Tegucigalpa
Encyclopedia
Tegucigalpa and commonly referred as Tegus , is the capital of Honduras
and seat of government of the Republic, along with its twin sister Comayagüela. Founded on September 29, 1578 by the Spanish
, it became the country's capital on October 30, 1880 under President Marco Aurelio Soto
. The current Constitution of Honduras
, enacted in 1982, names the sister cities of Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela as a Central District to serve as the permanent national capital, under articles 8 and 295.
During the short-lived Constitution of the Republic of Central America
of 1921, Tegucigalpa served as a Federal District and capital of then-newly formed as one nation: the states of El Salvador
, Guatemala
and Honduras. After this failed attempt to maintain a Central American republic, Honduras returned to become an individual sovereign nation and on January 30, 1937, Article 179 of the 1936 Honduran Constitution was reformed under Decree 53 to established Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela as a Central District.
Tegucigalpa is located in the southern-central highland region of Honduras in the department of Francisco Morazán of which it is also the departmental capital. It is situated in a valley, surrounded by mountains and both Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela, being sister cities, are physically separated by the Choluteca River
. The Central District is the largest of the 28 municipalities in the Francisco Morazán department.
Tegucigalpa is Honduras' largest and most populous city as well as the nation's political and administrative center. Tegucigalpa is host to 25 foreign embassies and 16 consulates in addition to being the home base of several state-owned entities such as ENEE
and Hondutel
, the national energy and telecommunications companies, respectively. The city is also home to the country's most important university, the National Autonomous University of Honduras
, as well as the national soccer team
. The capital's international airport, Toncontín
, is notorious around the world for its extremely short runway for an international airport and the unusual maneuvers pilots must undertake upon landing or taking off to avoid the nearby mountains.
The Central District Mayor's Office (Alcaldia Municipal del Distrito Central) is the city's governing body, headed by a mayor
and 10 aldermen forming the Municipal Corporation (Corporación Municipal). Being the department's seat as well, the governor's office of Francisco Morazán is also located in the capital. In 2008, the city operated on an approved budget of 1.555 billion lempiras
(US$82,189,029). In 2009, the city government reported a revenue of 1.955 billion lempiras (US$103,512,220). (More than any other capital city in Central America, except Panama City)
Tegucigalpa's infrastructure has not kept with the population growth. Deficient urban planning, densely condensed urbanization, and poverty are ongoing problems. Heavily congested roadways where current road infrastructure is unable to efficiently handle the over 400 thousand vehicles create havoc on a daily basis. Both current national and local governments have taken approaches at improving or increasing infrastructure as well as to reducing poverty in the city.
Another source suggests that Tegucigalpa derives from another language in which it means painted rocks, as explained by Leticia Oyuela in her book "Minimum History of Tegucigalpa". Other theories indicate it may derive from the term Togogalpa which refers to tototi (small green parrot, in Nahuatl) and Toncontín, a small town near Tegucigalpa (toncotín was a Mexican dance of Nahuatl origin).
In Mexico
, it is believed the word Tegucigalpa is from the Nahuatl word Tecuztlicallipan, meaning "place of residence of the noble" or Tecuhtzincalpan, meaning "place on the home of the beloved master".
Honduran philologist Alberto de Jesús Membreño, in his book "Indigenous Toponymies of Central America", states that Tegucigalpa is a Nahuatl word meaning "in the homes of the sharp stones" and rules out the traditional meaning "hills of silver" arguing that Taguzgalpa
was the name of the ancient eastern zone of Honduras.
and the Twahkas. The first mayor of Tegucigalpa was Juan de la Cueva, who took office in 1579. The Dolores Church (1735), the San Miguel Cathedral (1765), the Casa de la Moneda (1780), and the Immaculate Conception Church (1788) were some of the first important buildings constructed.
Almost 200 years later, on June 10, 1762, this mining town became Real Villa de San Miguel de Tegucigalpa y Heredia under the rule of Alonso Fernández de Heredia
, then-acting governor of Honduras. The late 1700s and early 1800s saw disruption in Tegucigalpa's local government, from being extinguished in 1788 to becoming part of Comayagua
in 1791 to returning to self-city governance in 1817.
In 1817, then-mayor Narciso Mallol started the construction of the first bridge, a ten-arch masonry, connecting both sides of the Choluteca River. Upon completion four years later, it linked Tegucigalpa with her neighbor city of Comayagüela. In 1821, Tegucigalpa legally became a city. In 1824, the first Congress of the Republic of Honduras, declared Tegucigalpa and Comayagua, then the two most important cities in the country, to alternate as capital of the country.
After October 1838, following Honduras' independence as a single Republic, the capital continued to switch back and forth between Tegucigalpa and Comayagua until October 30, 1880, when Tegucigalpa was declared the permanent capital of Honduras by then-president Marco Aurelio Soto
. A popular myth claims that the society of Comayagua, the long-time colonial capital of Honduras, publicly disliked the wife of President Soto, who took revenge by moving the capital to Tegucigalpa. A more likely theory is that the change took place because President Soto was an important partner of the Rosario Mining Company
, an American silver mining company, whose operations were based in San Juancito
, close to Tegucigalpa, and he needed to be close to his personal interests.
By 1898, it was decided that both Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela, being neighbor cities on the banks of the Choluteca River, would form the capital, but with separate names and separate local governments. During this period, both cities had a population of about 40,000 people.
Between the 1930s and 1960s, Tegucigalpa continued to grow reaching a population of over 250,000 people, giving way to what would become one of the biggest neighborhoods in the city, the Colonia Kennedy; the nation's autonomous university, the UNAH; and the construction of the Honduras Maya Hotel. It still remained relatively small and provincial until the 1970s, when migration from the rural areas began in earnest. During the 1980s, several avenues, traffic overpasses, and large buildings were erected, a relative novelty to a city characterized until then by two-story buildings. However, lacking the enforcement of city planning and zoning laws, it led to highly disorganized urbanization. This lack of proper urbanization as the population has grown is evident on the surrounding slopes of the several hills in the city where some of the city's most impoverished neighborhoods have prevailed.
On October 30, 1998, Hurricane Mitch
devastated the capital, along with the rest of Honduras. For five days, Mitch pounded the country creating devastating landslides and floods, causing the death of thousands as well as heavy deforestation and the destruction of thousands of homes. A portion of Comayagüela was destroyed along with several neighborhoods on both sides of the Honduran capital. After the hurricane, infrastructure in Tegucigalpa was severely severed. Even 12 years later, remnants of Hurricane Mitch are still visible specially along the banks of the Choluteca River.
Today, Tegucigalpa continues to sprawl far beyond its former colonial core: towards the east, south and west, creating a large but disorganized metropolis. In an effort to modernize the capital, increase its infrastructure and improve the quality of life of its inhabittants, the current administration has passed several ordinances and projects to turn the city around within the upcoming years.
. The area surrounding the city continues to be open woodland supporting pine forest
interspersed with some oak
, scrub
, and grassy clearings
as well as needle leaf evergreen
and broadleaf deciduous forest.
The metropolitan area of both Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela cover a total area of 77.6 square miles (201 km²) while the entire Municipality of the Central District covers a total area of 539.1 square miles (1,396 km²). Geological faults have been identified in the District's high regions surrounding the capital which are a threat to the neighborhoods on and below the hills.
The Choluteca River, which runs crossing the city from south to north, physically separates Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela. El Picacho Hill, a rugged mountain of moderate height convert rises above the downtown area; several neighborhoods, both upscale residential and lower income, are located on its slopes. The city consists of gentle hills, and the ring of mountains surrounding the city tends to trap pollution
. During the dry season, a dense cloud of smog
lingers in the basin until the first rains fall.
Tucked in a valley and bisected by a river makes Tegucigalpa prone to flooding during the rainy season, as experienced to the fullest during Hurricane Mitch and to a lesser degree every year during the rainy season. Despite being several thousand feet above sea level, the city currently lacks an efficient flood control system, including canals and sewerage powerful enough to channel rain water back into the river to flow down to the ocean. The river itself is a threat since it isn't deep enough below the streets nor there are levies high enough to prevent it from breaking out. There are currently more than 100 neighborhoods deemed zones of high risk, several of them ruled out as uninhabitable in their entirety.
There is a reservoir, known as Embalse Los Laureles, west of the city providing 30 percent of the city's water supply as well as a water treatment plant south of the city about 7.3 kilometres (4.5 mi) from the airport; part of the Concepción Reservoir just 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) southwest of the water plant.
The Central District shares borders with 13 other municipalities of Francisco Morazán: (to the north) Cedros
and Talanga
; (south) Ojojona
, Santa Ana
, San Buenaventura
and Maraita
; (east) San Juan de Flores
, Villa de San Francisco
, Santa Lucía
, Valle de Ángeles
, San Antonio de Oriente
, and Tatumbla
; (and to the west) Lepaterique
. It is also bordered on the west by two municipalities of the Comayagua Department, Villa de San Antonio
and Lamaní
, with the latter exactly at the quadripoint
where the Central District, Lepaterique, Villa de San Antonio and Lamaní all meet.
, though tempered by the altitude—meaning less humid than the lower valleys and the coastal regions—with even temperatures averaging between 19 °C (66.2 °F) and 23 °C (73.4 °F) degrees.
The months of December and January are coolest, with an average min/ low temperature of 14 °C (57 °F); whereas March and April—popularly associated with Holy Week
's holidays—are hottest and temperatures can reach up to 40 °C (104 °F) degrees on the hottest day. The dry season lasts from November through April and the rainy season from May through October. There is an average of 107 rainy days in the year, June and September usually the wettest months.
The average sunshine hours per month during the year is 211.2 and the average rainy days per month is 8.9. The average sunshine hours during the dry season is 228 per month while 182.5 millimetres (7.2 in) is the average monthly precipitation during the wet season. The wettest months of the rainy season are May—June and September—October, averaging 16.2 rainy days during each of those periods.
Tegucigalpa, as with the rest of Honduras, experienced significant damaged by Hurricane Mitch, something of a magnitude Hondurans had not witnessed since Hurricane Fifi
. Mitch destroyed part of the Comayagüela section of the city, as well as other places along the banks of the Choluteca River. The storm remained over Honduran territory for five days, dumping heavy rainfall late in the rainy season. The ground was already saturated and could not absorb the heavy precipitation, while deforestation and debris left by the hurricane led to catastrophic flooding throughout widespread regions of the country, especially in Tegucigalpa.
The heavy rain caused flash floods of Choluteca's tributaries, and the swollen river overflowed its banks, tearing down entire neighborhoods and bridges across the ravaged city. The rainfall also triggered massive landslides around El Berrinche Hill, close to the downtown area. These landslides destroyed most of the Soto neighborhood, and debris flowed into the river, forming a dam. The dam clogged the waters of the river and many of the low-lying areas of Comayagüela were submerged; historic buildings located along Calle Real were either completely destroyed or so badly damaged that repair was futile.
, overpasses and underpasses, allowing for sections of controlled-access
highways but considering that even the city's beltway does not entirely circle the city, the roads are generally limited-access. Intense webs of electrical and telephone lines above the streets are a common site in the capital, and virtually in all Honduran cities, since implementation of underground utility lines has only been adopted in the recent years.
and colonias
and there are currently 892 of them. Colonias represent relatively recent 20th-century middle class
residential suburbs, some known as residenciales for their upper income development, and these are continuously spreading while the barrios are old inner-city neighborhoods.
While the city administration divides the capital into barrios and colonias, the fact that there are hundreds of them, makes it difficult to define the city's different regions, especially for those not familiar with the Central District. To have a better understanding of the city's regions, the metro area of the Central District can essentially be divided, first, into two sections: Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela. These two entities remain separated by the Choluteca River basin that runs between them.
This section of the city is perhaps the best developed and properly urbanized. It is formed by more than 40 neighborhoods, many of them wealthy middle class residential areas such as Colonia Palmira to the east of the historic center, on Boulevard Morazán which hosts several foreign embassies as well as upscale restaurants. Other upscale neighborhoods are Lomas del Guijarro, Loma Linda and Lomas del Mayab which house most of the apartment complexes in the city.
The leading hotels of the city are found around these neighborhoods, including within the Plaza San Martín Hotel District. These include: Marriott Hotel, Clarion Hotel, Hotel El Centenario, Intercontinental, Honduras Maya, Plaza Del Libertador, Plaza San Martín, Hotel Alameda, Excelsior Hotel and Casino.
Boulevard Morazán and Avenida Los Próceres/Avenida La Paz are busy commercial corridors (running parallel of each other) and run through several neighborhoods home to foreign embassies, a hotel district, business establishments and corporate buildings; including Los Próceres Comercial Park (Parque Comercial). Boulevard Suyapa and Boulevard Juan Pablo II are located south of the aforementioned boulevards and they also form a busy commercial and financial district stretching through several neighborhoods such as Colonia Los Profesionales where the Presidencial House is located; Colonia Florencia Norte where Multiplaza Mall is located; Colonia Miramontes, among others—housing several financial institutions, government offices, hotels, etc.
The Comayagüela side of the capital can be divided into four sections: 1) Zona Centro (Downtown Comayagüela); 2) North Comayagüela; 3) South Comayagüela; and 4) West Comayagüela:
The 2010 Population Projections estimated that the Central District had a population of 1,126,534 residents, continuing a trend of population growth in the city since the 2001 Census, which recorded 850,445 residents. In 2010, the average monthly income was L.8,321 (US$440.49), compared to the total national average of L.4,767 (US$252.35) and the national urban zone average of L.7,101 (US$375.91). 4.9 percent of the population is illiterate, compared to the national rate of 15.2 percent.
The Human Development Index
(HDI) is the highest in the country at 0.759 in 2006. In 2006, 47.6 percent of the Central District's population lived in poverty—29.7 lived in moderate poverty
and 17.9 in extreme poverty
. Life expectancy
in the District as of 2004 is 72.1 years. In 2004, there were 185,577 households with an average of 4.9 members per household.
The ethnic and racial makeup of Tegucigalpa is strongly tied to the rest of Honduras. 90 percent of the city-dwellers are predominantly mestizos with a small White-Hispanic
minority. They are joined by Chinese
and Arab immigrants, the latter mostly from Palestine
. There are indigenous Amerindians and Afro-Honduran
people as well.
Tegucigalpa by numbers:
4 theaters, 12 marketplaces, 12 pedestrian bridges, 12 universities, 14 hospitals, 14 museums, 28 supermarkets, 40 movie screens, 64 health centers, 64 signal light-controlled intersections, 87 middle school and high schools, 100 farmacies, 123 local emergency committees, 170 restaurants, 200 parks and plazas, 200 sports facilities, 400 firemen, 600 volunteer workers, 892 neighborhoods classified as barrios and colonias, 1,200 physicians, two thousand public transportation vehicles, 12 thousands taxis, 60 thousand illiterates, and 140 thousand with direct access to potable water only.
efforts of the native communities. By 1916, the Diocese of Comayagua was relocated and renamed the Diocese of Tegucigalpa, and it was elevated to an archdiocese under Archbishop Santiago María Martínez y Cabanas (1842–1921).
Other religious groups made their way at the beginning of the 20th century
including the Quakers, who in 1914 began work in the nation’s capital. In 1946, missionaries of the Southern Baptist Convention
first arrived in Tegucigalpa and in the 1950s, the National Convention of Baptist Churches and the Eastern Mennonite Board of Missions
followed.
The Assembly of God missionaries entered Honduras in the late 1940s and today maintain a mega-church in Tegucigalpa with more than 10,000 members. The Church of God
established in Tegucigalpa in 1951, the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel
followed in 1952, and by the late 1950s, the Evangelical Alliance of Honduras
was established. The Prince of Peace Pentecostal Church, founded in Guatemala City, began its ministry in Honduras during the 1960s. During the 1970s, the Catholic Charismatic Renewal Movement
began to grow among the upper classes in Tegucigalpa.
The Christian Love Brigade Association arrived in Tegucigalpa in 1971, the Abundant Life Christian Church
was founded in 1972, the Cenacle Christian Center of Charismatic Renewal
began in 1978 and the Living Love Groups started in 1978.
Today, they are many religious groups in Tegucigalpa including a Jewish community, the Jehovah's Witnesses
and the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints who is currently building a new temple
in the city.
in recent years. In 2010, the homicide rate in Francisco Morazán was 83.2 (per 100,000 inhabitants) compared to the national average of 86.
In 2009, the Central District reached a homicide rate of 72.7 with authorities recording 792 intentional homicides
and 151 involuntary homicides; this averaged to 66 murders per month or two per day. 85.6 percent of the deaths were comitted by firearm
and 39 percent were linked to organized crime
. 91 percent of the victims were men and 81.2 were ages 15 to 39. The neighborhoods reporting the highest incidents of violent deaths are Barrio Concepción, Colonia Nueva Capital, Colonia Villa Nueva Norte, Colonia Cerro Grande, Colonia El Carrizal No. 1, Colonia el Carrizal No. 2, Colonia Flor Del Campo, Colonia La Sosa, Colonia Las Brisas, and Barrio Centro de Comayagüela.
In 2009, there were 246 motor vehicle-related deaths of which 52 percent were pedestrians, including bicyclists; 39 percent were caused by private vehicle and 12 percent by public transportation vehicle. In the same year, there were 69 deaths reported as suicide
s of which were most common in the age bracket of 20 to 29 and 30 to 35, while 76.9 of them were men.
equal to 19.3 percent of country's GDP. The District's active labor force
is of 367,844 people of which 56,035 are employed in the public sector
. In 2009, the unemployment
rate in Tegucigalpa was 8.1 percent. and an unemployed person may spend as much as four months seeking employment. There are 32,665 business establishments throughout the capital, the most of any city in the country. The city's major economic sources are commerce
, construction
, services, textiles, sugar
, and tobacco
. In 2009, the city's revenue and expenditures budget was of L.2,856,439,263 (US$151,214,182) while in 2010 it was of L.2,366,993,208 (US$125.204.606) 57.9 percent or L.43.860 billion (US$2.318 billion) of the country's national budget is spent within the Central District.
Economic activity in the capital is broken down as follow: commerce—including wholesale, retail, auto repair, hardware (42.86%); manufacturing industry (16.13%), hospitality—hotels and restaurants (14.43%), banking and real state (10.12%), social and personal services (8.94%), health-related services (3.90%), and others (3.60%).
The industrial production taking place in the region include textiles, clothing, sugar, cigarettes, lumber, plywood, paper, ceramics, cement, glass, metalwork, plastics, chemicals, tires, electrical appliances, and farm machinery. Maquiladora duty-free assembly plants have been established in an industrial park in the Amarateca valley, on the northern highway. Silver, lead and zinc are still mined in the outskirts of the city.
, the country's central banking public institution and Banco Nacional de Desarrollo Agrícola (Banadesa), also state-owned, with central offices located in Comayagüela.
International financial institutions
in Tegucigalpa include Banco de América Central-BAC Honduras (former Banco Mercantil-BAMER), Banco Lafise (Latin American Financial Services), Citibank
, HSBC
, the Inter-American Development Bank
(IAB), the World Bank
, and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (BCIE), with its headquarters located in Colonia Miramontes on Boulevard Suyapa.
remained small, they boomed at the beginning of the 1990s, mostly concentrating in northern Honduras but after the mid 1990s they were expanded to the central region, including Tegucigalpa. By 2005, at least 6 maquiladoras operated in the Central District.
By the end of the 1990s and early 2000s, Tegucigalpa continued to be a focus city for the development of industrial parks. The main obstacle to establish factories in Tegucigalpa has been facilitating infrastructure to provide efficient access between the capital and country's economic hubs: San Pedro Sula
and Puerto Cortez.
While foreign investment manufacturers and exporters have focused in northern Honduras, the presence of multinational corporations is evident in Tegucigalpa. Popular retail
, restaurant, and hospitality
American-branded franchises
prevail throughout the Honduran capital; such as Walmart, McDonalds, Marriot
, among others. Companies from other countries such as Mexico, have also made their presence with arrivals like Cinépolis
movie theaters, which opened in 2010 in Cascadas Mall. Foreign real estate
and property developers operate in the capital District as well, such as Grupo Roble of the Multiplaza malls.
Tegucigalpa's economic challenges are tied to those of the rest of the country, such as overcoming crime
, anomalies in the judicial system, educational backwardness, and deficient infrastructure in order to continue to encourage foreign investors and permit growth of local entrepreneurs.
held great jurisdiction over the execution of city management across the country, leading to uneven representation and improper distribution of resources and governance. As a result, in late 1990, under Decree 134-90, the National Congress of Honduras enacted the Law of Municipalities (Ley de Municipalidades), defining the country's department and municipal institutions, representatives and their functions to give city government autonomy and decentralize it from the national government.
While autonomous, the Central District is still influenced by the national government given the territory remains seat of government of the republic. Major changes in public policy and funding of major city projects usually reach the Office of the President prior to approval by the District's local government.
The current Constitution of Honduras, under Chapter 1, Article 8, states (translated), "The cities of Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela, jointly, constitute the Capital of the Republic." Furthermore... Chapter 11, Article 295, states (translated) "The Central District consists of a single municipality made up of the former municipalities of Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela"; however, municipalities in Honduras are defined as political entities similar to counties, and they may contain one or more cities. For example, in the Department of Atlántida, La Ceiba
is the largest city—being also the third largest in Honduras—both in terms of population and metropolitan area; however, Tela
, one of the eight municipalities of Atlántida, is the biggest municipality in terms of physical administrative area in that department. Since the Municipality of Tela is not considered the entire city of Tela, it is not bigger than La Ceiba.
There are an additional of 41 villages and 293 hamlets through the Central District Municipality. These may be assigned deputy mayors (alcalde auxiliar) to serve as local representatives.
, the National Congress
, the Supreme Court of Justice, the Armed Forces
and National Police
headquarters—are located in the city. Most public agencies and state-owned companies are headquartered in the capital as well.
, which is the deliberative-legislative body, voter-elected, and highest authority within the municipality.
The Municipal Corporation is formed by a mayor serving as chief executive, general administrator and legal representative of the municipality and a vice mayor to serve as acting mayor when required and to oversee functions within AMDC as instructed by the mayor.
Ten aldermen (regidores) are also members of the Municipal Corporation who along with the mayor execute the duties as described in the Law of Municipalities, including management
, budgeting, and local law and ordinance
legislation
.
A general manager
, appointed by the mayor, is to served as chief comptroller
to keep management of city funds and their allocation. A municipal secretary, also appointed by the mayor, serves as the city clerk
in charge of keeping record of all official proceedings. The Municipal Corporation also counts with a Municipal Development Council (Consejo de Desarrollo Municipal) which serves as an advising cabinet on all the areas of issues of the city such as human development
, public safety
, utilities, etc.
(PNH) who is serving his second term (2006–2010, 2010–2014) after winning reelection in 2009. Alvarez is the first candidate to win a consecutive reelection, he is the seventh person to serve as mayor of the Central District since local elections were restored in 1986, (prior to 1986, the Central District local government, known as Consejo Metropolitano (Metropolitan Council), was appointed by the President); and this is the eighth elected mayoral term since then.
Of the 10 aldermen currently serving, six are men and four are women. Six belong to the National Party while another two belong to the Liberal Party
; one alderman belongs to the Democratic Unification Party
and the other is Independent
.
Both the city mayor and aldermen are elected to 4-year terms by voters of the Central District. Removal of the mayor or any alderman for any cause is reserved to the Ministry of Interior and Population (Secretaría del Interior y Población), formely Secretaría de Gobernación y Justicia.
s throughout the metropolitan area. These are Police District 1-1 El Edén, Police District 1-2 El Mandén, Police District 1-3 San Miguel, Police District 1-4 Kennedy, Police District 1-5 El Belén, Police District 1-6 La Granja and Police District 1-7 San Francisco. For 2011, the Secretary of Security designated L.2.162 billion (US$114.283 million) to law enforcement and criminal investigation in the Central District.
As established by the Law on Police and Social Coexistence (Ley de Policía y Convivencia Social), municipalities can fund their own municipal police
(Policía Municipal) and the Central District currently operates a Municipal Police force of 160 officers. The Municipal Department of Justice (Departamento Municipal de Justicia) through its Municipal Police Court (Juzgado de Policía Municipal) enforces and prosecutes local law offenses.
The Public Ministry (Ministerio Público) is the district attorney
with nationwide jurisdiction in charge of prosecuting crimes on behalf of the people. It is also headquartered in the Central District and maintains regional prosecution offices throughout the country. The Attorney General of the Republic (Procuraduría General de la República) is the country's chief legal representative and prosecutes crimes on behalf of the state
.
The Fair of the Capital (Feria de la Capital or Feria capitalina) is a celebration happening every year in the month of September to commemorate the city's anniversary. Several festivities occur during this time including book fairs, art expositions, concerts and a parade. The 2010 Fair was suspended due to heavy rain and flooding in the region. For 2011, the fair was scheduled to run from September 26 until October 13. Another yearly event is the Fair of the Horse and Culture (Feria del Caballo y la Cultura) taking place in the month of November. There is also a Christmas Fair in the month of December.
lies several kilometers north of the city and covers an area of 93.9 square miles (243 km²). The United Nations National Park on El Picacho Hill just north above the city offers a great view of the city and hosts the Picacho Metropolitan Zoo.
Some of the popular landmarks include the Metropolitan Cathedral, the former Presidential Palace (now a museum), the National University, the Basilica of the Virgin of Suyapa, La Merced Church, and the Manuel Bonilla Theater.
There are several charming colonial villages within easy driving distance from Tegucigalpa: Santa Lucia
(12 km (7 mi) away), Valle de Angeles
(21 km (13 mi) away), Ojojona
, Yuscarán
and San Juancito. Each has its own distinct character and sense of history and all of them make easy day-trips out of the city.
, the liberal and leading newspaper in the city and El Heraldo
, the more conservative. There are three other daily papers printed in the city: El Libertador, El Patriota, and Tiempos del Mundo. Hondudiario, Proceso Digital, and Honduras Weekly are online-only newspapers based in the capital, the latter offered in English. La Gaceta
is the Honduran government's official newspaper, printed and published in the capital.
Tegucigalpa is also served by the rest of country's newspapers, including La Prensa
and El Tiempo from San Pedro Sula and the sports newspaper and fashion magazine, Diez and Estilo, respectively; divisions of La Prensa. Voz el Soberano and Revistazo are political watchdog
online publishers.
There are currently eight channels broadcasting on VHF (3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13) and 12 channels on UHF (21, 30, 33, 36, 39, 45, 48, 51, 54, 57, 66, 69) in the Central District region from TV networks of the major cities in the country. There are five television networks based in Tegucigalpa: Televicentro Corporation
, the largest television media conglomerate in the country which operates three television networks: Compañia Televisora Hondureña (Channel 5), Telesistema Hondureño (channels 3 & 7) and Telecadena 7 & 4 (Channel 7); Channel 11
owned by Grupo Continental & R. Media
; Televisión Educativa National-TEN (Channel 10), a public broadcasting network featuring the Telenoticiero Abriendo Brecha newscast, Maya TV (Channel 66)
, and Telered 21 which has its principal offices in San Pedro Sula. Cable Color, based in Tegucigalpa, is one of the major cable TV providers in the country.
There are 24 FM radio stations and 28 AM stations transmitting into or from Tegucigalpa. Emisoras Unidas, the largest radio conglomerate in the country, is headquartered in Tegucigalpa and operates 94-SU 94.1 FM, Rock N' Pop 92.3 FM, Vox 101.9 FM, Suave 102.5 FM, Sterio Éxitos 88.1 FM, Radio Satélite 790 AM, XY Honduras 90.5 FM, Radio HRN 92.9 FM.
The following radio stations are based in Tegucigalpa: 88.7 Radio Globo Honduras
, 91.1 Radio Kairos, 91.7 Estereo La Buenisima, 93.5 Radio Cadena Voces, 94.7 Radio America
, 95.9 Radio Panamericana, 97.1 La 97 FM Radio, 97.7 Stereo Azul, 100.1 Super 100 Estereo, 101.3 Radio Nacional de Honduras, 103.1 Tu Alternativa, 103.7 Stereo Luz, 104.3 Momentos FM Estereo, 104.9 Estereo Amor, 106.7 Radio CHN-Cadena Hondureña de Noticias, and 107.3 W-107 Radio del Flow.
(1954–1956) and reopened after a complete restoration in 1997; the National Art Gallery (Galería de Arte Nacional), founded in 1996; the Republic History Museum (Museo Histórico de la República), founded in 1993; the Museum of Man (Museo del Hombre), founded in 1989, the Telecommuncations Museum (Museo de las Comunicaciones), founded in 1985; the Military History Museum (Museo Histórico Militar), founded in 1983; and the Archaeological Museum (Museo Arqueológico).
The Natural History Museum (Museo de la Historia Natural) is located within the National Autonomous University of Honduras. The Numismatic Museum (Museo Nimismático Rigoberto Rojas) was founded in 1993 and is located in Comayagüela next to the Central Bank of Honduras Annex building. There is a children's museum, (Centro Interactivo de Enseñanza CHIMINIKE), founded in 2003, located on Blvd. Fuerzas Armadas within the Government Civic Center complex, which also houses the Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Supreme Court of Justice.
Other places of cultural interest are the Colonial Museum (Museo Colonial) located in Casa Cural, the Cultural Center of Spain in Tegucigalpa - CCET, founded in 2007; and Sala Bancatlán, located in Plaza Bancatlán of Banco Atlántida. The Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History
, founded in 1952, promotes cultural heritage and manages several museums throughout Honduras. There is an art and history museum, Santa María de los Ángeles, in Valle de Ángeles
, 27 km (17 mi) northwest of Tegucigalpa.
Shopping malls of considerable size in Tegucigalpa include:
Tegucigalpa will be home of the largest shopping mall in Central America after the opening of City Mall in early 2012.
and Club Deportivo Motagua
, members of the Honduran National Soccer League
. Between the two teams, they have won more than 30 championships. The Tiburcio Carias Andino National Stadium
is the multi-purpose
venue hosting the national and international soccer games taking place in the capital. Inter-city school sports championships take place in Tegucigalpa as well.
The National College of Engineers Coliseum, west of the city near UNAH, is a basketball arena occasionally fitted as a music concert venue as well. There is a sports facility known as Olympic Village Sports Complex (Complejo Deportivo Villa Olímpica) hosting several Olympic sports such as boxing, archery, tennis and tae-kwon-do; it is located north of the National University-UNAH.
The public and private education system in Tegucigalpa is divided into 16 school districts (distritales). All districts are part of the Departmental Directorate of Education (Dirección Departamental de Educación), which in turn is a part of the country's Secretary of Education.
There are 1,235 public schools in the Central District broken down as 488 preschools, 563 elementary schools, and 184 middle
and high schools. In 2003, there were a total of 287,517 students enrolled throughout the municipality—28,915 in preschool, 159,679 in elementary school, and 98,923 in middle or high school.
is considered among the country's top private schools with its K-12 education program costing a total of L.1.366 million (US$72,248) for all years (amount based on 10-11 academic year). Other popular private/bilingual schools include Discovery School
(K-12, secular
), Los Pinares Academy (E-HS, Christian
), DelCampo International School (MS-HS, secular), Dowal School (K-12, secular), Liceo Franco-Hondureño (K-12, French
), Magic Castle Preschool (K), and Macris School (E-HS, Catholic
).
There are two modalities in regards to the school calendar: American Period (August to July), mostly used by private and bilingual schools; and Latin Period (February to November), used by public schools.
The National Autonomous University of Honduras
(UNAH), founded in 1847, is the country's most important university and operates eight regional campuses in several other cities in the country: UNAH-Valle de Sula, UNAH-La Ceiba, UNAH-Comayagua,
UNAH-Copán, UNAH-Choluteca, UNAH-Juticalpa, UNAH-Valle del Aguán, and University Technological Center UNAH–Danlí. It employs 4,980 people throughout its campuses at an average annual salary of L.241,184 (US$12,747).
The other two publicly-funded institutions are Francisco Morazán National Pedagogic University (UPNFM), founded in 1989, focusing on preparing future educators in several disciplines. and the National Institute of Professional Formation (INFOP), founded in 1972, focusing on economic and social development disciplines. The National University of Agriculture (UNA), founded in 1950, also state-funded and located in Catacamas
, Olancho, maintains an liaison office in Tegucigalpa.
There are 10 private universities in Tegucigalpa:
There is also two higher education centers: the Technological University Center (CEUTEC), part of UNITEC; and Guaymura University Center (CUG), founded in 1982.
due to the region's geography and disorganized urbanization.
An estimate of 400,000 vehicles take on the city streets and roads everyday. The oldest districts were not built with the advent of the automobile in mind and therefore lack efficient roadways to accommodate the overwhelming amount of vehicles. Newer developments, such as the malls, have been built with the car in mind allowing for large parking lots to accommodate their visitors. In the last decades, several of the boulevards and avenues have bee retrofitted with grade separation
s to ease up the flow of traffic.
into international routes (ruta internacional), national routes
(ruta nacional), and provincial routes
(ruta vecinal). These are assigned numbers; however, they are more often identified using their physical destinations (e.g. Tegucigalpa-Danlí highway) rather the number itself since road signage
is scarce.
International routes are given a "CA-" designation
followed by a highway number (i.e. CA-1) which can be of one or two digits enclosed in a highway shield
. "CA-" highways are part of the Central American highway network (hence the "CA" letters) that interconnects Honduras with its neighboring countries as part of the Pan-American Highway
. National highways are assigned a two or three-digit number and provincial routes are assigned a three-digit number.
CA-5 North connects the Central District to Comayagua Department going through Comayagua City and further north to Cortes Department and into San Pedro Sula where it connects to highways CA-4 and CA-13, one heading west connecting through the western departments until it reaches the Guatemalan border and the other traveling east towards Atlántida Department, connecting to La Ceiba and into Colón Department
and its major cities.
CA-5 South connects to the municipalities of Ojojona, Santa Ana, and San Buenaventura and then enters Choluteca Department and later Valle Department, becoming highway CA-1 which travels to the west towards Nacaome
and into El Salvador and to the east to Choluteca City
and into Nicaragua, near the Gulf of Fonseca
.
CA-6 connects to municipalities Maraita and San Antonio de Oriente and continues east into El Paraíso Department, passing through Danlí and El Paraiso
municipalities eventually reaching the Nicaraguan border.
Highway 15 runs north through the bordering municipality of Talanga, it later enters the municipality of Guaimaca
and then junctions with highway 43 which connects to Yoro department. Highway 15 continues northeast and enters Olancho Department, continuing until junction with highways 41 and 39 which lead to Colón Department.
Highway 25 runs northeast of the Central District and connects to the municipalities of Santa Lucía, Valle de Ángeles and San Juan de Flores. Highway 33 travels southwest and connects to the municipality of Lepaterique. About 30 other provincial roads connect to the towns and villages outside the urban area of the Central District.
Despite a network of major highways, none reach directly into the historic downtown, forcing drivers to rely heavily on surface streets. Like in most Central American cities, orientation and driving may be difficult to first-time visitors due to the nature of how streets are named, insufficient road signage and the native's driving behavior. The current city administration has green lit several road infrastructure projects to help reduce traffic congestion and improve the overall aspect of the city.
List of major thoroughfares in the Central District, including urban core
arteries
and outskirt roads:
International highways
National highways
Rural highways
City highways
Major roads and streets
The public transportation system in Tegucigalpa is, however, highly disorganized. Being a for-profit business, it encourages competition between the fleet owners where revenue is the priority while heavily ignoring the quality and efficiency of the service. Public transportation regulation is heavily flawed. Bus drivers must compete for the passengers in order to bring the highest earnings possible while becoming a hazard for other drivers and pedestrians and contributing to traffic jams. There is currently an overflow of public transportation vehicles on the roads. The government has declared its public transportation system as oversupplied and inefficient.
There is currently a project underway to give the public transportation system an upgrade with the addition of a bus rapid transit
fleet. In late May 2011, the National Congress approved the project under a new law as part of the financing deal with the Inter-American Development Bank (IAB). The BRT system will be solely managed by the Central District government.
, Costa Rica
, Panama
and Mexico everyday.
Toncontín International Airport (IATA: TGU, ICAO: MHTG), serves as the main airport in and out of Tegucigalpa. It is currently served by three domestic airlines and six international airlines connecting the capital to three cities in the United States and four cities in Central America as well as four cities within Honduras.
The airport is frequently criticized as being dangerous; due to its location next to a sierra
, short runway, and difficult approach. Large commercial jets are required to execute a tight hairpin left turn at very low altitude to land on the short runway. International airline pilots flying into Toncontín receive additional, specific training for the Toncontín approach.
Toncontín has been improved by the work of the Airport Corporation of Tegucigalpa (CAT), which is owned by TACA
of El Salvador. It is currently managed by InterAirports
, the company hired by the government of Honduras to manage the four airports in the country.
The airport authority and the government of Honduras resumed the airport relocation talks in April 2011 and announced that work on the new Palmerola airport would start by the fall of 2011 after years of efforts to replace Toncontín International with an airport at Palmerola
in Comayagua where the Soto Cano Air Base is located. However, on a September 25, 2011 update, President Lobo stated officials were still "evaluating the pros and cons" of constructing the new airport. This comes three years after former President Manuel Zelaya
had announced that all commercial flights would be transferred to Soto Cano Air Base; however, work on the new terminal at Soto Cano was then cancelled after Zelaya was removed from office on 28 June 2009 in the 2009 Honduran coup d'état
. Upon realization of the Palmerola airport, international flights to and from Toncontín would continue to operate but would be limited to small aircraft.
Belo Horizonte
, Brazil Gainesville
, United States New Orleans, United States Guadalajara
, Mexico Lima
, Peru Madrid
, Spain Quito
, Ecuador Taipei
, Taiwan Amman
, Jordan Bogotá
, Colombia Caracas
, Venezuela Managua
, Nicaragua Guatemala City
, Guatemala La Paz
, Bolivia Banjarbaru, Indonesia Manado
, Indonesia Palu
, Indonesia Seoul
, South Korea
Comayagüela refers to the urban area formed west of the Choluteca River. Once a city of its own, it was incorporated as part of Tegucigalpa on September 28, 1890.
Central District refers to the entire municipality containing both Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela. As established by the Constitution of Honduras, it serves as national capital and therefore its limits as government seat are not reduced to the urban area formed by Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela but extend to the entire municipality; in turn, the Central District as a whole, is the capital of Honduras.
It should be noted that the Central District is not a federal district
since it is not an entity outside the departments of Honduras (e.g. Washington, D.C.
, Mexico City
); it is one of the municipalities making up the Department of Francisco Morazán.
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
and seat of government of the Republic, along with its twin sister Comayagüela. Founded on September 29, 1578 by the Spanish
Spanish colonization of the Americas
Colonial expansion under the Spanish Empire was initiated by the Spanish conquistadores and developed by the Monarchy of Spain through its administrators and missionaries. The motivations for colonial expansion were trade and the spread of the Christian faith through indigenous conversions...
, it became the country's capital on October 30, 1880 under President Marco Aurelio Soto
Marco Aurelio Soto
Marco Aurelio Soto was President of Honduras from 27 August 1876 until 19 October 1883. he was known as a liberal. He was a reforming President and had a great impact on the Honduras of his time, including the establishment of the Biblioteca Nacional de Honduras in 1880.-Biography:Dr. Marco...
. The current Constitution of Honduras
Constitution of Honduras
The Political Constitution of the Republic of Honduras was approved on 11 January 1982, published on 20 January 1982, amended by the National Congress of Honduras 26 times from 1984 to 2005, and 10 interpretations by Congress were made from 1982 to 2005. It is Honduras' twelfth constitution since...
, enacted in 1982, names the sister cities of Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela as a Central District to serve as the permanent national capital, under articles 8 and 295.
During the short-lived Constitution of the Republic of Central America
Republic of Central America
The Greater Republic of Central America was a short-lived union between Honduras, Nicaragua, and El Salvador, lasting from 1896 to 1898. It was an attempt to revive the failed Federal Republic of Central America earlier in the century....
of 1921, Tegucigalpa served as a Federal District and capital of then-newly formed as one nation: the states of El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
, Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
and Honduras. After this failed attempt to maintain a Central American republic, Honduras returned to become an individual sovereign nation and on January 30, 1937, Article 179 of the 1936 Honduran Constitution was reformed under Decree 53 to established Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela as a Central District.
Tegucigalpa is located in the southern-central highland region of Honduras in the department of Francisco Morazán of which it is also the departmental capital. It is situated in a valley, surrounded by mountains and both Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela, being sister cities, are physically separated by the Choluteca River
Choluteca River
The Choluteca River is a river in southern Honduras. Its source is in the department of Francisco Morazán, near Lepaterique , and from there it flows North through the city of Tegucigalpa, then South through the department of El Paraíso, and the department and city of Choluteca...
. The Central District is the largest of the 28 municipalities in the Francisco Morazán department.
Tegucigalpa is Honduras' largest and most populous city as well as the nation's political and administrative center. Tegucigalpa is host to 25 foreign embassies and 16 consulates in addition to being the home base of several state-owned entities such as ENEE
ENEE
The Empresa Nacional de Energía Eléctrica , is Honduras's government owned and operated electrical power company, operating within the Electricity sector in Honduras.- By the Numbers :* ENEE employs more than 2,500 people....
and Hondutel
Hondutel
Hondutel , is Honduras' government owned telecommunications company.It has a monopoly on international calls...
, the national energy and telecommunications companies, respectively. The city is also home to the country's most important university, the National Autonomous University of Honduras
National Autonomous University of Honduras
The National Autonomous University of Honduras is the national public university of Honduras. It was founded in 1847 and has many campuses throughout the country.-Autonomy:...
, as well as the national soccer team
Honduras national football team
The Honduran national football team, nicknamed Los Catrachos, La Bicolor or La H, is the national team of Honduras and is controlled by the Federación Nacional Autónoma de Fútbol de Honduras...
. The capital's international airport, Toncontín
Toncontín International Airport
Toncontín International Airport or Teniente Coronel Hernán Acosta Mejía Airport is a civil and military airport that serves Tegucigalpa, Honduras...
, is notorious around the world for its extremely short runway for an international airport and the unusual maneuvers pilots must undertake upon landing or taking off to avoid the nearby mountains.
The Central District Mayor's Office (Alcaldia Municipal del Distrito Central) is the city's governing body, headed by a mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
and 10 aldermen forming the Municipal Corporation (Corporación Municipal). Being the department's seat as well, the governor's office of Francisco Morazán is also located in the capital. In 2008, the city operated on an approved budget of 1.555 billion lempiras
Honduran lempira
The lempiras is the currency of Honduras. It is subdivided into 100 centavos. The lempira was named after the 16th-century cacique Lempira, a ruler of the indigenous Lenca people, who is renowned in Honduran folklore for leading the local native resistance against the Spanish conquistador forces...
(US$82,189,029). In 2009, the city government reported a revenue of 1.955 billion lempiras (US$103,512,220). (More than any other capital city in Central America, except Panama City)
Tegucigalpa's infrastructure has not kept with the population growth. Deficient urban planning, densely condensed urbanization, and poverty are ongoing problems. Heavily congested roadways where current road infrastructure is unable to efficiently handle the over 400 thousand vehicles create havoc on a daily basis. Both current national and local governments have taken approaches at improving or increasing infrastructure as well as to reducing poverty in the city.
Etymology
Most sources indicate that the origin and meaning of the word Tegucigalpa is derived from the Nahuatl language. The most widely accepted version suggests that it comes from the Nahuatl word Taguz-galpa, which translates to cerros de plata in Spanish (hills of silver in English), but this interpretation is uncertain since the natives who occupied the region at time were unaware of the existence of mineral deposits in the area.Another source suggests that Tegucigalpa derives from another language in which it means painted rocks, as explained by Leticia Oyuela in her book "Minimum History of Tegucigalpa". Other theories indicate it may derive from the term Togogalpa which refers to tototi (small green parrot, in Nahuatl) and Toncontín, a small town near Tegucigalpa (toncotín was a Mexican dance of Nahuatl origin).
In Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, it is believed the word Tegucigalpa is from the Nahuatl word Tecuztlicallipan, meaning "place of residence of the noble" or Tecuhtzincalpan, meaning "place on the home of the beloved master".
Honduran philologist Alberto de Jesús Membreño, in his book "Indigenous Toponymies of Central America", states that Tegucigalpa is a Nahuatl word meaning "in the homes of the sharp stones" and rules out the traditional meaning "hills of silver" arguing that Taguzgalpa
Taguzgalpa
Taguzgalpa is a region or district located in northeastern Honduras, known historically through Spanish sources, and heir to a longer and richer archaeological tradition. It was usually called a "Province" in Spanish sources, and its internal social organization is unclear...
was the name of the ancient eastern zone of Honduras.
History
Tegucigalpa was founded by Spanish settlers as Real de Minas de San Miguel de Tegucigalpa on September 29, 1578 on the site of an existing native settlement of the Pech, TolupansTolupan people
The Tolupan or Jicaque people is an indigenous ethnic group of Honduras primarily inhabiting the community La Montaña del Flor in central Honduras.- Anthropological references :...
and the Twahkas. The first mayor of Tegucigalpa was Juan de la Cueva, who took office in 1579. The Dolores Church (1735), the San Miguel Cathedral (1765), the Casa de la Moneda (1780), and the Immaculate Conception Church (1788) were some of the first important buildings constructed.
Almost 200 years later, on June 10, 1762, this mining town became Real Villa de San Miguel de Tegucigalpa y Heredia under the rule of Alonso Fernández de Heredia
Alonso Fernández de Heredia
Alonso Fernández de Heredia was a Spanish captain general and politician who belonged to theCaptaincy General of Guatemala and ruled Florida , Yucatan , Nicaragua and Honduras .- Biography :...
, then-acting governor of Honduras. The late 1700s and early 1800s saw disruption in Tegucigalpa's local government, from being extinguished in 1788 to becoming part of Comayagua
Comayagua
Comayagua is a city in Honduras, some 80 km northwest of Tegucigalpa on the highway to San Pedro Sula at an elevation of 594 meters above sea level. In 2003 the estimated population was 60,000 people. It is the capital of the Comayagua department of Honduras. The city is noted for its wealth...
in 1791 to returning to self-city governance in 1817.
In 1817, then-mayor Narciso Mallol started the construction of the first bridge, a ten-arch masonry, connecting both sides of the Choluteca River. Upon completion four years later, it linked Tegucigalpa with her neighbor city of Comayagüela. In 1821, Tegucigalpa legally became a city. In 1824, the first Congress of the Republic of Honduras, declared Tegucigalpa and Comayagua, then the two most important cities in the country, to alternate as capital of the country.
After October 1838, following Honduras' independence as a single Republic, the capital continued to switch back and forth between Tegucigalpa and Comayagua until October 30, 1880, when Tegucigalpa was declared the permanent capital of Honduras by then-president Marco Aurelio Soto
Marco Aurelio Soto
Marco Aurelio Soto was President of Honduras from 27 August 1876 until 19 October 1883. he was known as a liberal. He was a reforming President and had a great impact on the Honduras of his time, including the establishment of the Biblioteca Nacional de Honduras in 1880.-Biography:Dr. Marco...
. A popular myth claims that the society of Comayagua, the long-time colonial capital of Honduras, publicly disliked the wife of President Soto, who took revenge by moving the capital to Tegucigalpa. A more likely theory is that the change took place because President Soto was an important partner of the Rosario Mining Company
Rosario Mining Company
The New York and Honduras Rosario Mining Company , known as Rosario Mining Company, was an American-owned corporation that owned and operated the Rosario mine, a gold and silver producer in central Honduras and Nicaragua.- 1880 :...
, an American silver mining company, whose operations were based in San Juancito
San Juancito, Honduras
San Juancito is a small pueblo in central Honduras, located 40 kilometers northeast of Tegucigalpa, the nation's capital. The town is in the department of Francisco Morazán. Including the dependent hamlets of Nuevo Rosario, Guacamaya, and Plan Grande, the population totals at about 1400...
, close to Tegucigalpa, and he needed to be close to his personal interests.
By 1898, it was decided that both Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela, being neighbor cities on the banks of the Choluteca River, would form the capital, but with separate names and separate local governments. During this period, both cities had a population of about 40,000 people.
Between the 1930s and 1960s, Tegucigalpa continued to grow reaching a population of over 250,000 people, giving way to what would become one of the biggest neighborhoods in the city, the Colonia Kennedy; the nation's autonomous university, the UNAH; and the construction of the Honduras Maya Hotel. It still remained relatively small and provincial until the 1970s, when migration from the rural areas began in earnest. During the 1980s, several avenues, traffic overpasses, and large buildings were erected, a relative novelty to a city characterized until then by two-story buildings. However, lacking the enforcement of city planning and zoning laws, it led to highly disorganized urbanization. This lack of proper urbanization as the population has grown is evident on the surrounding slopes of the several hills in the city where some of the city's most impoverished neighborhoods have prevailed.
On October 30, 1998, Hurricane Mitch
Hurricane Mitch
Hurricane Mitch was the most powerful hurricane and the most destructive of the 1998 Atlantic hurricane season, with maximum sustained winds of 180 mph . The storm was the thirteenth tropical storm, ninth hurricane, and third major hurricane of the season. Along with Hurricane Georges, Mitch...
devastated the capital, along with the rest of Honduras. For five days, Mitch pounded the country creating devastating landslides and floods, causing the death of thousands as well as heavy deforestation and the destruction of thousands of homes. A portion of Comayagüela was destroyed along with several neighborhoods on both sides of the Honduran capital. After the hurricane, infrastructure in Tegucigalpa was severely severed. Even 12 years later, remnants of Hurricane Mitch are still visible specially along the banks of the Choluteca River.
Today, Tegucigalpa continues to sprawl far beyond its former colonial core: towards the east, south and west, creating a large but disorganized metropolis. In an effort to modernize the capital, increase its infrastructure and improve the quality of life of its inhabittants, the current administration has passed several ordinances and projects to turn the city around within the upcoming years.
Geography
Tegucigalpa is located on a chain of mountains at elevations of 935 metres (3,067.6 ft) on its lowest points and 1463 metres (4,799.9 ft) on its highest suburban areas. Like most of the interior highlands of Honduras, the majority of Tegucigalpa's current area was occupied by open woodlandWoodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
. The area surrounding the city continues to be open woodland supporting pine forest
Pine Forest
Pine forest may refer to:* A forest of pine trees; see temperate coniferous forest*Pine Forest, Texas** Pine Forest, Texas, city in Orange County, Texas** Pine Forest, Hopkins County, Texas, unincorporated community in Hopkins County, Texas...
interspersed with some oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
, scrub
Scrub
Scrub or Scrubber may refer to:* Scrub, low shrub and grass characteristic of scrubland* Scrubs , worn by medical staff* Scrubs , an American television program...
, and grassy clearings
Glade (geography)
A glade or clearing is an open area within a woodland. Glades are often grassy meadows under the canopy of deciduous trees such as red alder or quaking aspen in western North America. They also represent openings in forests where local conditions such as avalanches, poor soils, or fire damage have...
as well as needle leaf evergreen
Evergreen
In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant that has leaves in all seasons. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage during the winter or dry season.There are many different kinds of evergreen plants, both trees and shrubs...
and broadleaf deciduous forest.
The metropolitan area of both Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela cover a total area of 77.6 square miles (201 km²) while the entire Municipality of the Central District covers a total area of 539.1 square miles (1,396 km²). Geological faults have been identified in the District's high regions surrounding the capital which are a threat to the neighborhoods on and below the hills.
The Choluteca River, which runs crossing the city from south to north, physically separates Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela. El Picacho Hill, a rugged mountain of moderate height convert rises above the downtown area; several neighborhoods, both upscale residential and lower income, are located on its slopes. The city consists of gentle hills, and the ring of mountains surrounding the city tends to trap pollution
Pollution
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into a natural environment that causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to the ecosystem i.e. physical systems or living organisms. Pollution can take the form of chemical substances or energy, such as noise, heat or light...
. During the dry season, a dense cloud of smog
Smog
Smog is a type of air pollution; the word "smog" is a portmanteau of smoke and fog. Modern smog is a type of air pollution derived from vehicular emission from internal combustion engines and industrial fumes that react in the atmosphere with sunlight to form secondary pollutants that also combine...
lingers in the basin until the first rains fall.
Tucked in a valley and bisected by a river makes Tegucigalpa prone to flooding during the rainy season, as experienced to the fullest during Hurricane Mitch and to a lesser degree every year during the rainy season. Despite being several thousand feet above sea level, the city currently lacks an efficient flood control system, including canals and sewerage powerful enough to channel rain water back into the river to flow down to the ocean. The river itself is a threat since it isn't deep enough below the streets nor there are levies high enough to prevent it from breaking out. There are currently more than 100 neighborhoods deemed zones of high risk, several of them ruled out as uninhabitable in their entirety.
There is a reservoir, known as Embalse Los Laureles, west of the city providing 30 percent of the city's water supply as well as a water treatment plant south of the city about 7.3 kilometres (4.5 mi) from the airport; part of the Concepción Reservoir just 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) southwest of the water plant.
The Central District shares borders with 13 other municipalities of Francisco Morazán: (to the north) Cedros
Cedros, Francisco Morazán
Cedros is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán. It is located 77 kilometers from Tegucigalpa in an area of rolling hills with tropical pine forests....
and Talanga
Talanga
Talanga is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán.It lies on the highway connecting Tegucigalpa with the department of Olancho. Talanga is a medium-sized municipality relying heavily on agriculture. Its most important crops include corn, sugar cane and livestock...
; (south) Ojojona
Ojojona
Ojojona is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán, located 34km South of Tegucigalpa. It was founded in 1579 by Spanish miners who worked the silver and gold mines of the area....
, Santa Ana
Santa Ana, Francisco Morazán
Santa Ana is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán...
, San Buenaventura
San Buenaventura, Francisco Morazán
San Buenaventura is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán....
and Maraita
Maraita
Maraita is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán....
; (east) San Juan de Flores
San Juan de Flores
San Juan de Flores is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán.It is also known as Cantaranas or "Singing Frogs" in English and is located approximately 55 minutes north of the capital, Tegucigalpa and about 20 minutes away from Valle de Angeles.Annual Events: Festival de...
, Villa de San Francisco
Villa de San Francisco
Villa de San Francisco is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán. http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villa_de_San_FranciscoIts social network is http://www.villadesanfrancisco.com/...
, Santa Lucía
Santa Lucía, Francisco Morazán
Santa Lucía is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán....
, Valle de Ángeles
Valle de Ángeles
Valle de Ángeles is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán.The local holiday is October 4th, San Francisco Day.- Location :...
, San Antonio de Oriente
San Antonio de Oriente
San Antonio de Oriente is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán. Population as of 2001 is 12,055.The first occupants came in 1660 in the village Mineral de San Antonio that is 4 km away from the present town. Nowadays it is called San Antonio Yusguare. A kilometre west...
, and Tatumbla
Tatumbla
Tatumbla is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán. Tatumbla is located in the mountains above Tegucigalpa, about a 45 minute bus ride....
; (and to the west) Lepaterique
Lepaterique
Lepaterique is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán.A military base located in Lepaterique was used during the 1980s by the Contras and by the Argentine 601 Intelligence Battalion, which was involved in Operation Condor....
. It is also bordered on the west by two municipalities of the Comayagua Department, Villa de San Antonio
Villa de San Antonio
Villa de San Antonio is a municipality in the Honduran department of Comayagua. The municipality consists of a 'casco urbano,' or main town, with approximately 7,000 residents, and a large number of 'aldeas' or villages, which bring the municipality's entire population to 17,000...
and Lamaní
Lamaní
Lamaní is a municipality in the Honduran department of Comayagua. It is located about 25 minutes from the City of Comayagua, in the vicinity of the Piedra Parada Mountain. Temperatures can range anywhere within the 90 degrees Fahrenheit range to as low as 40 degrees Fahrenheit.Many of Lamani's...
, with the latter exactly at the quadripoint
Quadripoint
A quadripoint is a point on the Earth that touches the border of four distinct territories. The term has never been in common use—it may not have been used before 1964, by the Geographer of the United States...
where the Central District, Lepaterique, Villa de San Antonio and Lamaní all meet.
Climate
Teguicigalpa features a more moderate form of a tropical wet and dry climate. Of the major Central American cities, Tegucigalpa's climate is among the most pleasant due to its high altitude. Like much of central Honduras, the city has a tropical climateTropical climate
A tropical climate is a climate of the tropics. In the Köppen climate classification it is a non-arid climate in which all twelve months have mean temperatures above...
, though tempered by the altitude—meaning less humid than the lower valleys and the coastal regions—with even temperatures averaging between 19 °C (66.2 °F) and 23 °C (73.4 °F) degrees.
The months of December and January are coolest, with an average min/ low temperature of 14 °C (57 °F); whereas March and April—popularly associated with Holy Week
Holy Week
Holy Week in Christianity is the last week of Lent and the week before Easter...
's holidays—are hottest and temperatures can reach up to 40 °C (104 °F) degrees on the hottest day. The dry season lasts from November through April and the rainy season from May through October. There is an average of 107 rainy days in the year, June and September usually the wettest months.
The average sunshine hours per month during the year is 211.2 and the average rainy days per month is 8.9. The average sunshine hours during the dry season is 228 per month while 182.5 millimetres (7.2 in) is the average monthly precipitation during the wet season. The wettest months of the rainy season are May—June and September—October, averaging 16.2 rainy days during each of those periods.
Hurricane Mitch
Tegucigalpa, as with the rest of Honduras, experienced significant damaged by Hurricane Mitch, something of a magnitude Hondurans had not witnessed since Hurricane Fifi
Hurricane Fifi
Hurricane Fifi was a catastrophic tropical cyclone that killed between 3,000 and 10,000 people in Honduras in September 1974, ranking it as the fourth deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record. Originating from a strong tropical wave on September 14, the system steadily tracked...
. Mitch destroyed part of the Comayagüela section of the city, as well as other places along the banks of the Choluteca River. The storm remained over Honduran territory for five days, dumping heavy rainfall late in the rainy season. The ground was already saturated and could not absorb the heavy precipitation, while deforestation and debris left by the hurricane led to catastrophic flooding throughout widespread regions of the country, especially in Tegucigalpa.
The heavy rain caused flash floods of Choluteca's tributaries, and the swollen river overflowed its banks, tearing down entire neighborhoods and bridges across the ravaged city. The rainfall also triggered massive landslides around El Berrinche Hill, close to the downtown area. These landslides destroyed most of the Soto neighborhood, and debris flowed into the river, forming a dam. The dam clogged the waters of the river and many of the low-lying areas of Comayagüela were submerged; historic buildings located along Calle Real were either completely destroyed or so badly damaged that repair was futile.
Cityscape
Situated in a valley and surrounded by mountain ranges, Tegucigalpa is hilly with several elevations and few flat areas. The city is also highly disorganized, particularly around its oldest districts. It has seen a rapid growth in the last 30 years and only until recently has the government passed certain laws to establish city planning and zoning rules. Surface roads can be narrow with the most important avenues carrying no more than two or three lanes running in each direction, adding to the problem of heavy traffic congestion. Several of the main boulevards have been equipped with interchangesInterchange (road)
In the field of road transport, an interchange is a road junction that typically uses grade separation, and one or more ramps, to permit traffic on at least one highway to pass through the junction without directly crossing any other traffic stream. It differs from a standard intersection, at which...
, overpasses and underpasses, allowing for sections of controlled-access
Controlled-access highway
A controlled-access highway is a highway designed exclusively for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow and ingress/egress regulated...
highways but considering that even the city's beltway does not entirely circle the city, the roads are generally limited-access. Intense webs of electrical and telephone lines above the streets are a common site in the capital, and virtually in all Honduran cities, since implementation of underground utility lines has only been adopted in the recent years.
Around the city
The metropolitan area of Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela is officially divided into barriosBarrios
Barrios, de Barrios, Barrio or Berrios is a surname of Basque origin. The name may refer to:-People:*Agustín Barrios , Paraguayan guitarist and composer*Artur Barrio , Brazilian artist...
and colonias
Colonia (Mexico)
In general, colonias are neighborhoods in Mexican cities, which have no jurisdictional autonomy or representation. It is plausible that the name, which literally means colony, arose in the late 19th, early 20th centuries, when one of the first urban developments outside Mexico City's core was...
and there are currently 892 of them. Colonias represent relatively recent 20th-century middle class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
residential suburbs, some known as residenciales for their upper income development, and these are continuously spreading while the barrios are old inner-city neighborhoods.
While the city administration divides the capital into barrios and colonias, the fact that there are hundreds of them, makes it difficult to define the city's different regions, especially for those not familiar with the Central District. To have a better understanding of the city's regions, the metro area of the Central District can essentially be divided, first, into two sections: Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela. These two entities remain separated by the Choluteca River basin that runs between them.
Tegucigalpa
The Tegucigalpa side of the District can be divided into five sections: 1) Centro Histórico (Historic Downtown); 2) Centro Contemporáneo or Zona Viva (Contemporary Downtown or Vibrant Zone); 3) North Tegucigalpa; 4) South Tegucigalpa; and 5) East Tegucigalpa:- 1 - Centro Histórico or the Historic Downtown of Tegucigalpa is formed by the original neighborhoods that date back to its founding days. For years, this area remained neglected and rundown but in recent times, attempts have been made to revive the zone and bring back its colonial heritage. Several government offices, including the National Congress and City Hall as well as museums, parks, a cathedral and churches are located here.
- 2 - Centro Contemporáneo is the contemporary, vibrant and modern downtown of Tegucigalpa. This area is formed by the neighborhoods encompassed east of the Choluteca River, south of the northern tributary, Rio Chiquito (which confluences with the Choluteca below the Mallol Bridge), west of the beltway (Anillo Periférico), and north of Armed Forces Blvd.
This section of the city is perhaps the best developed and properly urbanized. It is formed by more than 40 neighborhoods, many of them wealthy middle class residential areas such as Colonia Palmira to the east of the historic center, on Boulevard Morazán which hosts several foreign embassies as well as upscale restaurants. Other upscale neighborhoods are Lomas del Guijarro, Loma Linda and Lomas del Mayab which house most of the apartment complexes in the city.
The leading hotels of the city are found around these neighborhoods, including within the Plaza San Martín Hotel District. These include: Marriott Hotel, Clarion Hotel, Hotel El Centenario, Intercontinental, Honduras Maya, Plaza Del Libertador, Plaza San Martín, Hotel Alameda, Excelsior Hotel and Casino.
Boulevard Morazán and Avenida Los Próceres/Avenida La Paz are busy commercial corridors (running parallel of each other) and run through several neighborhoods home to foreign embassies, a hotel district, business establishments and corporate buildings; including Los Próceres Comercial Park (Parque Comercial). Boulevard Suyapa and Boulevard Juan Pablo II are located south of the aforementioned boulevards and they also form a busy commercial and financial district stretching through several neighborhoods such as Colonia Los Profesionales where the Presidencial House is located; Colonia Florencia Norte where Multiplaza Mall is located; Colonia Miramontes, among others—housing several financial institutions, government offices, hotels, etc.
- 3 - North Tegucigalpa is formed by both middle class and impoverished neighborhoods that lie above the surrounding hill immediately north of the historic downtown. Beyond these neighborhoods sits the United Nations National Park on the El Picacho Hill, one of the most popular destinations in the capital among its residents and visitors. Pass beyond the Park, stretching north and northwest of the city, upper income suburban neighborhoods such as El Hatillo, sit on the sides of the hills, surrounded by heavy vegetation.
- 4 - South Tegucigalpa is everything south of Boulevard Fuerzas Armadas. This area is home to Colonia Kennedy, the capital's largest neighborhood with more than 137,000 residents. South Tegucigalpa concentrates both middle class and poor neighborhoods. Two universities, UTHUniversidad Tecnológica de HondurasUniversidad Tecnológica de Honduras Es una institución joven, pero la de mayor prestigio y crecimiento de Honduras. Estamos interesados en que los estudiantes y docentes tengan la oportunidad de enfrentar los desafíos de un mundo globalizado, con una economía de libre mercado y altamente...
and UNITECUnitecUnitec may refer to:*Unitec Institute of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand*Universidad Tecnológica de México, Mexico City, Mexico*Universidad Tecnológica Centroamericana, Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula, Honduras...
, are located just off the beltway in southern outskirt neighborhoods.
- 5 - East Tegucigalpa concentrates mostly rural and impoverished neighborhoods, the result of improvised growth with little government funding and involvement. María Pediatric Hospital and the Basílica of Suyapa lie on the side of Anillo Períferico's eastern stretch.
Comayagüela
Comayagüela is found to the west bank of the Choluteca River and most of its urbanization is made up of lower income neighborhoods. Historically, Comayagüela has remained less developed than the other side of the capital, some citing insufficient contribution from public officials. In recent years, this western side of the capital has seen some growth and improvement such as the opening of Metromall near the airport. With the construction of Mall Premier and City Mall, the latter to become the largest mall in the country, Comayagüela will be receiving another upgrade. There are an estimated 650,000 residents in Comayagüela contributing 58.3 percent of the 120 million lempiras (US$6.349 million) generated every day by commerce in the Central District.The Comayagüela side of the capital can be divided into four sections: 1) Zona Centro (Downtown Comayagüela); 2) North Comayagüela; 3) South Comayagüela; and 4) West Comayagüela:
- 1 - Zona Centro de Comayagüela is the downtown area of Comayagüela and also original founding grounds formed by its oldest barrios. These barrios are formed in a grid street planGrid planThe grid plan, grid street plan or gridiron plan is a type of city plan in which streets run at right angles to each other, forming a grid...
style. Several government offices are located in this district, including the Central Bank of Honduras Annex building and the Criminal Bureau of Investigation (Dirección General de Investigación Criminal) as well as the National School of Fine Arts housed in the former City Hall building of Comayagüela, built in 1845.
- 2 - North Comayagüela is formed by relatively recent post-Hurricane Mitch middle class residential developments that stretch onto the northern hills of Comayagüela, such as Colonia Cerro Grande, a continuously growing middle class neighborhood on the northern outskirts.
- 3 - South Comayagüela is by far the better-off region of Comayagüela. This area is found south and southwest of the airport, around Los Laureles Reservoir and south of Lepaterique Road (Carretera Lepaterique also known as Carretera al Batallón). Also a post-Hurricane Mitch area, it has grown in the last decade and includes some of Comayagüela's upper income communities that have erupted in the area and continues to spread out as newer suburban middle class developments are built. Toncontín International, Metro Mall and upcoming City Mall are located in this area. Residencial la Arboleda and Residencial los Hidalgos are some of the growing upper income developments in the southern outskirts of Comayagüela.
- 4 - West Comayagüela is mostly impoverished neighborhoods spreading away from Zona Centro onto the surrounding slopes. Many of these neighborhoods came to be through improvised urbanization and lack proper infrastructure. This area prevails north of Lepaterique Road and westward of Boulevard de la Comunidad Europea (European Community Blvd).
Demographics
As of 2011, following the trend of population growth between 1988 and 2001 of 2.79 percent, the population of Tegucigalpa is estimated anywhere between 1.2 and 1.3 million people. Tegucigalpa's population and metro area is expected to double by 2029.The 2010 Population Projections estimated that the Central District had a population of 1,126,534 residents, continuing a trend of population growth in the city since the 2001 Census, which recorded 850,445 residents. In 2010, the average monthly income was L.8,321 (US$440.49), compared to the total national average of L.4,767 (US$252.35) and the national urban zone average of L.7,101 (US$375.91). 4.9 percent of the population is illiterate, compared to the national rate of 15.2 percent.
The Human Development Index
Human Development Index
The Human Development Index is a composite statistic used to rank countries by level of "human development" and separate "very high human development", "high human development", "medium human development", and "low human development" countries...
(HDI) is the highest in the country at 0.759 in 2006. In 2006, 47.6 percent of the Central District's population lived in poverty—29.7 lived in moderate poverty
Poverty threshold
The poverty threshold, or poverty line, is the minimum level of income deemed necessary to achieve an adequate standard of living in a given country...
and 17.9 in extreme poverty
Extreme poverty
Extreme poverty, as defined in 1996 by Joseph Wresinski, the founder of ATD Fourth World, is:"The lack of basic security connotes the absence of one or more factors enabling individuals and families to assume basic responsibilities and to enjoy fundamental rights. The situation may become...
. Life expectancy
Life expectancy
Life expectancy is the expected number of years of life remaining at a given age. It is denoted by ex, which means the average number of subsequent years of life for someone now aged x, according to a particular mortality experience...
in the District as of 2004 is 72.1 years. In 2004, there were 185,577 households with an average of 4.9 members per household.
The ethnic and racial makeup of Tegucigalpa is strongly tied to the rest of Honduras. 90 percent of the city-dwellers are predominantly mestizos with a small White-Hispanic
White Hispanic and Latino Americans
White Hispanic and Latino Americans are citizens and residents of the United States who are racially White and ethnically Hispanic or Latino.White American, itself an official U.S...
minority. They are joined by Chinese
Chinese people
The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....
and Arab immigrants, the latter mostly from Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. There are indigenous Amerindians and Afro-Honduran
Afro Honduran
Afro-Honduran are Hondurans of African descent. They are estimated to be a population of 150,000, or 2% of the country.The percentage of the population might be higher. Some Afro-Honduran might be classed as mestizo.The National Assembly of Afro-Honduran Organizations and Communities put the...
people as well.
Tegucigalpa by numbers:
4 theaters, 12 marketplaces, 12 pedestrian bridges, 12 universities, 14 hospitals, 14 museums, 28 supermarkets, 40 movie screens, 64 health centers, 64 signal light-controlled intersections, 87 middle school and high schools, 100 farmacies, 123 local emergency committees, 170 restaurants, 200 parks and plazas, 200 sports facilities, 400 firemen, 600 volunteer workers, 892 neighborhoods classified as barrios and colonias, 1,200 physicians, two thousand public transportation vehicles, 12 thousands taxis, 60 thousand illiterates, and 140 thousand with direct access to potable water only.
Religion
As with the rest of Honduras, Roman Catholicism is the dominating religion in the Central District and while at some point they made up as much as 95 percent of the population, contemporary estimates as recent as 2007 put them at 47 percent while Protestants make up as much as 36 percent. Their history in Tegucigalpa began around 1548 with the Spanish setting up Mercedarian missionaries as part of their conversionReligious conversion
Religious conversion is the adoption of a new religion that differs from the convert's previous religion. Changing from one denomination to another within the same religion is usually described as reaffiliation rather than conversion.People convert to a different religion for various reasons,...
efforts of the native communities. By 1916, the Diocese of Comayagua was relocated and renamed the Diocese of Tegucigalpa, and it was elevated to an archdiocese under Archbishop Santiago María Martínez y Cabanas (1842–1921).
Other religious groups made their way at the beginning of the 20th century
20th century
Many people define the 20th century as running from January 1, 1901 to December 31, 2000, others would rather define it as beginning on January 1, 1900....
including the Quakers, who in 1914 began work in the nation’s capital. In 1946, missionaries of the Southern Baptist Convention
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
first arrived in Tegucigalpa and in the 1950s, the National Convention of Baptist Churches and the Eastern Mennonite Board of Missions
Eastern Mennonite Missions
Eastern Mennonite Missions is a mission agency primarily supported by congregations of Lancaster Mennonite Conference, an area conference of Mennonite Church USA. Eastern Mennonite Missions sends more than 250 short- and long-term workers per year to approximately thirty-five countries...
followed.
| Central District crime indicators* | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | ||
| Homicide rate | 58.1 | 60.6 | 71.8 | |
| Intentional homicides Murder Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide... |
621 | 654 | 792 | |
| Unintentional homicides Manslaughter Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates... |
93 | 100 | 151 | |
| Male victim ratio Sex ratio Sex ratio is the ratio of males to females in a population. The primary sex ratio is the ratio at the time of conception, secondary sex ratio is the ratio at time of birth, and tertiary sex ratio is the ratio of mature organisms.... |
89.7% | 91% | 91% | |
| Top victim age group (15-39) Demographics Demographics are the most recent statistical characteristics of a population. These types of data are used widely in sociology , public policy, and marketing. Commonly examined demographics include gender, race, age, disabilities, mobility, home ownership, employment status, and even location... |
68.9% | 65.5% | 73.2% | |
| Firearm involvement Gun violence Gun violence defined literally means the use of a firearm to threaten or inflict violence or harm. Gun violence may be broadly defined as a category of violence and crime committed with the use of a firearm; it may or may not include actions ruled as self-defense, actions for law enforcement, or... |
80% | 81% | 85.6% | |
| Organized crime involvement Organized crime Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are... |
14.2% | 26.3% | 39% | |
| Sexual assault Sexual assault Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children.... s |
577 | 521 | 647 | |
| Crimes against person Offence against the person In criminal law, an offence against the person usually refers to a crime which is committed by direct physical harm or force being applied to another person.They are usually analysed by division into the following categories:*Fatal offences*Sexual offences... |
3,791 | 3,746 | 4,471 | |
| Crimes against property Property crime Property crime is a category of crime that includes, among other crimes, burglary, larceny, theft, motor vehicle theft, arson, shoplifting, and vandalism. Property crime only involves the taking of money or property, and does not involve force or threat of force against a victim... |
659 | 3,406 | 7,863 | |
| Suicides | 72 | 64 | 69 | |
| Top suicide age group (15-39) | 48.6% | 35.9% | 47.8% | |
| Vehicle-related deaths | 222 | 235 | 246 | |
| *Data based on crimes reported to authorities. Source: | ||||
The Assembly of God missionaries entered Honduras in the late 1940s and today maintain a mega-church in Tegucigalpa with more than 10,000 members. The Church of God
Church of God
Church of God is a name used by numerous, mostly unrelated Christian denominational bodies, most of which descend from either Pentecostal/Holiness or Adventist traditions.-Pentecostal Movement:*Church of God...
established in Tegucigalpa in 1951, the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel
International Church of the Foursquare Gospel
The International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, commonly referred to as the Foursquare Church, is an evangelical Pentecostal Christian denomination. As of 2000 it had a worldwide membership of over 8,000,000, with almost 60,000 churches in 144 countries. In 2006, membership in the United States...
followed in 1952, and by the late 1950s, the Evangelical Alliance of Honduras
Evangelical Alliance
The Evangelical Alliance is a London-based charitable organization founded in 1846. It has a claimed representation of over 1,000,000 evangelical Christians in the United Kingdom and is the oldest alliance of evangelical Christians in the world....
was established. The Prince of Peace Pentecostal Church, founded in Guatemala City, began its ministry in Honduras during the 1960s. During the 1970s, the Catholic Charismatic Renewal Movement
Catholic Charismatic Renewal
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal is a movement within the Catholic Church. Worship is characterized by vibrant Masses, as well as prayer meetings featuring prophecy, healing and "praying in tongues." This movement is based on the belief that certain charismata , bestowed by the Holy Spirit, such as...
began to grow among the upper classes in Tegucigalpa.
The Christian Love Brigade Association arrived in Tegucigalpa in 1971, the Abundant Life Christian Church
Christian Church
The Christian Church is the assembly or association of followers of Jesus Christ. The Greek term ἐκκλησία that in its appearances in the New Testament is usually translated as "church" basically means "assembly"...
was founded in 1972, the Cenacle Christian Center of Charismatic Renewal
Charismatic movement
The term charismatic movement is used in varying senses to describe 20th century developments in various Christian denominations. It describes an ongoing international, cross-denominational/non-denominational Christian movement in which individual, historically mainstream congregations adopt...
began in 1978 and the Living Love Groups started in 1978.
Today, they are many religious groups in Tegucigalpa including a Jewish community, the Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The religion reports worldwide membership of over 7 million adherents involved in evangelism, convention attendance of over 12 million, and annual...
and the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints who is currently building a new temple
Tegucigalpa Honduras Temple
Announced in 2006, the Tegucigalpa Honduras Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will be the first LDS Temple in Honduras and the sixth in Central America. The temple was announced in a letter to local priesthood leaders 9 June 2006; and later in a press release published 24...
in the city.
Crime and violence
Honduras has been experiencing record-high violenceViolence
Violence is the use of physical force to apply a state to others contrary to their wishes. violence, while often a stand-alone issue, is often the culmination of other kinds of conflict, e.g...
in recent years. In 2010, the homicide rate in Francisco Morazán was 83.2 (per 100,000 inhabitants) compared to the national average of 86.
In 2009, the Central District reached a homicide rate of 72.7 with authorities recording 792 intentional homicides
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
and 151 involuntary homicides; this averaged to 66 murders per month or two per day. 85.6 percent of the deaths were comitted by firearm
Gun violence
Gun violence defined literally means the use of a firearm to threaten or inflict violence or harm. Gun violence may be broadly defined as a category of violence and crime committed with the use of a firearm; it may or may not include actions ruled as self-defense, actions for law enforcement, or...
and 39 percent were linked to organized crime
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
. 91 percent of the victims were men and 81.2 were ages 15 to 39. The neighborhoods reporting the highest incidents of violent deaths are Barrio Concepción, Colonia Nueva Capital, Colonia Villa Nueva Norte, Colonia Cerro Grande, Colonia El Carrizal No. 1, Colonia el Carrizal No. 2, Colonia Flor Del Campo, Colonia La Sosa, Colonia Las Brisas, and Barrio Centro de Comayagüela.
In 2009, there were 246 motor vehicle-related deaths of which 52 percent were pedestrians, including bicyclists; 39 percent were caused by private vehicle and 12 percent by public transportation vehicle. In the same year, there were 69 deaths reported as suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
s of which were most common in the age bracket of 20 to 29 and 30 to 35, while 76.9 of them were men.
Economy
The Central District has an economyEconomy
An economy consists of the economic system of a country or other area; the labor, capital and land resources; and the manufacturing, trade, distribution, and consumption of goods and services of that area...
equal to 19.3 percent of country's GDP. The District's active labor force
Labor force
In economics, a labor force or labour force is a region's combined civilian workforce, including both the employed and unemployed.Normally, the labor force of a country consists of everyone of working age In economics, a labor force or labour force is a region's combined civilian workforce,...
is of 367,844 people of which 56,035 are employed in the public sector
Public sector
The public sector, sometimes referred to as the state sector, is a part of the state that deals with either the production, delivery and allocation of goods and services by and for the government or its citizens, whether national, regional or local/municipal.Examples of public sector activity range...
. In 2009, the unemployment
Unemployment
Unemployment , as defined by the International Labour Organization, occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively sought work within the past four weeks...
rate in Tegucigalpa was 8.1 percent. and an unemployed person may spend as much as four months seeking employment. There are 32,665 business establishments throughout the capital, the most of any city in the country. The city's major economic sources are commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
, construction
Construction
In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of human multitasking...
, services, textiles, sugar
Sugar
Sugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...
, and tobacco
Tobacco industry
The tobacco industry comprises those persons and companies engaged in the growth, preparation for sale, shipment, advertisement, and distribution of tobacco and tobacco-related products. It is a global industry; tobacco can grow in any warm, moist environment, which means it can be farmed on all...
. In 2009, the city's revenue and expenditures budget was of L.2,856,439,263 (US$151,214,182) while in 2010 it was of L.2,366,993,208 (US$125.204.606) 57.9 percent or L.43.860 billion (US$2.318 billion) of the country's national budget is spent within the Central District.
Economic activity in the capital is broken down as follow: commerce—including wholesale, retail, auto repair, hardware (42.86%); manufacturing industry (16.13%), hospitality—hotels and restaurants (14.43%), banking and real state (10.12%), social and personal services (8.94%), health-related services (3.90%), and others (3.60%).
The industrial production taking place in the region include textiles, clothing, sugar, cigarettes, lumber, plywood, paper, ceramics, cement, glass, metalwork, plastics, chemicals, tires, electrical appliances, and farm machinery. Maquiladora duty-free assembly plants have been established in an industrial park in the Amarateca valley, on the northern highway. Silver, lead and zinc are still mined in the outskirts of the city.
Banking
Honduran banks based in Tegucigalpa include Banco Atlántida (Bancatlan), Banco Continental, Banco Financiera Centroaméricana (Ficensa), Banco Financiera Comercial Hondureña (Ficohsa), Banco Hondureño del Café (Banchcafe), Banco Hondureño para la Producción y la Vivienda (Banhprovi), Banco de Occidente, Banco del País, Banco de los Trabajadores, the Central Bank of HondurasCentral Bank of Honduras
The Central Bank of Honduras is the central bank of Honduras. The current president is Maria Elena Mondragón.On June 24, 2009, surveillance cameras captured how about $2 million in cash was withdrawn from the Central Bank and driven to the office of Enrique Flores Lanza, Manuel Zelaya's chief of...
, the country's central banking public institution and Banco Nacional de Desarrollo Agrícola (Banadesa), also state-owned, with central offices located in Comayagüela.
International financial institutions
International financial institutions
International financial institutions are financial institutions that have been established by more than one country, and hence are subjects of international law. Their owners or shareholders are generally national governments, although other international institutions and other organisations...
in Tegucigalpa include Banco de América Central-BAC Honduras (former Banco Mercantil-BAMER), Banco Lafise (Latin American Financial Services), Citibank
Citibank
Citibank, a major international bank, is the consumer banking arm of financial services giant Citigroup. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, later First National City Bank of New York...
, HSBC
HSBC
HSBC Holdings plc is a global banking and financial services company headquartered in Canary Wharf, London, United Kingdom. it is the world's second-largest banking and financial services group and second-largest public company according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine...
, the Inter-American Development Bank
Inter-American Development Bank
The Inter-American Development Bank is the largest source of development financing for Latin America and the Caribbean...
(IAB), the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
, and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (BCIE), with its headquarters located in Colonia Miramontes on Boulevard Suyapa.
Foreign investment
Manufacturing assembly plants (maquiladoras) were introduced in Honduras in 1976. While their contribution to the economyEconomy of Honduras
The economy of Honduras is based mostly on agriculture, which accounted for 22% of its gross domestic product in 1999. Leading export coffee accounted for 22% of total Honduran export revenues. Bananas, formerly the country's second-largest export until being virtually wiped out by 1998's...
remained small, they boomed at the beginning of the 1990s, mostly concentrating in northern Honduras but after the mid 1990s they were expanded to the central region, including Tegucigalpa. By 2005, at least 6 maquiladoras operated in the Central District.
By the end of the 1990s and early 2000s, Tegucigalpa continued to be a focus city for the development of industrial parks. The main obstacle to establish factories in Tegucigalpa has been facilitating infrastructure to provide efficient access between the capital and country's economic hubs: San Pedro Sula
San Pedro Sula
San Pedro Sula is a city in Honduras. It is located in the northwest corner of the country, in the Valle de Sula , about 60 km south of Puerto Cortés on the Caribbean. With an estimated population of 638,259 people in the main municipality, and 802,598 in its metro area , it is the second...
and Puerto Cortez.
While foreign investment manufacturers and exporters have focused in northern Honduras, the presence of multinational corporations is evident in Tegucigalpa. Popular retail
Retail
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
, restaurant, and hospitality
Hospitality industry
The hospitality industry consists of broad category of fields within the service industry that includes lodging, restaurants, event planning, theme parks, transportation, cruise line, and additional fields within the tourism industry. The hospitality industry is a several billion dollar industry...
American-branded franchises
Franchising
Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....
prevail throughout the Honduran capital; such as Walmart, McDonalds, Marriot
Marriott International
Marriott International, Inc. is a worldwide operator and franchisor of a broad portfolio of hotels and related lodging facilities. Founded by J. Willard Marriott, the company is now led by son J.W. Marriott, Jr...
, among others. Companies from other countries such as Mexico, have also made their presence with arrivals like Cinépolis
Cinépolis
Cinépolis is a Mexican chain of movie theaters. Its name means City of Cinéma and its slogan is La Capital del Cine .Cinépolis is the biggest cineplex chain in Mexico with 205 theaters in 65 cities,...
movie theaters, which opened in 2010 in Cascadas Mall. Foreign real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
and property developers operate in the capital District as well, such as Grupo Roble of the Multiplaza malls.
Tegucigalpa's economic challenges are tied to those of the rest of the country, such as overcoming crime
Crime
Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
, anomalies in the judicial system, educational backwardness, and deficient infrastructure in order to continue to encourage foreign investors and permit growth of local entrepreneurs.
Government
As capital of Honduras, as department head and as a municipality, the Central District seats three separate governments: national, departmental and municipal. Prior to 1991, the central governmentCentral government
A central government also known as a national government, union government and in federal states, the federal government, is the government at the level of the nation-state. The structure of central governments varies from institution to institution...
held great jurisdiction over the execution of city management across the country, leading to uneven representation and improper distribution of resources and governance. As a result, in late 1990, under Decree 134-90, the National Congress of Honduras enacted the Law of Municipalities (Ley de Municipalidades), defining the country's department and municipal institutions, representatives and their functions to give city government autonomy and decentralize it from the national government.
While autonomous, the Central District is still influenced by the national government given the territory remains seat of government of the republic. Major changes in public policy and funding of major city projects usually reach the Office of the President prior to approval by the District's local government.
Central District
For all practical purposes the capital of Honduras is Tegucigalpa. However, politically and officially speaking, the Municipality of the Central District (DC for short) is the capital of Honduras and Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela are two entities within the district. Traditionally, they are regarded as twin or sister cities in part because they were originally founded as two distinct cities. When the Central District was formed on January 30, 1937 under Decree 53 of reformed Article 179 of the 1936 Honduran Constitution, both cities became one political entity sharing the title of Capital of Honduras.The current Constitution of Honduras, under Chapter 1, Article 8, states (translated), "The cities of Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela, jointly, constitute the Capital of the Republic." Furthermore... Chapter 11, Article 295, states (translated) "The Central District consists of a single municipality made up of the former municipalities of Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela"; however, municipalities in Honduras are defined as political entities similar to counties, and they may contain one or more cities. For example, in the Department of Atlántida, La Ceiba
La Ceiba
La Ceiba is a port city on the northern coast of Honduras in Central America. It is located on the southern edge of the Caribbean, forming part of the south eastern boundary of the Gulf of Honduras...
is the largest city—being also the third largest in Honduras—both in terms of population and metropolitan area; however, Tela
Tela
Tela is a town in Honduras on the northern Caribbean coast. It is located in the department of Atlantida.-History:Tela was founded by the Spanish conquistador Cristóbal de Olid on 3 May 1524 near an indigenous town named Tehuacán, ruled by a cacique named Cucumba which had a very good source of...
, one of the eight municipalities of Atlántida, is the biggest municipality in terms of physical administrative area in that department. Since the Municipality of Tela is not considered the entire city of Tela, it is not bigger than La Ceiba.
There are an additional of 41 villages and 293 hamlets through the Central District Municipality. These may be assigned deputy mayors (alcalde auxiliar) to serve as local representatives.
National and departmental governments
Tegucigalpa is the political and administrative center of Honduras. It is also the seat of government of the Francisco Morazán department. All three branches of the national government as well as their immediate divisions—including the 16 departments of the Executive BranchPresident of Honduras
This page lists the Presidents of Honduras.Colonial Honduras declared its independence from Spain on 15 September 1821. From 5 January 1822 to 1 July 1823, Honduras was part of the First Mexican Empire of Agustín de Iturbide....
, the National Congress
National Congress of Honduras
The National Congress is the legislative branch of the government of Honduras.The Honduran Congress is a unicameral legislature. The current President of the National Congress of Honduras is Juan Orlando Hernández. Its members are 128 deputies, who are elected on a proportional representation...
, the Supreme Court of Justice, the Armed Forces
Military of Honduras
-pre-1979:During the twentieth century, Honduran military leaders frequently became presidents, either through elections or by coups d'état. General Tiburcio Carías Andino was elected in 1932, he later on called a constituent assembly that allowed him to be reelected, and his rule became more...
and National Police
Law enforcement in Honduras
-Current Branches:*Transit Police , a police force in charge of automobile transportation. They take care of car accidents, parking violations and other infringements....
headquarters—are located in the city. Most public agencies and state-owned companies are headquartered in the capital as well.
Local government
City government takes form in a mayor-council system and is regulated under the Law of Municipalities which came into effect on January 1, 1991. The Central District Municipal Government (Alcaldía Municipal del Distrito Central or AMDC) is the city's governing authority. As established by current city governing law, AMDC is structured as a municipal corporationMunicipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
, which is the deliberative-legislative body, voter-elected, and highest authority within the municipality.
The Municipal Corporation is formed by a mayor serving as chief executive, general administrator and legal representative of the municipality and a vice mayor to serve as acting mayor when required and to oversee functions within AMDC as instructed by the mayor.
Ten aldermen (regidores) are also members of the Municipal Corporation who along with the mayor execute the duties as described in the Law of Municipalities, including management
Management
Management in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively...
, budgeting, and local law and ordinance
Local ordinance
A local ordinance is a law usually found in a municipal code.-United States:In the United States, these laws are enforced locally in addition to state law and federal law.-Japan:...
legislation
Legislation
Legislation is law which has been promulgated by a legislature or other governing body, or the process of making it...
.
A general manager
City manager
A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city, in a council-manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are sometimes referred to as the chief executive officer or chief administrative officer in some municipalities...
, appointed by the mayor, is to served as chief comptroller
Comptroller
A comptroller is a management level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization.In British government, the Comptroller General or Comptroller and Auditor General is in most countries the external auditor of the budget execution of the...
to keep management of city funds and their allocation. A municipal secretary, also appointed by the mayor, serves as the city clerk
Clerk (municipal official)
A clerk is a senior official of many municipal governments in the English-speaking world. In some communities, the position is elected, but in many others, the clerk is appointed to their post...
in charge of keeping record of all official proceedings. The Municipal Corporation also counts with a Municipal Development Council (Consejo de Desarrollo Municipal) which serves as an advising cabinet on all the areas of issues of the city such as human development
Human development (humanity)
Human development in the scope of humanity, specifically international development, is an international and economic development paradigm that is about much more than the rise or fall of national incomes. People are the real wealth of nations...
, public safety
Public Safety
Public safety involves the prevention of and protection from events that could endanger the safety of the general public from significant danger, injury/harm, or damage, such as crimes or disasters .-See also:* By nation...
, utilities, etc.
Current administration
The current mayor of the Central District is Ricardo ÁlvarezRicardo Álvarez (mayor)
Ricardo Álvarez is the current mayor of Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras. He won the 2005 elections and was re-elected on the 2009 elections representing the National Party of Honduras. He is also the party's president.- References :...
(PNH) who is serving his second term (2006–2010, 2010–2014) after winning reelection in 2009. Alvarez is the first candidate to win a consecutive reelection, he is the seventh person to serve as mayor of the Central District since local elections were restored in 1986, (prior to 1986, the Central District local government, known as Consejo Metropolitano (Metropolitan Council), was appointed by the President); and this is the eighth elected mayoral term since then.
Of the 10 aldermen currently serving, six are men and four are women. Six belong to the National Party while another two belong to the Liberal Party
Liberal Party of Honduras
The Liberal Party of Honduras is a centre-left liberal political party in Honduras that was founded in 1891. The party is a member of the Liberal International...
; one alderman belongs to the Democratic Unification Party
Democratic Unification Party
The Democratic Unification Party is a left-wing political party in Honduras. PUD was founded on 29 September 1992 by the merger of four leftist clandestine or semiclandestine political parties, in the context of the changed political situation in Central America at that period, following the end...
and the other is Independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
.
Both the city mayor and aldermen are elected to 4-year terms by voters of the Central District. Removal of the mayor or any alderman for any cause is reserved to the Ministry of Interior and Population (Secretaría del Interior y Población), formely Secretaría de Gobernación y Justicia.
Law enforcement
Law enforcement in the city is the responsibility of the National Police of Honduras, the nationwide police force. The National Police maintains its headquarters in the Central District in Colonia Casamata. The Metropolitan Police Headquarters No. 1 (Jefatura Metropolitana No. 1) is the police department in charge of law and order in the city. It operates seven police districtPolice district
Police district is a form of division of a geographical area patrolled by a police force.Police forces using this format include:* York Regional Police* Halton Regional Police Service* Baltimore Police Department* Baton Rouge Police Department...
s throughout the metropolitan area. These are Police District 1-1 El Edén, Police District 1-2 El Mandén, Police District 1-3 San Miguel, Police District 1-4 Kennedy, Police District 1-5 El Belén, Police District 1-6 La Granja and Police District 1-7 San Francisco. For 2011, the Secretary of Security designated L.2.162 billion (US$114.283 million) to law enforcement and criminal investigation in the Central District.
As established by the Law on Police and Social Coexistence (Ley de Policía y Convivencia Social), municipalities can fund their own municipal police
Municipal police
.Municipal police are law enforcement agencies that are under the control of local government, including the municipal government, where it is the smallest administrative subdivision. They receive pay from the city budget, and usually have fewer rights than the "state paid" police...
(Policía Municipal) and the Central District currently operates a Municipal Police force of 160 officers. The Municipal Department of Justice (Departamento Municipal de Justicia) through its Municipal Police Court (Juzgado de Policía Municipal) enforces and prosecutes local law offenses.
The Public Ministry (Ministerio Público) is the district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
with nationwide jurisdiction in charge of prosecuting crimes on behalf of the people. It is also headquartered in the Central District and maintains regional prosecution offices throughout the country. The Attorney General of the Republic (Procuraduría General de la República) is the country's chief legal representative and prosecutes crimes on behalf of the state
Sovereign state
A sovereign state, or simply, state, is a state with a defined territory on which it exercises internal and external sovereignty, a permanent population, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. It is also normally understood to be a state which is neither...
.
Culture
Tegucigalpa is a colonial city with a history spanning for more than 400 years. According to the National Chamber of Tourism of Honduras (CANATURH), the city is visited by at least 250,000 tourists every summer. For Easter 2011, at least 300,000 visitors arrived to the city.The Fair of the Capital (Feria de la Capital or Feria capitalina) is a celebration happening every year in the month of September to commemorate the city's anniversary. Several festivities occur during this time including book fairs, art expositions, concerts and a parade. The 2010 Fair was suspended due to heavy rain and flooding in the region. For 2011, the fair was scheduled to run from September 26 until October 13. Another yearly event is the Fair of the Horse and Culture (Feria del Caballo y la Cultura) taking place in the month of November. There is also a Christmas Fair in the month of December.
Parks and landmarks
Some of the parks in the city include Parque La Leona, Parque Herrera, Parque Del Soldado, Parque Juan A. Lainez, Plaza España, Plaza del Libertador, and Central Park, the latter located in the heart of the historic center which leads to Paseo Liquidambar, a pedestrian zone street. La Tigra National ParkLa Tigra National Park
La Tigra National Park was the first national park in Honduras, by decree No. 976-80 whose principal objective is "The Conservation, Ecologic Preservation and Maintenance of The Hydrologic Potential of this Reserve". It was established on 1 January 1980 and covers an area of 238.21 square kilometers...
lies several kilometers north of the city and covers an area of 93.9 square miles (243 km²). The United Nations National Park on El Picacho Hill just north above the city offers a great view of the city and hosts the Picacho Metropolitan Zoo.
Some of the popular landmarks include the Metropolitan Cathedral, the former Presidential Palace (now a museum), the National University, the Basilica of the Virgin of Suyapa, La Merced Church, and the Manuel Bonilla Theater.
There are several charming colonial villages within easy driving distance from Tegucigalpa: Santa Lucia
Santa Lucia
Santa Lucia is a traditional Neapolitan song. It was transcribed by Teodoro Cottrau and published by the Cottrau firm, as a "barcarolla", at Naples in 1849. Cottrau translated it from Napuletano into Italian during the first stage of the Risorgimento, the first Neapolitan song to be given Italian...
(12 km (7 mi) away), Valle de Angeles
Valle de Ángeles
Valle de Ángeles is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán.The local holiday is October 4th, San Francisco Day.- Location :...
(21 km (13 mi) away), Ojojona
Ojojona
Ojojona is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán, located 34km South of Tegucigalpa. It was founded in 1579 by Spanish miners who worked the silver and gold mines of the area....
, Yuscarán
Yuscarán
Yuscarán is the capital of the El Paraíso department of Honduras, located 65 kilometers from Tegucigalpa. This quaint village was a major mining center in the 18th and 19th centuries, first for the Spanish Crown and later for U.S. mining companies...
and San Juancito. Each has its own distinct character and sense of history and all of them make easy day-trips out of the city.
Media
Tegucigalpa is home to two of the nation's four most important newspapers: La TribunaLa Tribuna
La Tribuna is a Honduran newspaper owned by ex-President Carlos Roberto Flores.-History:La Tribuna was founded on 9 December 1976 by lawyer, writer and journalist Oscar Armando Flores Midence. Subsequently Oscar's son, Carlos Roberto Flores, became president, chief executive officer, and publisher...
, the liberal and leading newspaper in the city and El Heraldo
El Heraldo
Heraldo, the Spanish for "herald", may refer to:*Heraldo Filipino, student newspaper of De La Salle University-Dasmariñas in the Philippines.*Heraldo Becerra, Spanish-Brazilian football player....
, the more conservative. There are three other daily papers printed in the city: El Libertador, El Patriota, and Tiempos del Mundo. Hondudiario, Proceso Digital, and Honduras Weekly are online-only newspapers based in the capital, the latter offered in English. La Gaceta
La Gaceta
La Gaceta is a weekly newspaper in Tampa, Florida, founded in 1922. Published in English, Spanish, and Italian, it is the only trilingual newspaper in the United States....
is the Honduran government's official newspaper, printed and published in the capital.
Tegucigalpa is also served by the rest of country's newspapers, including La Prensa
La Prensa (Honduras)
La Prensa is an independent newspaper with the biggest circulation in Honduras. It has a daily circulation average of 60,000 units , with full color and tabloid-sized pages...
and El Tiempo from San Pedro Sula and the sports newspaper and fashion magazine, Diez and Estilo, respectively; divisions of La Prensa. Voz el Soberano and Revistazo are political watchdog
Watchdog journalism
Watchdog journalism aims to hold accountable public personalities and institutions, whose functions impact social and political life. The term "lapdog journalism", for journalism biased in favour of personalities and institutions, is sometimes used as a conceptual opposite to watchdog...
online publishers.
There are currently eight channels broadcasting on VHF (3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13) and 12 channels on UHF (21, 30, 33, 36, 39, 45, 48, 51, 54, 57, 66, 69) in the Central District region from TV networks of the major cities in the country. There are five television networks based in Tegucigalpa: Televicentro Corporation
Televicentro (Honduras)
Televicentro or TVC is a television station in Honduras. located in the capital Tegucigalpa. It was founded in 1987 in order to unite as one business the three television channels Canal 5, Canales 3 y 7 and Telecadena 7 y 4.-External links:*...
, the largest television media conglomerate in the country which operates three television networks: Compañia Televisora Hondureña (Channel 5), Telesistema Hondureño (channels 3 & 7) and Telecadena 7 & 4 (Channel 7); Channel 11
Canal 11
Canal 11 can refer to:* Once TV - A Mexican television channel* Repretel 11 - A Costa Rican television channel* Canal 11 - A Honduran television channel* Canal 11 - A Haitian television channel...
owned by Grupo Continental & R. Media
Jaime Rosenthal
Jaime Rolando Rosenthal Oliva is a Honduran politician.His Romanian-Jewish father, Yankel Rosenthal, emigrated from Romania to Honduras in 1929. Jaime Rosenthal is the leader of one of Liberal Party of Honduras's wings, and has been a perennial candidate for President...
; Televisión Educativa National-TEN (Channel 10), a public broadcasting network featuring the Telenoticiero Abriendo Brecha newscast, Maya TV (Channel 66)
Maya TV
-External links:**...
, and Telered 21 which has its principal offices in San Pedro Sula. Cable Color, based in Tegucigalpa, is one of the major cable TV providers in the country.
There are 24 FM radio stations and 28 AM stations transmitting into or from Tegucigalpa. Emisoras Unidas, the largest radio conglomerate in the country, is headquartered in Tegucigalpa and operates 94-SU 94.1 FM, Rock N' Pop 92.3 FM, Vox 101.9 FM, Suave 102.5 FM, Sterio Éxitos 88.1 FM, Radio Satélite 790 AM, XY Honduras 90.5 FM, Radio HRN 92.9 FM.
The following radio stations are based in Tegucigalpa: 88.7 Radio Globo Honduras
Radio Globo
Radio Globo is a radio station operating in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. It is known for its opposition to the 2009 Honduran coup d'état. It is owned by Alejandro Villatoro.The station is headed by David Romero Ellner....
, 91.1 Radio Kairos, 91.7 Estereo La Buenisima, 93.5 Radio Cadena Voces, 94.7 Radio America
Radio America (Honduras)
Radio America is a radio station operating in Honduras since 1948. It currently operates out of both Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula.-External links:...
, 95.9 Radio Panamericana, 97.1 La 97 FM Radio, 97.7 Stereo Azul, 100.1 Super 100 Estereo, 101.3 Radio Nacional de Honduras, 103.1 Tu Alternativa, 103.7 Stereo Luz, 104.3 Momentos FM Estereo, 104.9 Estereo Amor, 106.7 Radio CHN-Cadena Hondureña de Noticias, and 107.3 W-107 Radio del Flow.
Museums
There are 14 museums in Tegucigalpa. Most of the popular museums are located around historic center of the city. These include the National Identity Museum (Museo para la Identidad Nacional), founded in 2006; the National Anthropology and History Museum or Villa Roy National Museum (Museo Nacional de Antropología e Historia-Museo Nacional Villa Roy), founded in 1976 on the former residence of President Julio Lozano DíazJulio Lozano Díaz
Julio Lozano Díaz , was first vice-president and then president of Honduras, from 5 December 1954 until 21 October 1956.Previously he was an accountant for the Rosario Mining Company....
(1954–1956) and reopened after a complete restoration in 1997; the National Art Gallery (Galería de Arte Nacional), founded in 1996; the Republic History Museum (Museo Histórico de la República), founded in 1993; the Museum of Man (Museo del Hombre), founded in 1989, the Telecommuncations Museum (Museo de las Comunicaciones), founded in 1985; the Military History Museum (Museo Histórico Militar), founded in 1983; and the Archaeological Museum (Museo Arqueológico).
The Natural History Museum (Museo de la Historia Natural) is located within the National Autonomous University of Honduras. The Numismatic Museum (Museo Nimismático Rigoberto Rojas) was founded in 1993 and is located in Comayagüela next to the Central Bank of Honduras Annex building. There is a children's museum, (Centro Interactivo de Enseñanza CHIMINIKE), founded in 2003, located on Blvd. Fuerzas Armadas within the Government Civic Center complex, which also houses the Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Supreme Court of Justice.
Other places of cultural interest are the Colonial Museum (Museo Colonial) located in Casa Cural, the Cultural Center of Spain in Tegucigalpa - CCET, founded in 2007; and Sala Bancatlán, located in Plaza Bancatlán of Banco Atlántida. The Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History
Instituto Hondureño de Antropología e Historia
The Instituto Hondureño de Antropología e Historia is a government institution in the republic of Honduras....
, founded in 1952, promotes cultural heritage and manages several museums throughout Honduras. There is an art and history museum, Santa María de los Ángeles, in Valle de Ángeles
Valle de Ángeles
Valle de Ángeles is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán.The local holiday is October 4th, San Francisco Day.- Location :...
, 27 km (17 mi) northwest of Tegucigalpa.
Cuisine
There is a variety of restaurants of different cuisine styles and origin in Tegucigalpa. Locals and visitors alike can enjoy of several restaurants serving traditional Honduran dishes as well, either from a typical streetside vendor or family restaurant to upscale food establishments.Shopping centers
The centre of shopping in Tegucigalpa is Multiplaza, a multi-level indoor shopping mall that includes design name stores, a major grocery store, a movie theater complex, restaurants, and banking. This mall is located on John Paul II Blvd, forming one of the busiest commercial districts in the capital around the John Paul II Blvd and Suyapa Blvd corridors (running parallel to each other) and Central America Blvd (crosswise). Other busy corridors are the Francisco Morazán Blvd and Los Próceres Ave/La Paz Ave to the north of the city.Shopping malls of considerable size in Tegucigalpa include:
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Tegucigalpa will be home of the largest shopping mall in Central America after the opening of City Mall in early 2012.
Sports
Tegucigalpa is home to Club Deportivo OlimpiaClub Deportivo Olimpia
Club Deportivo Olimpia is a Honduran football and baseball club based in Tegucigalpa, Francisco Morazán. They compete in the Liga Nacional de Honduras, the top division in the country, and play their home matches in the Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino...
and Club Deportivo Motagua
Club Deportivo Motagua
Club Deportivo Motagua is a Honduran football club, located in Tegucigalpa, Francisco Morazán, and plays in the Honduran top division at the Estadio Nacional. The club is one of the most successful and renowned of Honduras...
, members of the Honduran National Soccer League
Liga Nacional de Futbol de Honduras
Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional de Honduras is the first and highest division of football in Honduras. The league season is divided into Opening and Closing . One team is relegated to the Liga de Ascenso and one team is promoted from Liga de Ascenso...
. Between the two teams, they have won more than 30 championships. The Tiburcio Carias Andino National Stadium
Estadio Tiburcio Carias Andino
Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino is a multi-purpose stadium in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. It is used mostly for Association football matches. The stadium has a capacity of 35,000 and it is the home of football clubs Motagua and Olimpia.- History :...
is the multi-purpose
Multi-purpose stadium
Multi-purpose stadiums are a type of stadium designed in such a way as to be easily used by multiple sports. While any stadium could potentially host more than one sport, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy that stresses multi-functionality over specificity...
venue hosting the national and international soccer games taking place in the capital. Inter-city school sports championships take place in Tegucigalpa as well.
The National College of Engineers Coliseum, west of the city near UNAH, is a basketball arena occasionally fitted as a music concert venue as well. There is a sports facility known as Olympic Village Sports Complex (Complejo Deportivo Villa Olímpica) hosting several Olympic sports such as boxing, archery, tennis and tae-kwon-do; it is located north of the National University-UNAH.
Education
Tegucigalpa serves as the national education center, hosting most of the universities and higher education institutions in the country. For 2011, the national government allocated L. 9.175 billion (US$484.9 million) of the national public education budget (equal to 42.1 percent of total) to the Central District.The public and private education system in Tegucigalpa is divided into 16 school districts (distritales). All districts are part of the Departmental Directorate of Education (Dirección Departamental de Educación), which in turn is a part of the country's Secretary of Education.
There are 1,235 public schools in the Central District broken down as 488 preschools, 563 elementary schools, and 184 middle
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
and high schools. In 2003, there were a total of 287,517 students enrolled throughout the municipality—28,915 in preschool, 159,679 in elementary school, and 98,923 in middle or high school.
Private schools
There are about 147 bilingual schools in Tegucigalpa. The American School of TegucigalpaAmerican School of Tegucigalpa
The American School of Tegucigalpa is a private, coeducational international school located in the affluent neighborhood of Lomas de Guijarro which overlooks Tegucigalpa...
is considered among the country's top private schools with its K-12 education program costing a total of L.1.366 million (US$72,248) for all years (amount based on 10-11 academic year). Other popular private/bilingual schools include Discovery School
Discovery School
The Discovery School is a bilingual school located in Tegucigalpa, the capital city of Honduras. The school was founded in 1994, and is accredited by the Honduras Ministry of Education, U.S...
(K-12, secular
Secular education
Secular education is the system of public education in countries with a secular government or separation between religion and state.An example of a highly secular educational system would be the French public educational system, going as far as to ban conspicuous religious symbols in schools.In...
), Los Pinares Academy (E-HS, Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
), DelCampo International School (MS-HS, secular), Dowal School (K-12, secular), Liceo Franco-Hondureño (K-12, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
), Magic Castle Preschool (K), and Macris School (E-HS, Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
).
There are two modalities in regards to the school calendar: American Period (August to July), mostly used by private and bilingual schools; and Latin Period (February to November), used by public schools.
Universities
There are 12 universities in Tegucigalpa, including three state-funded higher education institutions.The National Autonomous University of Honduras
National Autonomous University of Honduras
The National Autonomous University of Honduras is the national public university of Honduras. It was founded in 1847 and has many campuses throughout the country.-Autonomy:...
(UNAH), founded in 1847, is the country's most important university and operates eight regional campuses in several other cities in the country: UNAH-Valle de Sula, UNAH-La Ceiba, UNAH-Comayagua,
UNAH-Copán, UNAH-Choluteca, UNAH-Juticalpa, UNAH-Valle del Aguán, and University Technological Center UNAH–Danlí. It employs 4,980 people throughout its campuses at an average annual salary of L.241,184 (US$12,747).
The other two publicly-funded institutions are Francisco Morazán National Pedagogic University (UPNFM), founded in 1989, focusing on preparing future educators in several disciplines. and the National Institute of Professional Formation (INFOP), founded in 1972, focusing on economic and social development disciplines. The National University of Agriculture (UNA), founded in 1950, also state-funded and located in Catacamas
Catacamas
Catacamas, Honduras is the largest municipality in Central America in terms of area.Catacamas, the "Florida City" as called by the great poet and writer Olanchano Froylán Turcios, extends over a vast plain irrigated by the Rio Guayape in the heart of the luxuriant department of Olancho.Easily...
, Olancho, maintains an liaison office in Tegucigalpa.
There are 10 private universities in Tegucigalpa:
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There is also two higher education centers: the Technological University Center (CEUTEC), part of UNITEC; and Guaymura University Center (CUG), founded in 1982.
Transportation
All barrios and colonias in Tegucigalpa can be accessed by automobile, although some neighborhoods in the city suffer from unpaved, narrow, or hilly streets making them difficult to maneuver. A grid of surface streets and a network of major avenues and boulevards cross through the major areas of the capital. However, the most transited roads suffer from heavy traffic congestionTraffic congestion
Traffic congestion is a condition on road networks that occurs as use increases, and is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. The most common example is the physical use of roads by vehicles. When traffic demand is great enough that the interaction...
due to the region's geography and disorganized urbanization.
An estimate of 400,000 vehicles take on the city streets and roads everyday. The oldest districts were not built with the advent of the automobile in mind and therefore lack efficient roadways to accommodate the overwhelming amount of vehicles. Newer developments, such as the malls, have been built with the car in mind allowing for large parking lots to accommodate their visitors. In the last decades, several of the boulevards and avenues have bee retrofitted with grade separation
Grade separation
Grade separation is the method of aligning a junction of two or more transport axes at different heights so that they will not disrupt the traffic flow on other transit routes when they cross each other. The composition of such transport axes does not have to be uniform; it can consist of a...
s to ease up the flow of traffic.
Roads and highways
The Honduras Department of Public Works, Transportation and Housing (SOPTRAVI) presently divides the country's highway networkTransportation in Honduras
Transport in Honduras refers to transport in Honduras, a country in Central America.- Railways : El Salvador - no Guatemala - none in use - break-of-gauge / Nicaragua - noFERISTSA Railway would connect Mexico with Panama via Honduras....
into international routes (ruta internacional), national routes
National roads
National roads can refer to various roads in several countries:*National roads in Belgium: a specific road, see National Road No. 2: national roads, see Route nationale : national roads, see National Roads: Greek Highways, known as Greek National Roads, see List of Greek roads: national primary and...
(ruta nacional), and provincial routes
State highway
State highway, state road or state route can refer to one of three related concepts, two of them related to a state or provincial government in a country that is divided into states or provinces :#A...
(ruta vecinal). These are assigned numbers; however, they are more often identified using their physical destinations (e.g. Tegucigalpa-Danlí highway) rather the number itself since road signage
Traffic sign
Traffic signs or road signs are signs erected at the side of roads to provide information to road users. With traffic volumes increasing over the last eight decades, many countries have adopted pictorial signs or otherwise simplified and standardized their signs to facilitate international travel...
is scarce.
International routes are given a "CA-" designation
Road designation or abbreviation
A road designation or a road name abbreviation are easy ways to refer to a road.The road designation can be created from the original road name or made accordingly to the road type and number...
followed by a highway number (i.e. CA-1) which can be of one or two digits enclosed in a highway shield
Highway shield
A highway shield is a sign denoting the route number of a highway, usually in the form of a symbolic shape with the route number enclosed. As the focus of the sign, the route number is usually the sign's largest element, with other items on the sign rendered in smaller sizes or contrasting colours...
. "CA-" highways are part of the Central American highway network (hence the "CA" letters) that interconnects Honduras with its neighboring countries as part of the Pan-American Highway
Pan-American Highway
The Pan-American Highway is a network of roads measuring about in total length. Except for an rainforest break, called the Darién Gap, the road links the mainland nations of the Americas in a connected highway system. According to Guinness World Records, the Pan-American Highway is the world's...
. National highways are assigned a two or three-digit number and provincial routes are assigned a three-digit number.
Districtwide
There are five highways connecting the Central District to the bordering municipalities and the rest of the country. These are Central American highways CA-5 (north and south) and CA-6 (east); and national highways 15 (north), 25 (northeast) and 33 (southwest).CA-5 North connects the Central District to Comayagua Department going through Comayagua City and further north to Cortes Department and into San Pedro Sula where it connects to highways CA-4 and CA-13, one heading west connecting through the western departments until it reaches the Guatemalan border and the other traveling east towards Atlántida Department, connecting to La Ceiba and into Colón Department
Colón Department
Colón Department may refer to:*Colón Department *Colón Department, Entre Ríos, Argentina*Colón Department, Córdoba, Argentina*Colón Department...
and its major cities.
CA-5 South connects to the municipalities of Ojojona, Santa Ana, and San Buenaventura and then enters Choluteca Department and later Valle Department, becoming highway CA-1 which travels to the west towards Nacaome
Nacaome
Nacaome is the capital city of the Valle department of Honduras. It is a manufacturing and commercial center located on the Nacaome River.Nacaome is an old city founded when aboriginal Cholulas and Chaparrastiques, tired of fighting each other, thought it best to join together to build new houses...
and into El Salvador and to the east to Choluteca City
Choluteca, Choluteca
Choluteca is a municipality and the capital city of the Honduran department of the same name. Situated in southern Honduras between El Salvador and Nicaragua, the city is generally considered the regional center of southern Honduras and is a major transit point on the Pan-American Highway. It...
and into Nicaragua, near the Gulf of Fonseca
Gulf of Fonseca
The Gulf of Fonseca , part of the Pacific Ocean, is a gulf in Central America, bordering El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua.-History:Fonseca Bay was discovered in 1522 by Gil Gonzalez de Avila, and named by him after his patron, Archbishop Juan Fonseca, the implacable enemy of Columbus.In 1849, E. G...
.
CA-6 connects to municipalities Maraita and San Antonio de Oriente and continues east into El Paraíso Department, passing through Danlí and El Paraiso
El Paraíso, El Paraíso
El Paraíso is a municipality in the Honduran department of El Paraíso....
municipalities eventually reaching the Nicaraguan border.
Highway 15 runs north through the bordering municipality of Talanga, it later enters the municipality of Guaimaca
Guaimaca
Guaimaca is a municipality in the Honduran department of Francisco Morazán.-References:...
and then junctions with highway 43 which connects to Yoro department. Highway 15 continues northeast and enters Olancho Department, continuing until junction with highways 41 and 39 which lead to Colón Department.
Highway 25 runs northeast of the Central District and connects to the municipalities of Santa Lucía, Valle de Ángeles and San Juan de Flores. Highway 33 travels southwest and connects to the municipality of Lepaterique. About 30 other provincial roads connect to the towns and villages outside the urban area of the Central District.
Arterial roads
The Anillo Periférico (beltway or ring road) and Boulevard Fuerzas Armadas (Armed Forces Blvd) are the city's two expressways—equipped with center dividers, interchanges, overpasses and underpasses—allowing for controlled-access traffic. These connect with the city's other major boulevards: Central America Blvd, Suyapa Blvd, European Community Blvd, Kuwait Blvd—which are essentially limited-access roadways as they have been equipped with interchanges but may lack underpasses or overpasses to bypass crossing surface road traffic.Despite a network of major highways, none reach directly into the historic downtown, forcing drivers to rely heavily on surface streets. Like in most Central American cities, orientation and driving may be difficult to first-time visitors due to the nature of how streets are named, insufficient road signage and the native's driving behavior. The current city administration has green lit several road infrastructure projects to help reduce traffic congestion and improve the overall aspect of the city.
List of major thoroughfares in the Central District, including urban core
Urban area
An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...
arteries
Arterial road
An arterial road, or arterial thoroughfare, is a high-capacity urban road. The primary function of an arterial road is to deliver traffic from collector roads to freeways, and between urban centres at the highest level of service possible. As such, many arteries are limited-access roads, or feature...
and outskirt roads:
International highways
- CA-5 Northern stretch
- CA-5 Southern stretch
- CA-6
National highways
- 15
- 25
- 33
- 64
- 79
Rural highways
- 717
- 782
- 816
- 853
- 873
- 880
City highways
- Anillo Periférico
- Blvd Fuerzas Armadas
- Blvd Centro América
- Blvd Suyapa
- Blvd Juan Pablo II
- Blvd Kuwait
- Blvd Comunidad Europea
Major roads and streets
- Ave Los Próceres/Ave La Paz
- Blvd Morazán
- Blvd Norte
- Carretera Lepaterique/Carretera al Batallón
- Carretera a Col. Country Club
- Carretera a Col. Valle Los Laureles
Public transportation
Public transportation in Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela is based on buses and taxis and they currently cover 71 percent of the capital's road migration. Bus routes are named based on the neighborhood they cover. For example, routes that travel from the downtown area to UNAH are labeled Centro-UNAH or Centro-Multiplaza-UNAH. Taxis are the quickest way to move around the city after personal auto transportation. Taxis are popular for short-distance trips or trips that required a sense of urgency. Taxis are relatively cheap for the international tourist. They are not the cheapest form of public transportation for the locals, however. There are over 12,000 taxis in the Central District.The public transportation system in Tegucigalpa is, however, highly disorganized. Being a for-profit business, it encourages competition between the fleet owners where revenue is the priority while heavily ignoring the quality and efficiency of the service. Public transportation regulation is heavily flawed. Bus drivers must compete for the passengers in order to bring the highest earnings possible while becoming a hazard for other drivers and pedestrians and contributing to traffic jams. There is currently an overflow of public transportation vehicles on the roads. The government has declared its public transportation system as oversupplied and inefficient.
There is currently a project underway to give the public transportation system an upgrade with the addition of a bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit is a term applied to a variety of public transportation systems using buses to provide faster, more efficient service than an ordinary bus line. Often this is achieved by making improvements to existing infrastructure, vehicles and scheduling...
fleet. In late May 2011, the National Congress approved the project under a new law as part of the financing deal with the Inter-American Development Bank (IAB). The BRT system will be solely managed by the Central District government.
National and int'l ground transportation
Tegucigalpa is connected with the rest of the country through its city to city bus services. There are several bus lines connecting the capital with the rest of Honduras. There is no central bus terminal in the city; in turn, there are several bus stations scattered throughout the city, particularly most in Comayagüela, and some of these stations are operated directly by the bus company serving from there. Tegucigalpa is connected with the rest of Central America and Mexico through its international bus lines. Buses leave for Guatemala, El Salvador, NicaraguaNicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
, Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
and Mexico everyday.
Air transportation
Toncontín International Airport (IATA: TGU, ICAO: MHTG), serves as the main airport in and out of Tegucigalpa. It is currently served by three domestic airlines and six international airlines connecting the capital to three cities in the United States and four cities in Central America as well as four cities within Honduras.
The airport is frequently criticized as being dangerous; due to its location next to a sierra
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
, short runway, and difficult approach. Large commercial jets are required to execute a tight hairpin left turn at very low altitude to land on the short runway. International airline pilots flying into Toncontín receive additional, specific training for the Toncontín approach.
Toncontín has been improved by the work of the Airport Corporation of Tegucigalpa (CAT), which is owned by TACA
TACA
TACA may refer to:* TACA Airlines, a group of five Central American airlines* Talk About Curing Autism* Turkish American Cultural Alliance...
of El Salvador. It is currently managed by InterAirports
InterAirports
InterAirports is the company that administers all four international airports of Honduras directed by Freddy Nasser.* La Ceiba – Golosón International Airport* Roatán – Juan Manuel Gálvez International Airport...
, the company hired by the government of Honduras to manage the four airports in the country.
The airport authority and the government of Honduras resumed the airport relocation talks in April 2011 and announced that work on the new Palmerola airport would start by the fall of 2011 after years of efforts to replace Toncontín International with an airport at Palmerola
Palmerola
Soto Cano Air Base is a Honduran military base to the south of Comayagua in Honduras. It houses between 500 - 600 US troops and is also used by the Honduran Air Force academy...
in Comayagua where the Soto Cano Air Base is located. However, on a September 25, 2011 update, President Lobo stated officials were still "evaluating the pros and cons" of constructing the new airport. This comes three years after former President Manuel Zelaya
Manuel Zelaya
José Manuel Zelaya Rosales is a politician who was President of Honduras from January 27, 2006 until June 28, 2009. The eldest son of a wealthy businessman, he inherited his father's nickname "Mel," and, before entering politics, was involved in his family's logging and timber businesses.Elected...
had announced that all commercial flights would be transferred to Soto Cano Air Base; however, work on the new terminal at Soto Cano was then cancelled after Zelaya was removed from office on 28 June 2009 in the 2009 Honduran coup d'état
2009 Honduran coup d'état
The 2009 Honduran coup d'état, part of the 2009 Honduran constitutional crisis, occurred when the Honduran Army ousted President Manuel Zelaya and sent him into exile on June 28, 2009. It was prompted by his attempts to schedule a non binding poll on holding a referendum about convening a...
. Upon realization of the Palmerola airport, international flights to and from Toncontín would continue to operate but would be limited to small aircraft.
Sister cities
Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte is the capital of and largest city in the state of Minas Gerais, located in the southeastern region of Brazil. It is the third largest metropolitan area in the country...
, Brazil Gainesville
Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...
, United States New Orleans, United States Guadalajara
Guadalajara, Jalisco
Guadalajara is the capital of the Mexican state of Jalisco, and the seat of the municipality of Guadalajara. The city is located in the central region of Jalisco in the western-pacific area of Mexico. With a population of 1,564,514 it is Mexico's second most populous municipality...
, Mexico Lima
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
, Peru Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Spain Quito
Quito
San Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
, Ecuador Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...
, Taiwan Amman
Amman
Amman is the capital of Jordan. It is the country's political, cultural and commercial centre and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. The Greater Amman area has a population of 2,842,629 as of 2010. The population of Amman is expected to jump from 2.8 million to almost...
, Jordan Bogotá
Bogotá
Bogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...
, Colombia Caracas
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
, Venezuela Managua
Managua
Managua is the capital city of Nicaragua as well as the department and municipality by the same name. It is the largest city in Nicaragua in terms of population and geographic size. Located on the southwestern shore of Lake Xolotlán or Lake Managua, the city was declared the national capital in...
, Nicaragua Guatemala City
Guatemala City
Guatemala City , is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Guatemala and Central America...
, Guatemala La Paz
La Paz
Nuestra Señora de La Paz is the administrative capital of Bolivia, as well as the departmental capital of the La Paz Department, and the second largest city in the country after Santa Cruz de la Sierra...
, Bolivia Banjarbaru, Indonesia Manado
Manado
Manado is the capital of the North Sulawesi province of Indonesia. Manado is located at the Bay of Manado, and is surrounded by a mountainous area. The city has about 405,715 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in Sulawesi after Makassar...
, Indonesia Palu
Palu
Palu is a chartered city on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, located 1,650 km northeast of Jakarta, at . It is the capital of the province of Central Sulawesi. The city sits on the mouth of Palu River, at the head of a long, narrow bay. Because of its sheltered position between mountain...
, Indonesia Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, South Korea
Definitions
Tegucigalpa refers to the urban area formed east of the Choluteca River when distinguished from Comayagüela. When broadly speaking to refer to the capital of the country, it includes Comayagüela and vice versa.Comayagüela refers to the urban area formed west of the Choluteca River. Once a city of its own, it was incorporated as part of Tegucigalpa on September 28, 1890.
Central District refers to the entire municipality containing both Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela. As established by the Constitution of Honduras, it serves as national capital and therefore its limits as government seat are not reduced to the urban area formed by Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela but extend to the entire municipality; in turn, the Central District as a whole, is the capital of Honduras.
It should be noted that the Central District is not a federal district
Federal district
Federal districts are a type of administrative division of a federation, under the direct control of a federal government. They exist in various countries and states all over the world.-United States:...
since it is not an entity outside the departments of Honduras (e.g. Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
); it is one of the municipalities making up the Department of Francisco Morazán.
Further reading
- Miroslava de Nevo, Project Team Leader; Vera Lucía Vicentini, Alejandro Taddia, Carlos Mojica, and Caterina Vecco (INE/TSP); Trinidad Zamora (TSP/CHO); Irma Liliam Castillo, Xiomara Hernández, and Fabio Gordillo (consultants); Miguel Orellana (PDP/CHO); and Juan Carlos Pérez Segnini (LEG/SGO) (2010), Central District Public Transportation Project (Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela), Inter-American Development BankInter-American Development BankThe Inter-American Development Bank is the largest source of development financing for Latin America and the Caribbean...
- Assessment of the Central District's current public transportation situation and proposal for improvement. - Olivier T. Godichet, José Rafael del Cid, Zoran S. Trputec (1997) Decentralization and Municipal Government in Honduras (in Spanish) Latin American School of Social Sciences (FLACSO) - Analysis of Hondura's municipal governments.
- Shlomo Angel with Katherine Bartley, Mary Derr, Anshuman Malur, James Mejía, Pallavi Nuka, Micah Perlin, Sanjiv Sahai, Michael Torrens, and Manett Vargas (2004) Rapid Urbanization in Tegucigalpa, Honduras Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International AffairsWoodrow Wilson School of Public and International AffairsThe Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs is a professional public policy school at Princeton University. The school has granted undergraduate A.B. degrees since 1930 and graduate degrees since 1948...
, Princeton UniversityPrinceton UniversityPrinceton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
- Assessment of Tegucigalpa's current urban situation and future projections. - Observatorio de la Violencia (2010) Observatory on Violence in the Central District Instituto Universitario en Democracia, Paz y Seguridad (IUDPAS) - UNAH Crime Report on the Central District during 2009.