Information

1
Information Communication Technology

• Panama
• Honduras
• Nicaragua

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Communication Statistics From The - CIA FACTBOOK
Panama Honduras Nicaragua
Telephones Main in use 396000 234000 140000
Telephones - Mobile [phone]
TV Stations 38 11 3
Internet Country Code .pa .hn .ni
ISPS 6 8 3
Internet Users 45000 40000 20000
Internet Users as percentage of population 1.5 .5 .3
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Phone and Cell Phone SubscribersSource
Regulating Entity of Panama Ente Regulador de
Panama
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Total Phone Lines 418756 462476 429135 376499 386904
Phones Lines per 100 15.1 16.4 15.1 12.6 13.6
Total Cell Phone Subscribers 85833 232888 410401 495396 569705
Cell Phones per 100 3.1 8.1 14.5 17.5 19.2
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Telecommunications Information - Panama

• InfrastructureAccording to the CIA World Fact
  Book, Panamá has well developed telecommunication
  facilities, including domestic and international
  facilities. According to the ARI (Inter-oceanic
  Area Authority-Autoridad de la Región
  Interoceánica), Panamá has access to one of the
  best submarine optical fiber connection
  infrastructures in Latin America. The ARI is an
  organization that administrates and maintains the
  areas that were reverted to the Panamanian
  government in the year 2000, and its goal is to
  promote the productive integration of these areas
  in order to benefit the country.
• Infrastructure at the National LevelOn the
  national level, Panamá has four optical cable
  systems which are extended throughout the
  country.
• Submarine Optical Fiber Connections
  Internationally, it has the following submarine
  optical fiber connections PAC system connects
  Japan, California, Mexico, Panama, St. Croix,
  United States and Europe.SAC system connects
  Panama, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela
  and Colombia.Pan American system connects
  Panama, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador and Chile.MAYA
  1 connects Florida, Mexico, Guatemala, Costa
  Rica, Panama, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Grand Cayman
  and Jamaica.ARCOS connects Central America and
  the Caribbean.
• Brief History of Privatization and
  De-Regulation1996 The Panamanian government
  began the process of privatization of the
  National Institute of Telecommunications
  (INTEL-Instituto Nacional de Telecomunicaciones).
  1997 The INTEL provided telecommunication
  services until 1997. The companies that were
  pre-qualified to buy the rights to 49 of the
  INTEL were Cable and Wireless, GTE, and South
  Western Bell. South Western Bell retired before
  negotiations got underway, leaving Cable and
  Wireless and GTE as contenders.1997 Cable and
  Wireless bought 49. The government owns the
  remaining 51. 2003 The telecommunications
  market was opened and other companies were
  allowed to enter the market. As a result, Cable
  and Wireless ceased to have the monopoly in the
  market, for national and international services.
  Telecarrier Inc. and Clarocom are currently
  providing competitive rates for national and
  international calls. Companies seeking to enter
  the market in the near future include Advanced
  Communications, Galaxy Communications Corp.,
  System One World, Tricom, and Voip Comunicaciones
  de Panamá.

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Honduras

• Public phone services are found throughout the
  country. Either as coin public phones, phones
  that can be used for a per minute price in hotels
  or shops and Hondutel the national phone service
  provider has offices throughout the country where
  national and international calls can be made. Fax
  services can also be found in most towns,
  additionally so can Internet cafes.
• Access to telecommunications services in Honduras
  remains well below the Latin American average.
  The installed telephone network capacity in
  November 2001 is 415,131 lines, with 322,500
  lines in service in 2002. Line penetration for
  the entire country is 63, with 4.8 telephone
  lines per one hundred inhabitants.
• Privatization of the telecommunications sector
  remains incomplete and the sale and reform of the
  state telecommunications entity Hondutel has been
  postponed.
• The National Telecommunications Commission
  (Conatel), an independent regulatory agency was
  created for the telecommunications sector.

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Internet in Honduras

• Basic Statistics 2000 (per 1000 inhabitants
  except as noted)
• Daily Newspapers 55
• Radios 412
• TV Sets 96
• Telephone Mainlines 46
• Cell Phone Subscribers 24
• Personal Computers per 1000 inhabitants
  10.8
• Internet Hosts Registered Under Geographic Domain
  157
• Adult Literacy Rate ( ages 15 and over)
  75.1

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ICT - Honduras

• International phone calls are astronomically
  expensive from Hondutel
• A three-minute call
• to the US or Canada currently costs US11.50
• to Europe US14.80 and
• to Australia or New Zealand US18.20
• The branches in Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula
  are open 24 hours
• elsewhere, offices are open daily from 7am to
  9pm.
• In all the main tourist destinations and most
  cities there's now a cybercafé or communication
  centre
• Many cybercafés also offer Web phone calls, which
  cut international call rates to the price of
  surfing the Net
• Police have periodically raided cybercafés and
  confiscated Web phone equipment
• Another alternative option is to purchase an
  international calling card
• There are also public phone booths scattered
  around the major towns
• Fax services are available in most Hondutel
  branches
• Note that there are no area phone codes
• Internet use has mushroomed in Honduras in the
  last few years