Social conditions
Honduras is one of Latin America’s poorest countries. Visit AbbreviationFinder to see the definitions of HND and acronym for Honduras. The distribution of income is very uneven, with around 30 percent of the population living in poverty, more than half of whom live in extreme poverty (below US $ 1.25/day).
Malnutrition and the lack of running water and sewage pose a serious threat to the rural population. about 2.5 percent of children die during their first year of life. More than half of the population lives in substandard housing and almost a fifth lack basic sanitary resources. Infections and parasites are common causes of death. Officially, unemployment is about 5 percent. Economic tightening with the slimming of social expenditures at least in the short term deteriorates the social situation. Higher prices for basic commodities and sharply increased electricity tariffs have also contributed to this, which has led to vigorous popular protests and demonstrations.
In the 1990s, however, the government tried to reverse the trend by investing 30 percent of the state budget in the health care, school and social sectors; In 2012, 12 percent of government spending was spent on health care. It has produced visible results in the form of somewhat higher living standards and, for example, reduced child mortality. More than 90 percent of children are vaccinated against the most common childhood diseases. There is a state social insurance system that guarantees citizens some protection. This includes, among other things, sickness benefits, childbirth, unemployment and pensions.
Violence and high crime are a major social problem in the country. According to the UN, 65 people per 100,000 residents were murdered in 2014, which is one of the highest homicide rates in the world. The capital Tegucigalpa and the second largest city of San Pedro Sula are hit hard by crime. Check to see Honduras population.
Centers inhabited. – The capital, Tegucigalpa (40 thousand residents in 1930), rises on the banks of the Choluteca, on the Pacific side, at about 1000 m. of height, in the center of a region where the extractive industry has taken the maximum development. The population has almost doubled in the last thirty years, but an equal and even more notable increase has marked the ports on the Atlantic, where the influence of the North American capital is continuous and active. Inland, the major centers arise in areas where agriculture had long since found good development conditions: Santa Rosa de Copán (10,000 residents), Santa Bárbara, La Esperanza, Gracias, etc., or where with the ‘breeding and the mining industry are emerging with a good chance of success (Yoro, Jutigalpa, Danlí, Comayagua,
Communications. – A decisive strengthening of the country’s vast resources will not be possible – now that the political protection of the United States has improved financial conditions and put an end to administrative anarchy – if the more urgent problem of communication routes is not solved. they can be said to be non-existent in most of the country (1457 km. of railways, of which 700 in the banana areas, but only one road that can be transported from San Lorenzo to Comayagua through the capital).
Politics. – According to the constitution of October 3, 1924, the president of the republic, elected for 4 years by universal suffrage, is without personal and irremovable responsibility, exercises executive power and cannot dissolve the congress. This is made up of 48 members elected for 4 years by direct vote and half of them renewable every two years. Ministers are appointed and dismissed by the president. The republic is administratively divided into 17 departments and 1 territory.
Every valid citizen is part of the regular army from the twenty-first to the thirtieth year and of the reserve from the 30 to the 40 years. The regular army has a strength of about three thousand men.