National News

The Public Prosecutor's Office secured a new conviction against former officials and business people for large-scale fraud in the '14 Contracts' case involving the Honduran Social Security Institute (IHSS).

Contracultura, a paper-based cultural magazine from Honduras, received the 2026 King of Spain Journalism Prize in the cultural category, with editors saying the award amplifies Central American voices and indigenous and Garífuna stories often marginalized by narratives of violence and migration.

Work to rebuild the Juan Manuel Gálvez bridge on the Valle de Ángeles exit, which collapsed 18 months ago, is progressing and should reopen in 60 days, with a L14 million (about $560,000) investment also funding a third lane and an overpass to ease traffic in the capital.

Honduras has exported over 6 million quintals (about 270,000 metric tons) of coffee worth $2.05 billion this season, and with sales contracts already near 6.85 million quintals, officials project final exports could reach 7 million quintals before the September 30 harvest close.

Honduras's public debt increased by $1.8 billion in the first three months of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier.

Civil-society groups have called on the government to redirect about 7 billion lempiras (roughly $280 million) now spent on subsidies toward public investment instead.

Local authorities and small and medium-sized businesses in western Honduras called for approval of electricity-sector reforms, saying constant blackouts cause up to 100 million lempiras (about $4 million) in monthly losses.

Honduras's Energy Ministry lowered prices for gasoline, kerosene, diesel, and vehicle liquefied petroleum gas effective June 23, while maintaining a temporary subsidy on domestic cooking gas to protect household budgets amid volatile global crude markets.

A CEPAL report finds Guatemala and Honduras have the highest rates of multidimensional poverty in Central America—measuring deprivation in health, education, housing, employment, and services—with Honduras at 12% and Guatemala at 28.9%, and both countries showing severe housing overcrowding above 40%.

Honduras is preparing an international tender for 1,500 megawatts of firm capacity using liquefied natural gas, aiming to diversify its energy matrix and add capacity needed to meet growing demand over the next decade.

Honduras has recorded 191 cases of human botfly infection in the first six months of 2026, with health authorities warning the pace may exceed last year's 300 total cases and noting three deaths already this year.

UNAH's Morazán nanosatellite, built with Japanese backing and selected as winner of the UN's KiboCUBE competition, is on track for an April 2027 launch — but only if Congress ratifies the international space treaties required for Honduras to participate.

Honduras's health regulator lifted all restrictions on sales of Musflex (carisoprodol) muscle relaxants, allowing pharmacies to dispense the medication without a prescription and easing supply concerns.

Starting August 1, Honduras will shift vaccination records from paper to a digital national system, allowing health authorities to track immunizations in real time, identify people needing doses, and improve disease prevention planning.

Attorney Omar Menjívar argues that a bipartisan electrical-sector reform advancing in Congress would leave the state-owned utility ENEE intact but progressively transfer control of power service delivery to private companies, citing the precedent of Hondutel's decline after losing core telecom functions to private providers.

Senasa director Rafael Rodríguez affirmed that Honduras remains disease-free in its pig herds, a status he said strengthens domestic pork production and ensures safe meat for consumers.

Honduras's traffic authority says current penalties—including a 600-lempira fine for speeding—have lost their deterrent effect and proposes expanding technological speed enforcement, breath-alcohol testing, and stricter sanctions to reduce road fatalities.

Liberal Party congressman Carlos Umaña said the party will not support a proposed privatization of the state power company ENEE and rejected the presidential designate's framing of the opposition's role as a junior governing partner.

An analyst with Honduras's external-debt and development forum says poverty levels have remained flat over two decades despite spending more than 800 billion lempiras (roughly $32 billion) in anti-poverty programs, raising questions about where the money went.

Women's rights activists warn that femicides in Honduras are increasingly linked to gang territorial disputes, with women killed to send messages rather than in domestic violence contexts.

Honduras's public-transport sector reports paying roughly 500 million lempiras (about $20 million) annually to criminal gangs, with some bus and taxi routes in Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula now shuttered due to threats and attacks on drivers.

ENEE has scheduled power cuts on Sunday, June 21 in multiple zones across Honduras; the utility's website details specific times and affected areas.

Finance Vice Minister Lilian Rivera said the IMF board will review Honduras's macroeconomic performance on June 29 to decide whether to approve a $245 million disbursement, as the country also prepares for an international credit-rating agency visit.

Honduras's Public Ministry is investigating former Liberal presidential candidate Salvador Nasralla for alleged fraudulent management of his 2025 campaign funds, including money raised through a Florida corporation that has not filed required annual reports.

Honduras's National Autonomous University (UNAH) has failed for a second consecutive year to appear in the QS World University Rankings 2027, one of the world's most influential higher-education assessments.

The National Migration Institute (INM) will suspend passport issuance from 6 p.m. Saturday June 20 to 10 a.m. Sunday June 21 nationwide for a system upgrade.

The National League unanimously selected Independiente of Siguatepeque as the invited team for the 2026–2027 Apertura tournament, completing the 12-team roster for Honduras's top division.

Dr. Pablo Cerritos, who treated chef Sandra Díaz before her death on June 10, denied performing cosmetic surgery and said he has cooperated fully with investigators and is awaiting autopsy results.

FOSDEH economist Mario Palma says Honduras's public debt has risen to $18.454 billion this year, up from previous levels.

A banking and finance expert says reforming Honduras's electric system could help recover over 16 billion lempiras ($640 million) in losses and reduce the fiscal burden on the national power company, which has weakened since 1990.