble making its own essential goods. Some of the goods that they import are mineral fuels, food, machinery, and chemicals. The principal Honduran exports are bananas, coffee, seafood, timber, cotton, sugar, metals, palm oil, tobacco, melon, pineapple and soaps and detergents. Some other signs of a poor country thatHondurasdisplays are that only 11% of the people have internet access, which is because about 89% of Hondurans are too poor to afford internet access, or even electricity.Hondurasexports mainly to the U.S.A, andEl Salvador.

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Topic 3: Political History

Since it gained its independence fromSpainin 1821,Hondurashas been a very politically unstable country. It often faces political coups and wars once a decade or so. In 1821, the country gained its independence fromSpainand attempted to create a Central American republic that lasted until 1831. Until the turn of the century, they repeatedly tried to form a lasting Central American republic to no avail. Around the turn of the century American companies became interested inHondurasand in its agricultural potential. Companies such as the United Fruit Company own large banana plantations.Hondurasbecame known as a banana republic, because its entire economy was based on the fruit. Honduran politicians began to define themselves on their position about the banana farms owned by other countries. This worked until WWII because when the war ended, the American companies that had left during the war didn’t come back. The ensuing decade was relatively uneventful until a military coup seized control of the country in 1955 and allowed for open elections in 1957. The country enjoyed another 12 years of peace until a border war withEl Salvadorbroke the peace. The war became known as the soccer war because it started when at a world cup qualifying match inSan Salvador, there was a soccer riot and a border war broke out.Honduraswon the war, but tensions lingered as the two countries had an uneasy peace. For the next 20 years, the government was very unstable as the country was repeatedly plagued by scandals, coups, and incompetent rulers. In the 1990’s the country was relatively stable until it was annihilated by hurricane Mitch in 1998. The storm inflicted huge tolls on the country in both money and human lives. In 2009 the country had its most recent coup when the president attempted to amend an unchangeable section of the constitution that limited the president’s term of service to one four year term. The military seized him as he tried to rig a vote to change it and keep him in power. However, He was reinstated under pressure from the U.S and even from the U.N as a whole. The constitution wasn’t amended and he didn’t serve another term.

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Topic 4: Government

Hondurashas been in the past and the future will likely be a country in turmoil politically. However, the country seems to have reached a period of relative political stability. Currently the country is classified as a democratic constitutional republic operating under a constitution written on January 11, 1982. This is the 16th constitution that various governments have written since 1821.Since then the constitution has been amended 26 times and interpreted 10 times. The most important section of this constitution is the articles limiting the term length of a president. These articles are said to be “written in stone” because they can’t be amended. Total, there are seven articles or “titles”. They set rules about things like military rule, economic equality, the amendment process, and the three branches of government, individual rights, and citizenship. Honduras has three branches of government, similar to what the U.S.A has. The executive branch consists of the president, Porifiro Sosa, the current president, and the 18 departments that handle state affairs. The president serves only one term. The president can not be reelected. In 1998 the constitution was amended to make the president the commander in chief of the Honduran armed forces. The legislative branch is unicameral and has 128 seats. The Honduran congressmen serve 4 year terms and can be reelected. The judicial branch consists of the lower courts and the Honduran Supreme Court in Spanish “Corte Suprema de Justica.” The justices on the Corte Suprema de Justica each serve 7 year terms but can be reelected. The country is currently stable, but if history repeats itself, then in a short time, the country will be in turmoil once again.

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Material for this presentation came from the following sources:

Works Cited 1537, October. "Honduras History." //Honduras - Country Guide in English and Español - HONDURAS.COM//. Web. 12 Dec. 2011. . 1537, October. "Honduras History." //Honduras - Country Guide in English and Español - HONDURAS.COM//. Web. 12 Dec. 2011. . 1537, October. "Honduras." //U.S. Department of State//. Web. 12 Dec. 2011. . 1537, October. "Honduras." //U.S. Department of State//. Web. 12 Dec. 2011. . // CultureGrams Online Database: Subscriber Area Only //. Web. 12 Dec. 2011. . // CultureGrams Online Database: Subscriber Area Only //. Web. 12 Dec. 2011. . "Honduras - THE CONSTITUTION." //Country Studies//. Web. 12 Dec. 2011. . "Honduras - THE CONSTITUTION." //Country Studies//. Web. 12 Dec. 2011. . Web. 12 Dec. 2011. . Web. 12 Dec. 2011. .