Honduras Considers State of Emergency for Drought

TEGUCIGALPA— The Hondurangovernment this week considered declaringa health emergency in 19 rural municipalitiesin the southern part of the countrythat have lost a substantial percentageof harvests due to drought, according tothe Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock.On July 15, Congress approved amotion to develop an emergency plan inresponse to the famine that claims thelives of 10-20 Hondurans each day, or7,200 per year, according to the Ministryof Health.The current drought, is worst in thesouthern department of Choluteca, where aremany as 20,000 families are thought to beaffected by crop loss, according to congressmanand campesino leader Rafael Alegría.