President Castro Seeks Free Electricity for Low-Income Groups

On Tuesday, Honduras President Xiomara Castro announced she would send a bill to Congress to reform the Electric Industry Law (EIL) in order to favor 1,335,000 families whose energy consume is lower than 150KW/h a month.

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After receiving the text, the Congress President Luis Redondo called lawmakers to an ordinary session to discuss the terms of the reform. 

According to former President Manuel Zelaya, President Castro's cabinet was shocked when it found out that EIL neoliberal model did not allow any base for subsidies.

Castro's answer was implementing an immediate reform law that would permit poor people to receive free electricity with an extra cost put to high consumers bills.

President Castro had previously announced the bankruptcy of the National Electricity Company, and the lack of funds for new investments in the sector due to the corruption of the previous administration.

According to the World Bank, 7.2 percent of the Honduran population has no access to electricity. That figure amounts to about 720,000 people.

Apart from the challenge of facing a fracture in her party that ultimately could impede the success of the reform, Castro must find macroeconomic solutions for a country where nearly 71 percent of the total population lives in poverty.