Aminet 6/Aminet 6 - June 1995.iso/Aminet/docs/misc/wfbook93_texi.lha/texi/69.data

Text File | 1995-03-27 | 11.0 KB | 390 lines

@node Geography (Ecuador)
@section Geography (Ecuador)

@display

Location:
  Western South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean at the Equator between
  Colombia and Peru
Map references:
  South America, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
 total area:
  283,560 km2
 land area:
  276,840 km2
 comparative area:
  slightly smaller than Nevada
 note:
  includes Galapagos Islands
Land boundaries:
  total 2,010 km, Colombia 590 km, Peru 1,420 km
Coastline:
  2,237 km
Maritime claims:
 continental shelf:   claims continental shelf between mainland and Galapagos Islands
 territorial sea:
  200 nm
International disputes:
  three sections of the boundary with Peru are in dispute
Climate:
  tropical along coast becoming cooler inland
Terrain:
  coastal plain (Costa), inter-Andean central highlands (Sierra), and flat to
  rolling eastern jungle (Oriente)
Natural resources:
  petroleum, fish, timber
Land use:
 arable land:
  6%
 permanent crops:
  3%
 meadows and pastures:
  17%
 forest and woodland:
  51%
 other:
  23%
Irrigated land:
  5,500 km2 (1989 est.)
Environment:
  subject to frequent earthquakes, landslides, volcanic activity;
  deforestation; desertification; soil erosion; periodic droughts
Note:
  Cotopaxi in Andes is highest active volcano in world



@end display

@node People (Ecuador)
@section People (Ecuador)

@display

Population:
  10,461,072 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate:
  2.07% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
  26.54 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
  5.8 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
  0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
  40.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
 total population:
  69.61 years
 male:
  67.09 years
 female:
  72.25 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate:
  3.19 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Nationality:
 noun:
  Ecuadorian(s)
 adjective:
  Ecuadorian
Ethnic divisions:
  mestizo (mixed Indian and Spanish) 55%, Indian 25%, Spanish 10%, black 10%
Religions:
  Roman Catholic 95%
Languages:
  Spanish (official), Indian languages (especially Quechua)
Literacy:
  age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
 total population:
  86%
 male:
  88%
 female:
  84%
Labor force:
  2.8 million
 by occupation:
  agriculture 35%, manufacturing 21%, commerce 16%, services and other
  activities 28% (1982)



@end display

@node Government (Ecuador)
@section Government (Ecuador)

@display

Names:
 conventional long form:
  Republic of Ecuador
 conventional short form:
  Ecuador
 local long form:
  Republica del Ecuador
 local short form:
  Ecuador
Digraph:
  EC
Type:
  republic
Capital:
  Quito
Administrative divisions:
  21 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Azuay, Bolivar, Canar,
  Carchi, Chimborazo, Cotopaxi, El Oro, Esmeraldas, Galapagos, Guayas,
  Imbabura, Loja, Los Rios, Manabi, Morona-Santiago, Napo, Pastaza, Pichincha,
  Sucumbios, Tungurahua, Zamora-Chinchipe
Independence:
  24 May 1822 (from Spain)
Constitution:
  10 August 1979
Legal system:
  based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
National holiday:   Independence Day, 10 August (1809) (independence of Quito)
Political parties and leaders:
 Center-Right parties:
  Social Christian Party (PSC), Jaime NEBOT Saadi, president; Republican Unity
  Party (PUR), President Sixto DURAN-BALLEN, leader; Conservative Party (CE),
  Vice President Alberto DAHIK, president
 Center-Left parties:
  Democratic Left (ID), Andres VALLEJO Arcos, Rodrigo BORJA Cevallos, leaders;
  Popular Democracy (DP), Jamil MANUAD Witt, president; Ecuadorian Radical
  Liberal Party (PLRE), Carlos Luis PLAZA Aray, director; Radical Alfarista
  Front (FRA), Jaime ASPIAZU Seminario, director
 Populist parties:
  Roldista Party (PRE), Abdala BUCARAM Ortiz, director; Concentration of
  Popular Forces (CFP), Rafael SANTELICES, director; Popular Revolutionary
  Action (APRE), Frank VARGAS Passos, leader; Assad Bucaram Party (PAB),
  Avicena BUCARAM, leader; People, Change, and Democracy (PCD), Raul AULESTIA,
  director
 Far-Left parties:
  Popular Democratic Movement (MPD), Jorge Fausto MORENO, director; Ecuadorian
  Socialist Party (PSE), Leon ROLDOS, leader; Broad Leftist Front (FADI), Jose
  Xavier GARAYCOA, president; Ecuadorian National Liberation (LN), Alfredo
  CASTILLO, director
 Communists:
  Communist Party of Ecuador (PCE, pro-North Korea), Rene Leon Mague
  MOSWUERRA, secretary general (5,00 members); Communist Party of
  Ecuador/Marxist-Leninist (PCMLE, Maoist), leader NA (3,000 members)
Suffrage:
  18 years of age; universal, compulsory for literate persons ages 18-65,
  optional for other eligible voters



@end display

@node Government (Ecuador 2. usage)
@section Government (Ecuador 2. usage)

@display

Elections:
 President:
  runoff election held 5 July 1992 (next to be held NA 1996); results - Sixto
  DURAN-BALLEN elected as president and Alberto DAHIK elected as vice
  president
 National Congress:
  last held 17 May 1992 (next to be held NA May 1994); results - percent of
  vote by party NA; seats - (77 total) PSC 20, PRE 15, PUR 12, ID 7, PC 6, DP
  5, PSE 3, MPD 3, PLRE 2, CFP 2, FRA 1, APRE 1
Executive branch:
  president, vice president, Cabinet
Legislative branch:
  unicameral National Congress (Congreso Nacional)
Judicial branch:
  Supreme Court (Corte Suprema)
Leaders:
 Chief of State and Head of Government:
  President Sixto DURAN-BALLEN (since 10 August 1992); Vice President Alberto
  DAHIK (since 10 August 1992)
Member of:
  AG, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD,
  IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA, LORCS,
  NAM, OAS, ONUSAL, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL,
  WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
 chief of mission:
  Ambassador Edgar TERAN
 chancery:
  2535 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
 telephone:
  [phone]
 consulates general:
  Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San
  Francisco
 consulate:
  San Diego
US diplomatic representation:
 chief of mission:
  (vacant); Charge d'Affaires James F. MACK
 embassy:
  Avenida 12 de Octubre y Avenida Patria, Quito
 mailing address:
  P. O. Box 538, Quito, or APO AA 34039-3420
 telephone:
  [593] (2) 562-890
 FAX:
  [593] (2) 502-052
 consulate general:
  Guayaquil
Flag:
  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 that is shorter and does not bear a coat of arms



@end display

@node Economy (Ecuador)
@section Economy (Ecuador)

@display

Overview:
  Ecuador has substantial oil resources and rich agricultural areas. Growth
  has been uneven because of natural disasters, fluctuations in global oil
  prices, and government policies designed to curb inflation. Banana exports,
  second only to oil, have suffered as a result of EC import quotas and banana
  blight. The new President Sixto DURAN-BALLEN, has a much more favorable
  attitude toward foreign investment than did his predecessor. Ecuador has
  implemented trade agreements with Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, and Venezuela and
  has applied for GATT membership. At the end of 1991, Ecuador received a
  standby IMF loan of $105 million, which will permit the country to proceed
  with the rescheduling of Paris Club debt. In September 1992, the government
  launched a new, macroeconomic program that gives more play to market forces;
  as of March 1993, the program seemed to be paying off.
National product:
  GDP - exchange rate conversion - $11.8 billion (1992)
National product real growth rate:
  3% (1992)
National product per capita:
  $1,100 (1992)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):   70% (1992)
Unemployment rate:
  8% (1992)
Budget:
  revenues $1.9 billion; expenditures $1.9 billion, including capital
  expenditures of $NA (1992)
Exports:
  $3.0 billion (f.o.b., 1992)
 commodities:
  petroleum 42%, bananas, shrimp, cocoa, coffee
 partners:
  US 53.4%, Latin America, Caribbean, EC countries
Imports:
  $2.4 billion (f.o.b., 1992)
 commodities:
  transport equipment, vehicles, machinery, chemicals
 partners:
  US 32.7%, Latin America, Caribbean, EC countries, Japan
External debt:
  $12.7 billion (1992)
Industrial production:
  growth rate 3.9% (1991); accounts for almost 40% of GDP, including petroleum
Electricity:
  2,921,000 kW capacity; 7,676 million kWh produced, 700 kWh per capita (1992)
Industries:
  petroleum, food processing, textiles, metal works, paper products, wood
  products, chemicals, plastics, fishing, timber
Agriculture:
  accounts for 18% of GDP and 35% of labor force (including fishing and
  forestry); leading producer and exporter of bananas and balsawood; other
  exports - coffee, cocoa, fish, shrimp; crop production - rice, potatoes,
  manioc, plantains, sugarcane; livestock sector - cattle, sheep, hogs, beef,
  pork, dairy products; net importer of foodgrains, dairy products, and sugar
Illicit drugs:
  minor illicit producer of coca following the successful eradication campaign
  of 1985-87; significant transit country, however, for derivatives of coca
  originating in Colombia, Bolivia, and Peru; importer of precursor chemicals
  used in production of illicit narcotics; important money-laundering hub



@end display

@node Economy (Ecuador 2. usage)
@section Economy (Ecuador 2. usage)

@display

Economic aid:
  US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $498 million; Western (non-US)
  countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $2.15 billion;
  Communist countries (1970-89), $64 million
Currency:
  1 sucre (S/) = 100 centavos
Exchange rates:
  sucres (S/) per US$1 - 1,453.8 (August 1992), 1,046.25 (1991), 869.54
  (December 1990), 767.75 (1990), 526.35 (1989), 301.61 (1988)
Fiscal year:
  calendar year



@end display

@node Communications (Ecuador)
@section Communications (Ecuador)

@display

Railroads:
  965 km total; all 1.067-meter-gauge single track
Highways:
  28,000 km total; 3,600 km paved, 17,400 km gravel and improved earth, 7,000
  km unimproved earth
Inland waterways:
  1,500 km
Pipelines:
  crude oil 800 km; petroleum products 1,358 km
Ports:
  Guayaquil, Manta, Puerto Bolivar, Esmeraldas
Merchant marine:
  45 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 333,380 GRT/483,862 DWT; includes 2
  passenger, 4 cargo, 17 refrigerated cargo, 4 container, 1 roll-on/roll-off,
  15 oil tanker, 1 liquefied gas, 1 bulk
Airports:
 total:
  174
 usable:
  173
 with permanent-surface runways:
  52
 with runway over 3,659 m:
  1
 with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
  6
 with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
  21
Telecommunications:
  domestic facilities generally adequate; 318,000 telephones; broadcast
  stations - 272 AM, no FM, 33 TV, 39 shortwave; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT
  earth station



@end display

@node Defense Forces (Ecuador)
@section Defense Forces (Ecuador)

@display

Branches:
  Army (Ejercito Ecuatoriano), Navy (Armada Ecuatoriana), Air Force (Fuerza
  Aerea Ecuatoriana), National Police
Manpower availability:
  males age 15-49 2,655,520; fit for military service 1,798,122; reach
  military age (20) annually 109,413 (1993 est.)
Defense expenditures:
  exchange rate conversion - $NA, NA% of GDP



@end display