U.S. Department of State 
Background Notes: Ecuador, November 1998
Released by the Bureau of Inter-American Affairs. 

OFFICIAL NAME: Republic of Ecuador

PROFILE 

Geography 

Area: 283,560 sq. km.; about the size of Colorado.
Cities: Capital--Quito (pop. 1.5 million). Other cities--Guayaquil (2.0 
million).
Terrain: Jungle east of the Andes, a rich agricultural coastal plain 
west of the Andes, and high-elevation valleys through the mountainous 
center of the country.
Climate: Varied, mild year-round in the mountain valleys; hot and humid 
in coastal and Amazonian jungle lowlands. 

People 

Nationality: Noun and adjective--Ecuadoran(s).
Population (July 1997 est.): 12.1 million.
Annual growth rate: 3.4%.
Ethnic groups: Indigenous 25%, mestizo (mixed indigenous--Caucasian) 
65%, Caucasian and others 7%, African 3%.
Religion: Predominantly Roman Catholic, but religious freedom 
recognized.
Languages: Spanish (official), indigenous languages, especially Quichua, 
the Ecuadoran dialect of Quechua.
Education: Years compulsory--ages 6-14, but enforcement varies. 
Attendance (through 6th grade)--76% urban, 33% rural. Literacy--90%.
Health: Infant mortality rate--33.4/1,000. Life expectancy--71.4 yrs.
Work force (4.8 million): Agriculture--42%. Commerce--20%. Services--
19%. Manufacturing--11%. Other--8%. 

Government 

Type: Republic.
Constitution: 1979.
Independence: May 24, 1822 (from Spain).
Branches: Executive--president and 14 cabinet ministers. Legislative--
121-member unicameral Congress. Judicial--Supreme Court, Provincial 
Courts, and ordinary civil and criminal judges.
Administrative subdivisions: 22 provinces.
Political parties: 11 political parties; none predominates.
Suffrage: Obligatory for literate citizens 18-65 yrs. of age; optional 
for other eligible voters; active duty military personnel may not vote. 

Economy (1997) 

GDP: $20.0 billion.
Real annual growth rate: 1994, 4.3%; 1995, 2.3%; 1996, 2.0%; 1997, 3.4%.
Per capita GDP: $1,675.
Natural resources: petroleum, fish, shrimp, timber, gold, limestone.
Agriculture (12% of GDP): bananas, seafood, coffee, cacao, sugar, rice, 
corn, and livestock.
Industry (41% of GDP--non-oil manufacturing 21%): petroleum extraction, 
food processing, wood products, textiles, chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
Trade: Exports--$5.3 billion: petroleum and petroleum products, bananas, 
shrimp, coffee, flowers, cocoa. Major markets--U.S. 39%, Latin America 
25%, European Union (EU) 22%, and Asia 12%. Imports--$3.5 billion: 
agricultural and industrial machinery, industrial raw materials, 
agricultural commodities, chemical products, transportation and 
communication equipment, petroleum products. Major suppliers--Latin 
America 35%, U.S. 31%, EU 19%, and Asia 11%. 

PEOPLE 

Ecuador's population is ethnically mixed. The largest ethnic groups are 
indigenous and mestizo (mixed Indian-Caucasian). Although Ecuadorans 
were heavily concentrated in the mountainous central highland region a 
few decades ago, today's population is divided about equally between 
that area and the coastal lowlands. Migration toward cities--
particularly larger cities--in all regions has increased the urban 
population to about 55%. The tropical forest region to the east of the 
mountains remains sparsely populated and contains only about 3% of the 
population.

The public education system is tuition-free, and attendance is mandatory 
from ages 6 to 14. In practice, however, many children drop out before 
age 15, and, in rural areas only about one-third complete sixth grade. 
The government is striving to create better programs for the rural and 
urban poor, especially in technical and occupational training. In recent 
years, it has also been successful in reducing illiteracy. Enrollment in 
primary schools has been increasing at an annual rate of 4.4%--faster 
than the population growth rate. According to the 1979 constitution, the 
central government must allocate at least 30% of its revenue to 
education; in practice, however, it allots a much smaller percentage.

Public universities have an open admissions policy. In recent years, 
however, large increases in the student population, budget difficulties, 
and extreme politicization of the university system have led to a 
decline in academic standards.

HISTORY

Advanced indigenous cultures flourished in Ecuador long before the area 
was conquered by the Inca empire in the 15th century. In 1534, the 
Spanish arrived and defeated the Inca armies, and Spanish colonists 
became the new elite. The indigenous population was decimated by disease 
in the first decades of Spanish rule--a time when the natives were also 
forced into the "encomienda" labor system for Spanish landlords. In 
1563, Quito became the seat of a royal "audiencia" (administrative 
district) of Spain.

After independence forces defeated the royalist army in 1822, Ecuador 
joined Simon Bolivar's Republic of Gran Colombia, only to become a 
separate republic in 1830. The 19th century was marked by instability, 
with a rapid succession of rulers. The conservative Gabriel Garcia 
Moreno unified the country in the 1860s with the support of the Catholic 
Church. In the late 1800s, world demand for cocoa tied the economy to 
commodity exports and led to migrations from the highlands to the 
agricultural frontier on the coast. A coastal-based liberal revolution 
in 1895 under Eloy Alfaro reduced the power of the clergy and opened the 
way for capitalist development.

The end of the cocoa boom produced renewed political instability and a 
military coup in 1925. The 1930s and 1940s were marked by populist 
politicians such as five-time president Jose Velasco Ibarra. In January 
1942, Ecuador signed the Rio Protocol to end a brief war with Peru the 
year before; Ecuador agreed to a border that conceded to Peru much 
territory Ecuador previously had claimed in the Amazon. After World War 
II, a recovery in the market for agricultural commodities and the growth 
of the banana industry helped restore prosperity and political peace. 
From 1948-60, three presidents--beginning with Galo Plaza--were freely 
elected and completed their terms.

Recession and popular unrest led to a return to populist politics and 
domestic military interventions in the 1960s, while foreign companies 
developed oil resources in the Ecuadoran Amazon. In 1972, a nationalist 
military regime seized power and used the new oil wealth and foreign 
borrowing to pay for a program of industrialization, land reform, and 
subsidies for urban consumers. With the oil boom fading, Ecuador 
returned to democracy in 1979, but by 1982 the government faced a 
chronic economic crisis, including inflation, budget deficits, a falling 
currency, mounting debt service, and uncompetitive industries.

The 1984 presidential elections were narrowly won by Leon Febres-Cordero 
of the Social Christian Party (PSC). During the first years of his 
administration, Febres-Cordero introduced free-market economic policies, 
took strong stands against drug trafficking and terrorism, and pursued 
close relations with the United States. His tenure was marred by bitter 
wrangling with other branches of government and his own brief kidnaping 
by elements of the military. A devastating earthquake in March 1987 
interrupted oil exports and worsened the country's economic problems.

Rodrigo Borja of the Democratic Left (ID) party won the presidency in 
1988. His government was committed to improving human rights protection 
and carried out some reforms, notably an opening of Ecuador to foreign 
trade. The Borja Government concluded an accord leading to the 
disbanding of the small terrorist group, "Alfaro Lives." However, 
continuing economic problems undermined the popularity of the ID, and 
opposition parties gained control of Congress in 1990.

In 1992, Sixto Duran-Ballen won in his third run for the presidency. His 
government's popularity suffered from tough macroeconomic adjustment 
measures, but it succeeded in pushing a limited number of modernization 
initiatives through Congress. Duran-Ballen's vice president, Alberto 
Dahik, was the architect of the administration's economic policies, but 
in 1995, Dahik fled the country to avoid prosecution on corruption 
charges following a heated political battle with the opposition. A war 
with Peru erupted in January-February 1995 in a small, remote region 
where the boundary prescribed by the 1942 Rio Protocol was in dispute.

Abdala Bucaram, from the Guayaquil-based Ecuadorian Roldosista Party 
(PRE), won the presidency in 1996 on a platform that promised populist 
economic and social reforms and the breaking of what Bucaram termed as 
the power of the nation's oligarchy. During his short term of office, 
Bucaram's administration drew criticism for corruption. Bucaram was 
deposed by the Congress in February 1997 on grounds of alleged mental 
incompetence. In his place, Congress named Interim President Fabian 
Alarcon, who had been President of Congress and head of the small 
Radical Alfarist Front party. Alarcon's interim presidency was endorsed 
by a May 1997 popular referendum.

Congressional and first-round presidential elections were held on May 
31, 1998. No presidential candidate obtained a majority, so a run-off 
election between the top two candidates, Quito Mayor Jamil Mahuad of the 
Popular Democracy party and Alvaro Noboa, was held on July 12, 1998. 
Mahuad won by a narrow margin. He took office on August 10, 1998. On the 
same day, Ecuador's new constitution came into effect.   

GOVERNMENT

The constitution provides for concurrent 4-year terms of office for the 
president, vice president, and members of congress. Presidents may be 
re-elected after an intervening term, while legislators may be re-
elected immediately.

The executive branch includes 17 ministries and several cabinet-level 
secretariats headed by presidential appointees. The president also 
appoints Ecuador's provincial governors, who represent the central 
government at the local level. Provincial prefects and councilors, like 
municipal mayors and aldermen, are directly elected.

Each 2 years legislators elect from among themselves a president and 
vice president of Congress. Congress meets for 2 months a year. For the 
remainder of the year--unless an extraordinary plenary session is 
called--all legislative business is transacted by the 35 members of the 
Congress who serve on five permanent committees.   Ecuador has a three-
tiered court system. Justices of the Supreme Court are appointed by the 
Congress for 6-year terms. The Supreme Court names the members of the 
superior (provincial) courts, who, in turn, choose ordinary civil and 
penal judges.  

Principal Government Officials 

Executive Branch 
Chief of State
President--Jamil MAHUAD Witt (since August 10, 1998) 

Head of Government
President--Jamil MAHUAD Witt (since August 10, 1998)
Vice President--Gustavo Noboa
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Jose AYALA Lasso
Charge D'Affaires, Embassy of Ecuador in Washington--Fernando Flores
Ambassador to the UN--Luis Valencia
Ambassador to the OAS--Julio Prado

Ecuador maintains an embassy in the United States at 2535 - 15th Street 
NW, Washington, DC 20009 (tel. 202-234-7200) and consulates in Chicago, 
Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San 
Francisco. 

Legislative Branch
Unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (121 seats; 20 members 
popularly elected at large nationally, 101 members popularly elected by 
province.) 

POLITICAL CONDITIONS 

Ecuador's political parties have historically been small, loose 
organizations that depended more on populist, often charismatic, leaders 
to retain support than on programs or ideology. Frequent internal splits 
have produced extreme factionalism.  However, a pattern has emerged in 
which administrations from the center-left alternate with those from the 
center-right. Although Ecuador's political elite is highly factionalized 
along regional, ideological, and personal lines, a strong desire for 
consensus on major issues often leads to compromise. Opposition forces 
in Congress are loosely organized, but historically they often unite to 
block the administration's initiatives and to remove cabinet ministers. 

Constitutional changes enacted by a specially elected National 
Constitutional Assembly in 1998 took effect on August 10, 1998. The new 
constitution strengthens the executive  branch by eliminating mid-term 
congressional elections and by circumscribing Congress' power to 
challenge cabinet ministers. Party discipline is traditionally weak, and 
routinely many deputies switch allegiance during each Congress. However, 
after the new Constitution took effect, the Congress passed a code of 
ethics which imposes penalties on members who defy their party 
leadership on key votes. 

Beginning with the 1996 election, the indigenous population abandoned 
its traditional policy of shunning the official political system and 
participated actively. The indigenous population has established itself 
as a significant force in Ecuadoran politics, as shown by the selection 
of indigenous representative Nina Pacari, who leads the indigenous 
political party, Pachakutik, as second vice president of the 1998 
congress. The next presidential and Congressional elections are 
currently scheduled for 2002. 

ECONOMY 

Ecuador's gross domestic product (GDP) reached $20.0 billion in 1997. 
This represents growth of 3.4% over 1996. The economy depends heavily on 
petroleum production, along with exports of agricultural commodities and 
seafood. The state oil industry makes up 10% of GDP, generates 37% of 
total exports, and provides about 30% of government revenue. Agriculture 
contributes 12% of GDP. 

Ecuador is a major world producer of bananas and shrimp. Cocoa, coffee, 
and tuna are also exported. Non-traditional agricultural products, such 
as flowers and winter vegetables, are becoming more important. Industry 
accounts for 41% of GDP, and is becoming increasingly oriented to the 
export market. Ecuador's merchandise exports for 1997 were $5.3 billion 
and its imports $4.6 billion. Lower trade barriers in the region, 
including free-trade agreements with Colombia, Venezuela, and Bolivia 
are helping manufacturers become more export oriented. Ecuador has 
reduced most tariffs to 5-20% and in January 1995, instituted a common 
external tariff with Colombia and Venezuela. 

Ecuador acceded to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995. The 
government has committed to address remaining obstacles to trade, 
including agricultural price bands, minimum import prices, and sanitary 
registrations. Ecuador passed comprehensive legislation setting forth 
protections for intellectual property rights in May 1998. 

Ecuador has a unified, free market in foreign exchange. During the oil 
boom of the 1970s, the government borrowed heavily from abroad, 
increased subsidies, and expanded the state's economic role. Such 
policies became unsustainable, leading to chronic macroeconomic 
instability in the 1980s. 

President Duran-Ballen took office in 1992 promising to stabilize the 
economy, modernize the state, and expand the free market. A sizable 
devaluation of the sucre in 1992, large public-sector price hikes, 
market pricing of fuel, and spending reductions--together with monetary, 
budget, and tax reforms--reduced the public deficit. Inflation also fell 
from 60% to about 25%, but increased again to 30% in 1997.  In 1998, the 
sucre was devalued twice, and interest rates were raised to as high as 
73%. 

The Mahuad administration took office facing an unsustainable fiscal 
deficit, at a time when, partly due to global economic problems, 
investors were unwilling to loan money  to Ecuador. The structural 
reforms required to improve prospects for investment and growth have 
been difficult to achieve. 

The government has suggested plans to partially privatize some of the 
major state enterprises, and has obtained legal authority to privatize 
35% of the telephone service.  However, two auctions of the telephone 
company scheduled for late 1997 and early 1998 had to be canceled for 
lack of bidders. There is substantial political opposition to 
privatization proposals. 

Efforts to reform the social security system in early 1998 failed after 
opponents organized massive demonstrations. Investment regulations 
afford foreign investors national treatment--including equal tax rates--
and do not require prior authorization for investment in most 
industries. A bilateral investment treaty with the United States 
approved in 1994 and ratified in May 1997 provides for transfers of 
capital and profits and a binding arbitration dispute settlement 
procedure. The 1994 agrarian development law has improved the security 
of agricultural land tenure. The 1993 hydrocarbons law made investment 
in petroleum exploration more attractive, and U.S. firms initiated and 
expanded projects. 

However, U.S. firms doing business in Ecuador have complained of being 
pressured into contract renegotiations by the government. Several U.S. 
firms have had large judgments entered against them in Ecuadoran courts 
under a law which permitted the firms' local partners to disregard the 
terms of their contracts. This law, the Dealer's Act, was repealed in 
1997 but remains in effect with regard to contracts entered into prior 
to the repeal. 

In September 1998, President Mahuad announced the cancellation of 
subsidies on electricity, cooking gas, and fuel. At the same time, the 
government initiated a new system of cash assistance to poor mothers and 
the elderly. The net effect of these changes was to reduce the 
government's fiscal deficit. Mahuad's economic cabinet has entered 
discussions with the IMF concerning a possible standby agreement, which 
would open the door to possible rescheduling of debt payments. 

FOREIGN RELATIONS 

Ecuador always has placed great emphasis on multilateral approaches to 
international problems. Ecuador is a member of the United Nations (and 
most of its specialized  agencies) and the Organization of American 
States. Ecuador is also a member of many regional groups, including the 
Rio Group, the Latin American Economic System, the Latin American Energy 
Organization, the Latin American Integration Association, and the Andean 
Pact. 

Ecuador's border dispute with Peru, festering since the independence 
era, has been the nation's principal foreign policy issue. For more than 
50 years, Ecuador maintained that the 1942 Rio Protocol of Peace, 
Friendship and Boundaries left several issues unresolved. For example, 
it asserted that geographic features in the area of the Cenepa River 
Valley did not match the topographical descriptions in the Protocol, 
thus making demarcation of the boundary there "inexecutable." 

This long-running border dispute occasionally erupted into armed 
hostility along the undemarcated sections. The most serious conflict 
since the 1941 war occurred in January-February 1995, when thousands of 
soldiers from both sides fought an intense but localized war in the 
disputed territory in the upper Cenepa valley. A peace agreement 
brokered by the four Guarantors of the Rio Protocol (Argentina, Brazil, 
Chile, and the United States) in February 1995 led to the cessation of 
hostilities and the establishment of the Military Observers Mission to 
Ecuador-Peru (MOMEP) to monitor the zone. In 1996, Ecuador and Peru 
began a series of meetings intended to set the stage for substantive 
negotiations to resolve the dispute. 

Those talks were successful. In January 1998, Ecuador and Peru initialed 
an historic agreement in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, which provided a 
framework to resolve the major outstanding issues between the two 
countries through four commissions. The commissions were to prepare a 
Treaty of Commerce and Navigation and a Comprehensive Agreement on 
Border Integration; to fix on the ground the common land boundary; and 
to establish a Binational Commission on Mutual Confidence Measures and 
Security. The commissions began work in February, with the intention of 
reaching a definitive agreement by May 30, 1998. The commissions on 
border integration and mutual confidence measures successfully concluded 
their work, and the commission working on a treaty of commerce and 
navigation produced a draft treaty text, but the commission on border 
demarcation failed to produce agreement by May 30. A flare-up in 
military tensions in the disputed region in August 1998 led to the 
creation of a temporary second MOMEP-patrolled demilitarized zone just 
south of the first demilitarized zone. Presidents Mahuad and Fujimori 
established direct communication by meetings and phone calls in an 
effort to overcome the two countries' remaining differences. In October 
1998, after asking for and receiving a boundary determination from the 
guarantors, the two Presidents reached agreement. On October 26, 1998, 
at a ceremony in Brasilia, Presidents Fujimori and Mahuad and their 
Foreign Ministers signed a comprehensive settlement. 

U.S.-ECUADORAN RELATIONS 

The United States and Ecuador have maintained close ties based on mutual 
interests in maintaining democratic institutions; combating 
narcotrafficking; building trade, investment, and financial ties; 
cooperating in fostering Ecuador's economic development; and 
participating in inter-American organizations. Ties are further 
strengthened by the presence of an estimated 150,000-200,000 Ecuadorans 
living in the United States and by 24,000 U.S. citizens visiting Ecuador 
annually and by approximately 15,000 U.S. citizens residing in Ecuador. 
The United States assists Ecuador's economic development directly 
through the Agency for International Development (USAID) program in 
Ecuador and through multilateral organizations such as the Inter-
American Development Bank and the World Bank. In addition, the U.S. 
Peace Corps operates a sizable program in Ecuador. Over 100 U.S. 
companies are doing business in Ecuador. 

Both nations are signatories of the Rio Treaty of 1947, the Western 
Hemisphere's regional mutual security treaty. Ecuador shares U.S. 
concern over increasing narcotrafficking and international terrorism and 
has energetically condemned terrorist actions, whether directed against 
government officials or private citizens. The government has maintained 
Ecuador virtually free of coca production since the mid-1980s and is 
working to combat money laundering and the transshipment of drugs and 
chemicals essential to the processing of cocaine. 

The United States claims jurisdiction for the management of coastal 
fisheries up to 320 kilometers (200 mi.) from its coast, but excludes 
highly migratory species. Ecuador, on the other hand, claims a 320-
kilometer-wide (200-mi.) territorial sea, and imposes license fees and 
fines on foreign fishing vessels in the area, making no exceptions for 
catches of migratory species. In the early 1970s, Ecuador seized about 
100 foreign-flag vessels (many of them U.S.) and collected fees and 
fines of more than $6 million. After a drop-off in such seizures for 
some years, several U.S. tuna boats were again detained and seized in 
1980 and 1981. The U.S. Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
then triggered an automatic prohibition of U.S. imports of tuna products 
from Ecuador. The prohibition was lifted in 1983, and although 
fundamental differences between U.S. and Ecuadoran legislation still 
exist, there is no current conflict. During the period that has elapsed 
since seizures which triggered the tuna import ban, successive Ecuadoran 
governments have declared their willingness to explore possible 
solutions to this problem with mutual respect for long-standing 
positions and principles of both sides. 

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials 

Ambassador-Designate--Ibonne A-Baki
Deputy Chief of Mission--James Curtis Struble
Political and Labor--Stuart Symington
Economic--Michael Glover
Commercial--Robert Jones
Consular--Joyce De Shazo
Administrative--Earl Ferguson
Public Affairs Advisor--Mark Krischik
Regional Security Officer--Lanny Bernier
USAID--Hilda Arellano
Defense Attache--Col. Phillip Stewart, USA
MilGroup--Col. James Willey, USA
Peace Corps--Marcy Kelley
Agriculture--Daryl Brehm (resident in Lima)
Narcotics Assistance Staff--James F. Greene
INS--Charles Aycock

Guayaquil
Consul General--Timothy Dunn
Chief, Consular Section--Steven Hardesty 

The U.S. Embassy in Ecuador is located at Avenida Patria 120, Quito 
(tel. (593)(2) 562-890/561-634). Embassy Internet Home Page: 
http://www.usis.org.ec. The Consulate General is at 9 de Octubre and 
Garcia Moreno, Guayaquil (tel. (593)(4) 323-570). 

Other Contact Information 

U.S. Department of Commerce
International Trade Administration
Trade Information Center
14th and Constitution Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20230
Tel: 1-800-USA-TRADE
Internet: http://www.ita.doc.gov 

Ecuadorian-American Chamber of Commerce - Quito
Edificio Multicentro, 4 Piso
La Nina y Avenida 6 de Diciembre
Quito, Ecuador
Tel: (5932) 507-450
Fax: (5932) 504-571
E-Mail: CCEA1@ACCEA.ORG.EC or CCEA2@ACCEA.ORG.EC
(Branches: Ambato, Cuenca & Manta) 

Ecuadorian-American Chamber of Commerce - Guayaquil
G. Cordova 812, Piso 3, Oficina 1
Edificio Torres de la Merced
Guayaquil, Ecuador
Tel: (5934) 566-481 or 565-761
Fax: (5934) 563-259
E-Mail: caecam1@caecam.org.ec
(Branch: Manchala) 

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION 

The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program provides 
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To access CABB, dial the modem number: 301-946-4400 (it will accommodate 
up to 33,600 bps), set terminal communications program to N-8-1(no 
parity, 8 bits, 1 stop bit); and terminal emulation to VT100. The login 
is travel and the password is info. (Note: Lower case is required). The 
CABB also carries international security information from the Overseas 
Security Advisory Council and Department's Bureau of Diplomatic 
Security. Consular Affairs Trips for Travelers publication series, which 
contain information on obtaining passports and planning a safe trip 
abroad, can be purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. 
Government Printing Office, P.O. Box 371954, Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954; 
telephone: 202-512-1800; fax 202-512-2250. 

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be 
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Passport Services information can be obtained by calling the 24-hour, 7-
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Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers 
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most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or 
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and countries. A booklet entitled Health Information for International 
Travel (HHS publication number CDC-95-8280) is available from the U.S. 
Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402, tel. (202) 512-1800. 

Information on travel conditions, visa requirements, currency and 
customs regulations, legal holidays, and other items of interest to 
travelers also may be obtained before your departure from a country's 
embassy and/or consulates in the U.S. (for this country, see "Principal 
Government Officials" listing in this publication). 

U.S. citizens who are long-term visitors or traveling in dangerous areas 
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(see "Principal U.S. Embassy Officials" listing in this publication). 
This may help family members contact you in case of an emergency. 

Further Electronic Information 

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National Trade Data Bank (NTDB). Operated by the U.S. Department of 
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