Ecuador – education
In Ecuador, the education is characterized by the country’s special regional and ethnic composition. Of the adult population in 2006, approximately 7.5% illiterate. Illiteracy, which is unevenly distributed both ethnically and regionally, is twice as frequent in rural areas as in cities. The language of instruction is Spanish; as a result of the Indians’ struggle for an independent culture, bilingual education is also offered. Resources for education have been reduced in recent years from 5.6% of GDP in 1980 to 2.6% in 1991.
The voluntary preschool is three years old and is found almost exclusively in the cities. The primary school for the 6-11-year-olds is compulsory, while the continued schooling is voluntary and divided into a module for 12-14-year-olds and one for 15-18-year-olds. Just over half of the population has left the education system after primary school, while approximately 30% have completed the youth education, and approximately 15% participate in higher education; 2.3% receive no education at all (1990). Vocational education was expanded in the 1980’s, by setting up technical schools. Higher education at universities and other colleges is offered almost exclusively in the major cities of Quito and Guayaquil.
OFFICIAL NAME: Ecuador
CAPITAL CITY: Quito
POPULATION: 13,500,000 (Source: COUNTRYaah)
AREA: 272,000 km²
OFFICIAL LANGUAGE (S): Spanish, Quechua and approximately 10 other Native American languages
RELIGION: Catholics 95%, others 5%
COIN: US Dollar (USD)
CURRENCY CODE: ECS
ENGLISH NAME: Ecuador
INDEPENDENCE: 1830
POPULATION COMPOSITION: mestizer 60%, Indians 25%, whites (especially of Spanish origin) 12%, black 3%
GDP PER residents: $ 1534 (2007)
LIFE EXPECTANCY: men 72 years, women 78 years (2007)
INDEX OF LIVING CONDITIONS, HDI: 0.765
INDEX OF LIVING CONDITIONS, POSITION: 83
INTERNET DOMAIN NAME: .ec
Ecuador is a Republic of South America; the name comes from the country’s location on the equator. Under South American conditions, Ecuador is a small country, but naturally it is one of the most diverse in the world.
- AbbreviationFinder.org: Find two-letter abbreviation for each independent country and territory, such as EC which stands for Ecuador.
Here you will find tropical rainforest, temperate mountain slopes and glacier-covered peaks. In addition, the unique Galápagos Islands Nature Reserve is 1000 km out in the Pacific Ocean. The predominant and also poorest part of the population are Indians and mestizos. Despite oil discoveries and some industrial development in the wake of this, the country remains one of the poorest in South America.
Ecuador – Constitution
The Republic’s current constitution is from 1998. The executive power lies with a president who, together with a vice president, is elected by direct election for a four-year term. The government is appointed and headed by the president. Legislative power lies with the National Congress, which has one chamber, which in the 2002 election had 100 members, elected by direct election. 12 of the members are elected with the whole country as a constituency for four years, while the others are elected for a four-year period in the 22 provinces in relation to population. Everyone over the age of 18 is obliged to vote; for illiterates, however, turnout is voluntary.
Ecuador – Economy
Ecuador began as one of the last countries in Latin America an opening and liberalization of the economy, when the newly elected Conservative President and Prime Minister Sixto Durán Ballén in 1992 presented a program aimed at reforming the state’s dominant role in the economy. However, the program has met with strong opposition in Congress, and so far few privatizations of state-owned enterprises have been completed.
Ecuador is one of the countries that went into debt crisis in the mid-1980’s. Several times the payments on the foreign debt have had to be suspended; Among other things, in 1992, when debt was about the same as GDP and almost four times greater than this year’s export earnings. As part of a debt restructuring agreement, Ecuador entered into a stabilization program with the IMF in 1994, which, among other things, entailed a tight fiscal and monetary policy. A combination of low oil prices, the main export item since the 1970’s, and natural disasters (El Niño) plunged the country into a new crisis of suspension of payments. The transition to the US- $ as a currency in 2001 has slowed inflation, but the government’s attempts to liberalize and privatize the economy further encounter stubborn opposition from especially the poor Native American population.
Ecuador has for many years consistently had a surplus on the trade balance, but the considerable interest payments on the external debt mean still deficits on the balance of payments. The United States is the country’s largest trading partner and accounts for over a third (2005) of Ecuador’s total foreign trade. Incidentally, Ecuador trades a lot with other Latin American countries.
In 2005, Denmark’s exports to Ecuador amounted to DKK 59 million. DKK, while imports amounted to 114 mill. kr.
Ecuador – social conditions
Ecuador is a racially and class-divided society where Indians and blacks make up the majority of the 70% of the population living below the poverty line – an increase of 5% from the mid-1990’s. Social and economic disparities grew after President Sixto Durán Ballén in 1992 launched a harsh privatization and fiscal policy that meant sharp cuts. This triggered violent labor struggles, social unrest and protests, not least from the Native American section of the population. The political and economic instability since the 1990’s has contributed to the deterioration of living conditions, although Ecuador as an oil-exporting country has benefited from rising energy prices on the world market. This is reflected in the very skewed income distribution, where the poorest 10% receive only 0.9% of the total income,
Social security schemes are largely limited to urban wage workers and employees of oil and banana companies. The various security schemes and the public health system often overlap and are generally corrupt and ineffective. President Sixto Durán Ballén’s privatization and fiscal policy provoked great dissatisfaction, and the period after 1992 has been marked by labor struggles and by actions by the Native American section of the population. Almost half of the population does not have access to clean water, and housing conditions are particularly primitive in rural areas. Since the 1980’s, Ecuador has been a major transit station in international cocaine trafficking, reinforcing the already widespread corruption. Other crime is particularly high in large cities, but generally less violent than in neighboring Colombia and Peru. Check youremailverifier for Ecuador social condition facts.
Ecuador – health conditions
Life expectancy has increased from 53 years in 1960 to 76.5 years in 2006. The mortality rate in the first year of life was 23 2006 in 2006, a decrease from 100 ‰ in 1970. Fertility is declining and in 2006 22 children per. 1000 residents
Tropical diseases such as malaria, cholera and dengue fever occur frequently in rural areas. Malnutrition is found in half of children under the age of five. It is estimated that there is an underreporting of deaths of at least 30%, but the general mortality is assumed to have halved from 1966 to 1991. Infectious diseases and violent death are the most common causes of death with resp. 23% and 14%. In 1990, the country spent 4.1% of its GDP on health care; of which came approximately 60% from the public sector. In 1990 there were 1.5 doctors and 1.6 hospital beds per. 1000 residents with a clearly skewed distribution to the detriment of the rural areas, which have the biggest health problems.
Ecuador – mass media
The mass media in Ecuador is largely controlled by seven families and financial groups. The written press is especially aimed at the richest 10-15% of the population. 36 daily newspapers are published with a total circulation of 688,000 (1992). The largest is El Universal (grdl. 1921) and the oldest the liberal El Telégrafo (grdl. 1884), both in Guayaquil. In Quito, the conservative El Comercio (grdl. 1906), the liberal Hoy (grdl. 1982) and the tabloid newspaper Ultimas Noticias (grdl. 1938) are published.
Ecuador has denser radio coverage than most of Latin America with 380 stations and 3.4 million. radio receivers (1991). One of the most important radio stations is the religious La Voz de los Andes (‘Voice of the Andes’), which was founded in 1931 and broadcasts to the entire Andean region in 17 languages, including Spanish, Quechua and English. Otherwise, most stations are commercial.
Television was established in the 1970’s, and with 13 predominantly commercial channels and a total of 910,000 televisions, all major cities in the country are covered.
Ecuador – architecture and visual arts
Since Quito’s founding in 1534 as a colonial capital, the city has been characterized by European builders and artists. In 1538, the Franciscans began construction of the San Francisco convent in typical mudéjar style, mixed with Flemish Mannerism. The Cathedral of Quito was begun in 1562, but rebuilt several times until the mid-1900’s. The Jesuit order church from 1605 is known for its facade from the 1700’s. in German-influenced baroque as well as for the rich interior decoration, made by Hernando de la Cruz (1591-1646) and Nicolás Javier de Goríbar (1665-1740).
The religious art of the 1600’s is represented by the Native American sculptor Caspicara as well as the most important painters of the era Miguel de Santiago (1626-1706) and Gregório Vázques de Arce (1638-1711). After the country’s independence in 1830, a new generation of artists emerged with Joaquim Pinto (1892-1906), José António Sales (1795-1860) and Rafael Troya (1845-1920), all painting landscapes, portraits and folklore motifs. In the early 1900-t. a French-inspired impressionism flourished, while social realism characterized the painters Camilo Egas (1899-1962) and Oswaldo Guayasamin. Today, Oswaldo Viteri (b. 1931) works with anthropological motifs, while Luigi Stornaiolo (b. 1956) and Marcelo Aguirre (b. 1956) cultivate a neo-figurative form of expression.
