USAID

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) is the official US Government agency responsible for international cooperation through development assistance. USAID has provided more than $2 billion in economic assistance to Honduras since it began working here in 1961.

Significant results have been achieved since 1961 through USAID’s joint effort with the people and Government of Honduras and other donors:

• in 1960, less than 30% of Hondurans had access to potable water; today, more than 75% do,
• infant mortality has been reduced from 13% in 1960 to just a little over 3% today,
• between 1960 and today, the literacy rate rose from 50% to 81.5%
• protected areas did not exist 25 years ago; today, over 1.5 million hectares are under improved management as national parks or wildlife refuges,
• in 1980, Honduras returned to a democratic government and has remained politically stable with a more independent judiciary system, and
• nontraditional exports have soared, providing employment to many Hondurans, in particular, industrial exports from the department of Cortes have increased

This is a critical period for the development of Honduras. After the passing of Hurricane Mitch and the successful implementation of the reconstruction program that followed, USAID is now directing its focus towards key reform areas that will help lay the bases for a profound transformation in the country.

USAID has developed a strategy that responds to the country’s development challenges, and that demands the efficient use of the country’s resources. This strategy is linked directly with the Government of Honduras’ Poverty Reduction Strategy and the participation of Honduras in the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). The three objectives of USAID’s strategy are the following:

USAID is concentrating its forces and resources on the strengthening of key democratic institutions both at the national and local levels. To achieve this goal, USAID is working to support: civil society participation in decision making; the creditability of government institutions through the application of successful municipal development models to promote good governance, transparency, and citizen participation; judicial and electoral reforms and their sustainability.

The geographic area of USAID Ruling Justly Program includes the department of Cortes. For example, USAID is working closely with the municipalities of Villanueva and Portrerillos in urban growth and planning studies. USAID is also working with municipalities throughout the department of Cortes in the post-electoral process and local government transitions.

USAID places strong emphasis on improving competitive market-led growth and integrated resource management in targeted areas. USAID is focusing its support in trade capacity building for Honduras’ participation in the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). Also, USAID seeks to increase productivity and create links between rural agriculture production and relatively higher value processing and marketing enterprises in urban areas.

At the same time, USAID’s integrated watershed resources management program recognizes the tangible benefits and values of natural resources to economic productivity. USAID is focusing on the sustainable use of resources in target watersheds and conservation of biodiversity. USAID is also working to reduce Honduras’ vulnerability to disasters in order to mitigate the damages caused by natural disasters such as Hurricane Mitch and the several Tropical Storms that affected the department of Cortes in 2005.  

With San Pedro Sula serving as the industrial capital of Honduras and Puerto Cortes serving as one of the biggest seaports in Central America, the department of Cortes plays an important role in the implementation of CAFTA. USAID’s work in trade capacity building will have a direct impact in the department in relation to CAFTA implementation.

USAID programs concentrate on improving key components of family health and basic education to address major unmet needs and emerging problems.  The family health program focuses on reproductive health, child survival, HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases, and household food security.

USAID’s education program contributes to a better-educated Honduran workforce through expanded access to the primary, middle, and upper secondary education levels, using alternative delivery systems (for example, radio-based instruction).  We also assist the Government of Honduras’ efforts to develop quality education, testing and evaluation standards, and to decentralize education management to the local level.  The program emphasizes support to children, youth, and young adults from low-income families in rural and marginal urban areas.

USAID activities in the department of Cortes contribute to a healthier, better educated workforce, which is essential for economic growth in the department.

USAID is also working with several Garifuna communities in the department of Cortes in HIV/AIDS prevention.