CRS History in Honduras

Catholic Relief Services began working in Honduras in 1959 with a rural food distribution program. Later, the agency began supporting water and sanitation, sustainable agriculture, and medicine distribution projects. During the 1980s, CRS Honduras assisted refugees fleeing the civil war in neighboring El Salvador. We then began focusing efforts on long-term, sustainable development programs in the neediest Honduran communities, and emergency response to natural disasters.

In 1992, CRS began transferring responsibilities to local partners, including Church organizations and grass-roots committees, limiting our role to technical, administrative and financial support.

As one of the first agencies to respond to Hurricane Mitch in 1998, CRS was part of a coordinated response involving multiple local organizations that supported more than 4 million people by helping to reconstruct housing, health services, potable water systems and bridges. In total, CRS provided nearly $83 million in emergency assistance to the people of Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala. Subsequent to Hurricane Mitch, CRS consolidated its programs into four areas: peacebuilding, advocacy, civil society and governance; emergency management; natural resources; and health, water, sanitation and education. In 2007, CRS served more than 260,000 beneficiaries in the departments of Francisco Morazán, Lempira, Choluteca, and Intibucá.