Facts, Figures and Impressions ...

The Challenges
There is much poverty and people need help to establish sustainable sources of income. The collapse of coffee prices and the power of huge supermarket buyers are crushing the farming communities. Malnutrition is common, partly due to a lack of knowledge. Emigration is tearing families apart, with children and the elderly abandoned. There is still a long way to go to protect the country’s incredible biodiversity - there is a need for education, conservation and reforestation. The country needs to develop truly sustainable tourism to provide much-needed revenue and the incentive to preserve the environment.

Population Below Poverty Line: 65.00%
Economic Aid Status: Recipient
Economic Aid Total: $120

The Country
A small country with an incredible range of landscapes, microclimates, flora, fauna and cultures. Think mountains, volcanoes, beaches, cloudforests and paramo; papayas, mangoes and passionfruit; llamas, hummingbirds, orchids, butterflies…… Imagine exploring market towns, soaking in thermal springs, hiking, biking, climbing or canoeing…..

BackgroundThe "Republic of the Equator" was one of three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others being Colombia and Venezuela). Between 1904 and 1942, Ecuador lost territories in a series of conflicts with its neighbours. A border war with Peru that flared in 1995 was resolved in 1999

The Climate
Varies, with region and altitude. Most of the Sierra (highland) areas have warm days and cool nights, but it can be very cold in the mountains, even on the Equator. There is more rain in the winter months. Coastal lowlands are hot, with a rainy season around December to May. The Amazon region is hot and rainy, but tends to be less rainy from November to February.



The People
Over twenty different indigenous cultures and languages, ranging from tribes living in the Amazonian rainforest who wear few if any clothes, to hill peoples with their beautiful costumes. There are people with Caribbean/ African backgrounds in some areas and many mestizos, descendants of the Spanish Conquistadores. This makes for a great variety of foods, costumes, music and traditions. Most cultures are welcoming and delighted to receive volunteers. Some of the rainforest tribes are fighting to keep their traditions alive and do not appreciate being gawped at by tourists.

The Food
Ecuador is incredibly fertile and you will find fruits you have never even heard of, never mind tasted. Fresh fruit juices are wonderful - tree tomato, papaya, pineapple and lots more. Expect lots of rice and cuisine that is tasty but not usually too spicy, though you can add your own ‘aji’ - chilli sauce. Soup is often served with popcorn, sometimes avocado. Corn on the cob is often eaten. Look out for quinoa, a protein-packed cereal that grows in the Andes and is made into a tasty soup.

The Wildlife
This is said to be the most bio-diverse country on earth. In addition to the famous Galapagos Islands, the Ecuadorian mainland also has a huge variety of wildlife and lush vegetation. However, the environment is fragile and is under threat from pollution, the oil pipeline, unplanned development and some of the more destructive, exploitative forms of tourism.

Economic Overview
Ecuador has substantial petroleum resources, which have accounted for 40% of the country's export earnings and one-fourth of public sector revenues in recent years. Consequently, fluctuations in world market prices can have a substantial domestic impact. In the late 1990s, Ecuador suffered its worst economic crisis, with natural disasters and sharp declines in world petroleum prices driving Ecuador's economy into free fall in 1999. Real GDP contracted by more than 6%, with poverty worsening significantly. The banking system also collapsed, and Ecuador defaulted on its external debt later that year. The currency depreciated by some 70% in 1999, and, on the brink of hyperinflation, the MAHAUD government announced it would dollarize the economy. A coup, however, ousted MAHAUD from office in January 2000, and after a short-lived junta failed to garner military support, Vice President Gustavo NOBOA took over the presidency. In March 2000, Congress approved a series of structural reforms that also provided the framework for the adoption of the US dollar as legal tender. Dollarization stabilized the economy, and growth returned to its pre-crisis levels in the years that followed. Under the administration of Lucio GUTIERREZ, who took office in January 2003, Ecuador benefited from higher world petroleum prices, but the government has made little progress on fiscal reforms and reforms of state-owned enterprises necessary to reduce Ecuador's vulnerability to petroleum price swings and financial crises.



Inflation Rate: 96.0%
Industries: petroleum, food processing, textiles, metal work, paper products, wood products, chemicals, plastics, fishing, lumber
Export Partners: US 37%, Colombia 5%, Italy 5%, Chile 5%, Peru 4% (1999)
Export Commodities: petroleum, bananas, shrimp, coffee, cocoa, cut flowers, fish
Import Partners: US 30%, Colombia 13%, Venezuela 6%, Japan 5%, Venezuela 6%, Mexico 3% (1998)
Import Commodities: machinery and equipment, raw materials, fuels; consumer goods