National News

Honduras formally joined the Pan-American Health Organization-led Primary Care Alliance for the Americas, which aims to strengthen primary health services through coordinated investment, innovation, and technical cooperation via a new national advisory board.

The banking regulator CNBS is offering a free webinar on August 31 about household financial communication, savings strategies, and shared money goals for families.

A specialized criminal court scheduled a hearing resolution for September 1 in the case against former president Juan Orlando Hernández, who is accused of fraud and money laundering; prosecutors are seeking formal charges and pretrial detention.

The Education Commission met with representatives of Honduras's 10 bilingual teacher-training Normal Schools to hear concerns about facilities, staffing, and operations, with lawmakers clarifying that the schools' properties remain under the Education Ministry's control.

The National Congress Health Commission and the Ministry of Health's Non-Communicable Diseases Program are jointly drafting a transplant law to establish legal standards for organ and tissue donation and transplantation in Honduras.

The National Congress approved a motion by Liberal lawmaker Yury Sabas calling for regulators including the Central Bank, CNBS, and the Financial Crimes Unit to meet with congressional committees to analyze monthly interest rates of up to 5–10% charged by informal lenders and propose protective measures.

Congress approved a waiver of late-payment interest on personal loans issued by Injupemp, Honduras's civil-service pension fund, to borrowers from June 2014 through June 2025; eligible participants have six months to apply.

Honduras's 41 Liberal Congress members have fractured over electricity-sector changes, with 32 negotiating a counteroffer to the government proposal while nine aligned with Salvador Nasralla maintain their opposition, fracturing what had been unified party resistance.

The Central Bank of Honduras auctioned $106.2 million in its daily foreign-exchange sale on August 25, setting the weighted average exchange rate at L26.8522 per dollar for August 26.

President Nasry Asfura announced government funding for special geomembranes to improve water-reservoir storage in municipalities and expanded food assistance to 60,000–84,000 drought-affected families, with school meals reaching 115,000 students.

The Finance Ministry reported that Honduras has executed over 50% of its 2026 budget and transferred more than L8.4 billion (about $340 million) to municipalities, though officials acknowledged the pace remains below target eight months into the year.

The Honduran lempira has depreciated to 26.98 per dollar and economist Dante Mossi warns the currency could break the 27-lempira barrier by late September or early October, potentially raising prices for imported goods including fuel.

Lawmakers are intensifying negotiations to break a months-long deadlock over reforms to Honduras's electric power system, with legislators aiming to bring the bill to a final vote this week after incorporating opposition demands to protect state assets and reduce consumer costs.

Roberto Contreras, president of the Liberal Party's executive council, called rival Salvador Nasralla a "factory of failures" who will never be president and warned that internal divisions could keep the party out of power for 20 years.

Honduras has pre-approved access to $40 million in grants and loans from the Green Climate Fund to address a severe drought affecting 75 municipalities, but bureaucratic delays and lack of government coordination have prevented the funds from being deployed.

Honduras is seeking a transition period from the U.S. before TPS holders must depart, with a delegation set to meet U.S. officials in early September, while at least 385 deportees arrived this week on three flights to San Pedro Sula.

Congress President Tomás Zambrano gave the opposition Liberal Party 15 days to present a counter-proposal on energy reforms for state utility ENEE, warning that without agreement the executive could pursue alternative measures including a presidential decree.

A survey of nearly 5,500 Honduran children aged 9 to 17 found that one in five spends four to eight hours daily on social media, with psychologists cautioning that excessive device use contributes to attention problems, anxiety, and depression.

Congress received a comprehensive bill on August 24 designed to prevent child sexual abuse, streamline reporting, and coordinate institutional response across Honduras, where officials report an average of 26 sexual assaults daily, 75% involving minors.

The Agriculture Ministry is evaluating silver iodide cloud seeding with private companies and international partners to stimulate rainfall across drought-affected areas including the dry corridor and Tegucigalpa over the next two months.

Honduras's nursing union (Aneeah) is demanding the Health Ministry halt staff layoffs and pay salaries owed since January, with other debts dating to 2022, and has suspended protests while awaiting a ministry meeting.

The Central Bank auctioned $91.6 million in a foreign-exchange operation on August 24, setting a weighted average exchange rate of L26.8518 per dollar for August 25.

The national electric utility (ENEE) will cut power on August 25 in neighborhoods across Francisco Morazán, Comayagua, and Cortés departments for maintenance, equipment installation, and private-company work, with outages lasting 6 hours in most areas.

The National Congress will debate bills on expanded consular services for Hondurans in the US, free hypertension medications, climate-change adaptation, and CPR training in schools, along with infrastructure projects and a pending electricity-sector reform vote.

Honduras has begun delivering 15 million coffee plants to more than 5,000 farmers across several departments to renovate farms using agroforestry systems.

Security Minister Gerson Velásquez reported that human trafficking occurs across Honduras, with recent investigations revealing that family members—including parents—have been implicated in selling or exploiting children, cases documented in Choluteca and Olancho departments.

Honduras's two-month vehicle tax amnesty, which waives penalties and interest on unpaid annual vehicle fees through 2025, expires today; over 45,000 owners have already taken advantage, generating L51.8 million in collections.

Congress spending jumped in May to L11.4 million on advertising and L20.6 million on Mother's Day gift baskets distributed across all 18 departments, amid criticism from Criterio.hn over the lack of detail on recipients and allocation criteria.

The National Registry of Persons will start distributing the new child identity document (DINNA) in May 2027, after completing enrollment of minors in schools through April 2027; the card will include biometric data and be held by parents, not children.

ENEE has scheduled maintenance-related power cuts across multiple regions on August 25, affecting Siguatepeque, Sabanagrande, and San Pedro Sula among others, with outages lasting between two and eight hours.