Peace Corps

Honduras in Depth - a Peace Corps Publication

Times have changed since the First Lady Doña Alejandrina Bermudez de Villeda Morales accompanied the first training class of Peace Corps Volunteers to Honduras in 1962. Over the past 40+ years, more than 5,000 Volunteers have served in Honduras in a wide range of project areas, including health, fisheries, beekeeping, animal husbandry, special education, vocational education, small business, and agriculture. Project areas and the number of Volunteers have changed in response to the changing needs of the country. Projects such as fisheries, beekeeping, and education were phased out as Honduran people and institutions developed the capacity to continue the work on their own. Other projects, such as municipal development, HIV/AIDS prevention, and business development, have been initiated or have evolved with technological advances, increased globalization of world markets, and other developments. In response to the crisis caused by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, the number of Volunteers in Honduras increased dramatically, and in the early 2000s there were approximately 225 Volunteers. Today an average of 180 to 200 Volunteers work throughout Honduras, except in the Bay Islands and La Mosquitia.