Honduras — humanitarian situation

Honduras faces an escalating drought crisis linked to El Niño, prompting the government to declare a state of emergency on 19 August in 75 municipalities under Red Alert OCHA. Since May 2026, the country has experienced delayed onset of the rainy season, irregular rainfall distribution, and high temperatures, with precipitation deficits exceeding 50 percent recorded in May IFRC. These conditions have accelerated soil moisture depletion and are expected to reduce agricultural production in the western Dry Corridor and the Pacific coastal region of Choluteca, where poor households continue to face Crisis (IPC Phase 3) food security outcomes through September 2026 FEWS NET. An extended canícula dry spell is anticipated to further impact smallholder harvests, with most of the country remaining Stressed (IPC Phase 2) through January 2027 FEWS NET. Food security challenges are compounded by structural vulnerabilities in rural livelihoods, climate shocks, and macroeconomic pressures. FAO has developed an Emergency and Resilience Plan for 2026–28 combining early humanitarian action with recovery interventions to address the persistent agrifood crisis. Despite Honduras joining the Scaling Up Nutrition Movement in 2019 and establishing a 45-institution multi-stakeholder platform spanning agriculture, health, education, and social protection, climate change continues to exacerbate malnutrition risks (SUN Movement). Regional mobility patterns have shifted toward more fragmented and intraregional movements in the first half of 2026, reflecting evolving policy environments and changing socioeconomic conditions IOM. Health emergencies remain a concern across sectors. Médecins Sans Frontières launched a dengue project in Tegucigalpa in August 2026 to strengthen early detection, ensure timely treatment, and establish community-based surveillance systems MSF. Regional dengue incidence has decreased 60 percent compared to the same period in 2025 PAHO, though the disease remains a recurring public health challenge. Measles cases have increased regionally during 2026, prompting PAHO to urge Member States to strengthen surveillance and vaccination activities PAHO. On the protection front, families of missing persons have called on the State to advance approval of the Law on Legal Protection of Disappeared Persons and Their Families, which was officially added to the legislative agenda on 25 August, ahead of the International Day of the Disappeared ICRC.