Honduras Facts

Taken from the pages of the Adelante Foundation Website:
http://www.adelantefoundation.org/info.htm

Honduras Poverty:

Honduras is the second poorest country in the Western Hemisphere after only Haiti. Over sixty six percent of the population lives below the Word Bank poverty line of two dollars a day. Unemployment in 2002 was at 55%. In rural areas where Adelante works, the situation is even worse. Sixty one percent of families in rural areas live in extreme poverty (under $1 per person consumption a day).

Political Situation:

During the 1980's Honduras was considered a political linchpin in United States-Central American politics, with the contra infusion funded directly by the U.S., inciting economic and political attention to the largely unnoticed nation. Since the disintegration of such political passion, substantial United States' aid and attention has drastically diminished. To this end, there is also a large disparity in Honduran national governmental attention to rural areas. Most rural areas and populations get little attention or assistance from the "far-away" government, which is focused on attracting capital and interest internationally rather than domestically. Honduras is a stable political democracy, with a popularly elected president and an elected Congress.

Hurricane Mitch, October 1998:

The destruction caused by Hurricane Mitch, the fourth most powerful hurricane ever measured in the Atlantic, left much of the nation in shambles. Causing over 7000 deaths, destroying 80% of agriculture, and leaving nearly 20% of the population homeless (Honduras Institute of Tourism),Hurricane Mitch halted the economic progress of Honduras, bringing economic progress down from approximately 6.0% to 4.0% per annum (World Bank). Exacerbated by decades of unsustainable extractive industries and deforestation, mudslides caused catastrophic damage to the nation's transportation and communication infrastructure. By destroying crops, livestock and homes. Mitch has decimated what little capital and material resources rural towns had to begin with.

Honduras Today:

The social programs in Honduras are inadequate to support the population, particularly in rural areas that are typically less-addressed than the more densely populated urban areas. Women are not provided with enough equal opportunities to better themselves. In the absence of local opportunities, bright, motivated young people must leave their communities to expand their horizons, thus depriving these towns of another valuable resource. Additionally, migration of the uneducated to the cities simply shifts the scenario of poverty from a rural to an urban setting, causing increased begging and crime in the cities. Little capital means little to build from. There is little to no infrastructure to promote trade. Social deficits are endemic to the lack of infrastructure: medical care, trade routes and education. Rural economies are at a base level and unable to grow.

Hope for the Future:

The future wealth of Honduras will require the proper utilization of its natural resources: the land, and the people. For the rural micro-entrepreneur, there is no lack of desire to raise a happy and healthy family, to raise the standard of living, to become literate and to make their business flourish: the non-material means are there. What the population lacks is the economic assistance to accomplish their goals.

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