|
Honduras Rural-to-Urban Migration
The vast majority of the rural-to-urban population
shift has
been the result of migration from the southwestern
departments
(Ocotepeque, Lempira, Intibucá, La Paz, and Valle) to
cities in the
departments on or near the Caribbean coast (Cortés, Yoro,
Atlántida, and Colón) and to Tegucigalpa (in Francisco
Morazán
department in the central highlands). During the earlier
part of
the twentieth century, employment opportunities in the
newly
established banana plantations attracted many people from
southern
and western Honduras to the Caribbean coast. Cities on the
banks of
the Río Ulúa, especially El Progreso, experienced
impressive growth
as a result of this migration from the south. Migration
from the
mountainous southwest sparked tremendous development in
the city of
San Pedro Sula. The search for employment also led many to
Tegucigalpa, even though the capital has never been a
center for
industry or agriculture.
Demographers have predicted that, unless significant
social and
economic reforms are instituted, the rural-to-urban
migration trend
so prevalent in the twentieth century not only will
continue but
also will probably increase. Although Honduras is still
primarily
an agrarian society, urban centers have grown considerably
since
the 1920s. Analysts speculate that urban centers will
continue to
expand as a result of internal migration and national
population
growth.
In the second half of the twentieth century,
Tegucigalpa in
particular experienced sharp increases in its population.
During
the 1950s, Tegucigalpa's population increased nearly 75
percent.
The following decade brought a population rate increase of
more
than 80 percent. In 1980 Tegucigalpa had a population of
400,000.
By 1989 the population had soared to 576,661. This
increase in
population has practically crippled the already fragile
infrastructure of the city. Housing is woefully
inadequate, and a
large percentage of the residents either lack running
water
altogether or receive inadequate amounts.
During the period between 1950 and 1980, San Pedro Sula
had a
population growth rate that exceeded that of Tegucigalpa.
In the
1980s, the annual growth rate dropped somewhat and was
less than
that of Tegucigalpa (3.7 percent and 4.4 percent,
respectively). In
1988 the population of San Pedro Sula stood at 287,350.
Whereas San
Pedro Sula has dealt more successfully with its population
growth,
it is nonetheless challenged to meet the housing,
services, and
employment needs of new inhabitants.
Other urban centers experiencing a high population
growth rate
are La Ceiba, on the Caribbean, and El Progreso, in the
agricultural valley of the Río Ulúa. La Ceiba is the
third-largest
city in Honduras. In 1988 it had a population of 68,764
and an
annual population growth rate of 3.2 percent. El Progreso
is the
country's fourth-largest city. The 1988 population of this
city was
60,058 and the annual growth rate 4.5 percent. The
populations of
both La Ceiba and El Progreso are expected to exceed
100,000 by the
year 2000.
The majority of migrants in Honduras are very young,
ranging
from their teens to their early twenties. Most male
migrants
gravitate toward developing agricultural areas, especially
the
Caribbean coast. Because women traditionally have a more
limited
choice of employment, their occupational skills are
similarly
limited. Among the many incentives for their migration are
escape
from economic hardship, as well as escape from marriage
and
childbearing at a very young age. The majority of women
migrants
seek domestic employment or work as street vendors in
urban areas.
In the early 1990s, an increasing number of women have
been seeking
employment in the maquiladoras, or assembly
factories. Many
others become prostitutes. Male urban migrants seek jobs
in artisan
shops, with merchants, and as laborers. Employment
opportunities
for the new migrants remain spotty, however, as the
industrial and
commercial sectors in Honduras have not created enough
jobs to
absorb the population coming from the rural areas.
Data as of December 1993
|
