Ecuador
Republic of EcuadorRepublica del Ecuador
republicIndependence 24 May 1822 (from Spain)
Ecuador as the 2008 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 138 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.
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Introduction
1 fieldBackground
What is now Ecuador formed part of the northern Inca Empire until the Spanish conquest in 1533. Quito became a seat of Spanish colonial government in 1563 and part of the Viceroyalty of New Granada in 1717. The territories of the Viceroyalty - New Granada (Colombia), Venezuela, and Quito - gained their independence between 1819 and 1822 and formed a federation known as Gran Colombia. When Quito withdrew in 1830, the traditional name was changed in favor of the "Republic of the Equator."
Between 1904 and 1942, Ecuador lost territories in a series of conflicts with its neighbors. A border war with Peru that flared in 1995 was resolved in 1999. Although Ecuador marked 25 years of civilian governance in 2004, the period has been marred by political instability. Protests in Quito have contributed to the mid-term ouster of Ecuador's last three democratically elected Presidents. In 2007, a Constituent Assembly was elected to draft a new constitution; Ecuador's twentieth since gaining independence.
Geography
Western South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean at the Equator, between Colombia and Peru
20 fieldsLand useshare of 283,560 sq km
Location
Western South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean at the Equator, between Colombia and Peru
Climate
tropical along coast, becoming cooler inland at higher elevations; tropical in Amazonian jungle lowlands
Terrain
coastal plain (costa), inter-Andean central highlands (sierra), and flat to rolling eastern jungle (oriente)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)
- total:
- 16.98 cu km/yr (12%/5%/82%)
- per capita:
- 1,283 cu m/yr (2000)
Environment - current issues
- deforestation;
- soil erosion;
- desertification;
- water pollution;
- pollution from oil production wastes in ecologically sensitive areas of the Amazon Basin and Galapagos Islands
Environment - international agreements
- party to:
- Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
- signed, but not ratified:
- none of the selected agreements
People
21 fieldsAge structuremale left, female right · (2008 est.)
Per 1,000 population(2008 est.)
Male · female
Sex ratio
- at birth:
- 1.05 male(s)/female
- under 15 years:
- 1.04 male(s)/female
- 15-64 years:
- 0.99 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over:
- 0.88 male(s)/female
- total population:
- 1 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Major infectious diseases
- degree of risk:
- high
- food or waterborne diseases:
- bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
- vectorborne diseases:
- dengue fever, malaria, and yellow fever
- water contact disease:
- leptospirosis (2008)
Government
Republic; President Rafael CORREA Delgado (since 15 January 2007); President Rafael CORREA Delgado (since 15 January 2007)
18 fieldsPresidential electionpercent of vote
National Congress or Congreso Nacional, 100 seats, elected 15 October 2006one dot, one seat
Country name
- conventional long form:
- Republic of Ecuador
- conventional short form:
- Ecuador
- local long form:
- Republica del Ecuador
- local short form:
- Ecuador
Capital
- name:
- Quito
- geographic coordinates:
- 0 13 S, 78 30 W
- time difference:
- UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions
- 24 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia);
- Azuay, Bolivar, Canar, Carchi, Chimborazo, Cotopaxi, El Oro, Esmeraldas, Galapagos, Guayas, Imbabura, Loja, Los Rios, Manabi, Morona-Santiago, Napo, Orellana, Pastaza, Pichincha, Santa Elena, Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas, Sucumbios, Tungurahua, Zamora-Chinchipe
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal, compulsory for literate persons ages 18-65, optional for other eligible voters
Executive branch
- chief of state:
- President Rafael CORREA Delgado (since 15 January 2007);
- Vice President Lenin MORENO Garces (since 15 January 2007);
- note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
- head of government:
- President Rafael CORREA Delgado (since 15 January 2007); Vice President Lenin MORENO Garces (since 15 January 2007)
- cabinet:
- Cabinet appointed by the president
- elections:
- the president and vice president are elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a four-year term (may not serve consecutive terms);
- election last held 15 October 2006 with a runoff election on 26 November 2006 (next to be held in October 2010)
- election results:
- Rafael CORREA Delgado elected president;
- percent of vote - Rafael CORREA Delgado 56.7%;
- Alvaro NOBOA 43.3%
Legislative branch
unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (100 seats; members are elected through a party-list proportional representation system to serve four-year terms)
- elections:
- last held 15 October 2006 (next to be held in October 2010)
- election results:
- percent of vote by party - NA;
- seats by party - PRIAN 28;
- PSP 24;
- PSC 13;
- ID 7;
- PRE 6;
- MUPP-NP 6;
- RED 5;
- UDC 5;
- other 6;
- note - defections by members of National Congress are commonplace, resulting in frequent changes in the numbers of seats held by the various parties;
- as of 29 November 2007, Congress is on indefinite recess while a Constituent Assembly is convened
Judicial branch
Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (according to the Constitution, new justices are elected by the full Supreme Court; in December 2004, however, Congress successfully replaced the entire court via a simple-majority resolution)
Political parties and leaders
- Alianza PAIS Movement [Rafael Vicente CORREA Delgado];
- Christian Democratic Union or UDC [Diego ORDONEZ Guerrero];
- Democratic Left or ID [Andres PAEZ Benalcazar];
- Ethical and Democratic Network or RED [Leon ROLDOS];
- Institutional Renewal and National Action Party or PRIAN [Alvaro NOBOA];
- Pachakutik Plurinational Unity Movement - New Country or MUPP-NP [Jorge GUAMAN];
- Patriotic Society Party or PSP [Lucio GUTIERREZ Borbua];
- Popular Democratic Movement or MPD [Ciro GUZMAN Aldaz];
- Roldosist Party or PRE [Abdala BUCARAM Ortiz, director];
- Social Christian Party or PSC [Pascual DEL CIOPPO];
- Socialist Party - Broad Front or PS-FA [Gustavo AYALA Cruz]
Political pressure groups and leaders
- Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador or CONAIE [Marlon SANTI, president];
- Coordinator of Social Movements or CMS [F. Napoleon SANTOS];
- Federation of Indigenous Evangelists of Ecuador or FEINE [Marco MURILLO, president];
- National Federation of Indigenous Afro-Ecuatorianos and Peasants or FENOCIN [Pedro DE LA CRUZ, president]
International organization participation
CAN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINURCAT, MINUSTAH, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, RG, UN, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Luis Benigno GALLEGOS Chiriboga
- chancery:
- 2535 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
- telephone:
- [1] (202) 234-7200
- FAX:
- [1] (202) 667-3482
- consulate(s) general:
- Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Jersey City (New Jersey), Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Washington, DC
Diplomatic representation from the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Heather HODGES
- embassy:
- Avenida Avigiras E12-170 y Avenida Eloy Alfaro, Quito
- mailing address:
- Avenida Guayacanes N52-205 y Avenida Avigiras
- telephone:
- [593] (2) 398-5000
- FAX:
- [593] (2) 398-5100
- consulate(s) general:
- Guayaquil
Flag description
- three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double width), blue, and red with the coat of arms superimposed at the center of the flag;
- similar to the flag of Colombia, which is shorter and does not bear a coat of arms
Economy
Ecuador is substantially dependent on its petroleum resources, which have accounted for more than half of the country's export earnings and one-fourth of public sector revenues in recent years.
51 fieldsGDP - composition by sector(2007 est.)
Trading partnersexports left, imports right
Electricity
Economy - overview
Ecuador is substantially dependent on its petroleum resources, which have accounted for more than half of the country's export earnings and one-fourth of public sector revenues in recent years. In 1999/2000, Ecuador suffered a severe economic crisis, with GDP contracted by more than 6%, with a significant increase in poverty.
The banking system also collapsed, and Ecuador defaulted on its external debt later that year. In March 2000, Congress approved a series of structural reforms that also provided for the adoption of the US dollar as legal tender. Dollarization stabilized the economy, and positive growth returned in the years that followed, helped by high oil prices, remittances, and increased non-traditional exports.
From 2002-06 the economy grew 5.5%, the highest five-year average in 25 years. The poverty rate declined but remained high at 38% in 2006. In 2006 the government of Alfredo PALACIO (2005-07) seized the assets of Occidental Petroleum for alleged contract violations and imposed a windfall revenue tax on foreign oil companies, leading to the suspension of free trade negotiations with the US. These measures, combined with chronic underinvestment in the state oil company, Petroecuador, led to a drop in petroleum production in 2007.
PALACIO's successor, Rafael CORREA, raised the specter of debt default - but Ecuador has paid its debt on time. He also decreed a higher windfall revenue tax on private oil companies, then sought to renegotiate their contracts to overcome the debilitating effect of the tax. This generated economic uncertainty; private investment has dropped and economic growth has slowed significantly.
Agriculture - products
- bananas, coffee, cocoa, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca), plantains, sugarcane;
- cattle, sheep, pigs, beef, pork, dairy products;
- balsa wood;
- fish, shrimp
Communications
8 fieldsTelephone system
- general assessment:
- generally elementary but being expanded
- domestic:
- fixed-line services provided by three state-owned enterprises;
- plans to transfer the state-owned operators to private ownership have repeatedly failed;
- fixed-line density stands at about 13 per 100 persons;
- mobile cellular use has surged and has a subscribership of nearly 75 per 100 persons
- international:
- country code - 593;
- landing point for the PAN-AM submarine telecommunications cable that provides links to the west coast of South America, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, and extending onward to Aruba and the US Virgin Islands in the Caribbean;
- satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007)
Transportation
10 fieldsAirports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right
Networkskm
Merchant marine
- total:
- 37
- by type:
- cargo 1, chemical tanker 1, liquefied gas 1, passenger 8, petroleum tanker 24, refrigerated cargo 1, specialized tanker 1
- foreign-owned:
- 1 (US 1)
- registered in other countries:
- 5 (China 1, Panama 4) (2008)
Military
Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry, Naval Aviation, Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Ecuatoriana, FAE) (2007)
6 fieldsMilitary branches
Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry, Naval Aviation, Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Ecuatoriana, FAE) (2007)
Military service age and obligation
20 years of age for selective conscript military service; 12-month service obligation (2008)
Manpower available for military service
- males age 16-49:
- 3,536,602
- females age 16-49:
- 3,559,188 (2008 est.)
Transnational Issues
3 fieldsDisputes - international
organized illegal narcotics operations in Colombia penetrate across Ecuador's shared border, which thousands of Colombians also cross to escape the violence in their home country
Refugees and internally displaced persons
refugees (country of origin): 11,526 (Colombia); note - UNHCR estimates as many as 250,000 Columbians are seeking asylum in Ecuador, many of whom do not register as refugees for fear of deportation (2007)
Illicit drugs
- significant transit country for cocaine originating in Colombia and Peru, with over half of the US-bound cocaine passing through Ecuadorian Pacific waters;
- importer of precursor chemicals used in production of illicit narcotics;
- attractive location for cash-placement by drug traffickers laundering money because of dollarization and weak anti-money-laundering regime;
- increased activity on the northern frontier by trafficking groups and Colombian insurgents
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Ecuador.” The World Factbook 2008. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/ecuador/2008.