About La Esperanza

The La Esperanza sector, located in the western part of Honduras is a mountainous zone with a cold climate during the rainy season. The majority of its inhabitants are of pre-Hispanic ethnicity. They are known as Lencas and trace their ancestry back to the ancient Mayans. These indigenous people conserve a strong cultural tradition rooted more in the land than in national solidarity.

The inhabitants of the La Esperanza sector are peasants with a strong disposition to work productively, but with scarce means to do so. There is a strong presence of families that do not have land for their own. Land for cultivation is either rented or held jointly by the community itself. The elevated concentration of poverty is so significant that in key moments, such as total losses of harvests, mass hunger and starvation occurs.

The harsh geography of the area makes transportation and communication difficult, if not impossible. There is evidence of ecological destruction.

Agricultural production is often scarce. The economy is based on subsistence cultivation, primarily corn, beans, bananas, plantains, yuca, sugar cane, and coffee. Diet is sometimes supplemented by small animals such as birds, chickens and turkeys.

The programs of the CCD seek to give these tiny rural communities the incentive to keep their hopes alive by helping them develop their own resources of food, housing, education, health, and community organization.

The project site of the 1995 UCC Mission Trip was "El Rosario," which is located in the mountains between La Esparana and Gracis. This village can only be reached by a two-hour hike over steep mountain terrain.

Honduras Home Page