Ecuador

total:

16.98 cu km/yr (12%/5%/82%)

per capita:

1,283 cu m/yr (2000)

• frequent earthquakes;
• landslides;
• volcanic activity;
• floods;
• periodic droughts

volcanism:

• Ecuador experiences volcanic activity in the Andes Mountains;
• Sangay (elev. 5,230 m, 17,159 ft), which erupted in 2010, is mainland Ecuador's most active volcano;
• other historically active volcanoes in the Andes include
  • Antisana,
  • Cayambe,
  • Chacana,
  • Cotopaxi,
  • Guagua Pichincha,
  • Reventador,
  • Sumaco,
  • and Tungurahua
  ;
• Fernandina (elev. 1,476 m, 4,842 ft), a shield volcano that last erupted in 2009, is the most active of the many Galapagos volcanoes;
• other historically active Galapagos volcanoes include
  • Wolf,
  • Sierra Negra,
  • Cerro Azul,
  • Pinta,
  • Marchena,
  • and Santiago

• deforestation;
• soil erosion;
• desertification;
• water pollution;
• pollution from oil production wastes in ecologically sensitive areas of the Amazon Basin and Galapagos Islands

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

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.97 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.93 male(s)/female

total population:

0.99 male(s)/female (2010 est.)

degree of risk:

high

food or waterborne diseases:

bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases:

dengue fever and malaria

water contact disease:

leptospirosis (2009)

noun:

Ecuadorian(s)

adjective:

Ecuadorian

conventional long form:

Republic of Ecuador

conventional short form:

Ecuador

local long form:

Republica del Ecuador

local short form:

Ecuador

name:

Quito

geographic coordinates:

0 13 S, 78 30 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time)

• 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

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; (For more information visit theWorld Leaders website)

elections:

• the president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a four-year term and can be re-elected for another consecutive term;
• election last held on 26 April 2009 (next to be held in 2013)

election results:

• President Rafael CORREA Delgado reelected president;
• percent of vote - Rafael CORREA Delgado 52%;
• Lucio GUTIERREZ 28.2%;
• Alvaro NOBOA 11.4%;
• other 8.4%

• National Court of Justice or Corte Nacional de Justicia (according to the Constitution, justices are elected through a procedure overseen by the Judiciary Council);
• Constitutional Court or Corte Constitucional (Constitutional Court justices are appointed by a commission composed of two delegates each from the Executive, Legislative, and Transparency branches of government)

• Alianza PAIS movement [Rafael Vicente CORREA Delgado];
• Christian Democratic Union or UDC [Luis ACOSTA Moreta];
• Democratic Left or ID [Dalton BACIGALUPO];
• Ethical and Democratic Network or RED [Martha ROLDOS];
• Institutional Renewal and National Action Party or PRIAN [Vicente TAIANO];
• Pachakutik Plurinational Unity Movement - New Country or MUPP-NP [Jorge GUAMAN Coronel];
• Patriotic Society Party or PSP [Lucio GUTIERREZ Borbua];
• Popular Democratic Movement or MPD [Luis VILLACIS];
• Roldosist Party or PRE [Abdala BUCARAM Pulley, director];
• Social Christian Party or PSC [Pascual DEL CIOPPO];
• Socialist Party - Broad Front or PS-FA [Silvia SALGADO]

• Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador or CONAIE [Marlon SANTI, president];
• Coordinator of Social Movements or CMS [F. Napoleon SALTOS];
• Federation of Indigenous Evangelists of Ecuador or FEINE [Manuel CHUGCHILAN, president];
• National Federation of Indigenous Afro-Ecuatorianos and Peasants or FENOCIN [Luis Alberto ANDRANGO Cadena, president]

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:

Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Newark (New Jersey), San Francisco

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

• three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double width), blue, and red with the coat of arms superimposed at the center of the flag;
• the flag retains the three main colors of the banner of Gran Columbia, the South American republic that broke up in 1830;
• the yellow color represents sunshine, grain, and mineral wealth, blue the sky, sea, and rivers, and red the blood of patriots spilled in the struggle for freedom and justice

note: similar to the flag of Colombia, which is shorter and does not bear a coat of arms

name:

"Salve, Oh Patria!" (We Salute You Our Homeland)

lyrics/music:

Juan Leon MERA/Antonio NEUMANE

note: adopted 1948; Juan Leon MERA wrote the lyrics in 1865; only the chorus and second verse are sung

agriculture:

8.3%

industry:

21.2%

services:

70.4% (2005)

lowest 10%:

1.2%

highest 10%:

43.3%

note: data for urban households only (2007)

• bananas, coffee, cocoa, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca), plantains, sugarcane;
• cattle, sheep, pigs, beef, pork, dairy products;
• balsa wood;
• fish, shrimp

general assessment:

generally elementary but being expanded

domestic:

• fixed-line services provided by multiple telecommunications operators;
• fixed-line teledensity stands at about 14 per 100 persons;
• mobile-cellular use has surged and subscribership reached about 95 per 100 persons in 2009

international:

• country code - 593;
• landing points for the PAN-AM and South America-1 submarine cables that provide 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) (2009)

• private broadcast media dominate;
• all stations are privately-owned except for 1 government-controlled station;
• multiple television networks, a number of national TV channels, and a large number of local channels;
• more than 400 radio stations;
• broadcast media required by law to give the government free air time to broadcast programs produced by the state (2007)

• extra heavy crude 435 km;
• gas 5 km;
• oil 1,374 km;
• refined products 1,301 km (2009)

total:

965 km

country comparison to the world: 91

narrow gauge:

965 km 1.067-m gauge (2008)

total:

43,670 km

country comparison to the world: 86

paved:

6,472 km

unpaved:

37,198 km (2006)

males age 16-49:

3,662,176

females age 16-49:

3,781,102 (2010 est.)

males age 16-49:

2,770,465

females age 16-49:

3,217,235 (2010 est.)

male:

150,296

female:

145,184 (2010 est.)

• significant transit country for cocaine originating in Colombia and Peru, with much 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 (2008)