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Compare Ecuador (2002) - World (2003)

Compare Ecuador (2002) z World (2003)

 Ecuador (2002)World (2003)
 EcuadorWorld
Administrative divisions 22 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, Sucumbios, Tungurahua, Zamora-Chinchipe 268 nations, dependent areas, other, and miscellaneous entries
Age structure 0-14 years: 35.4% (male 2,415,764; female 2,337,095)


15-64 years: 60.2% (male 4,007,495; female 4,090,957)


65 years and over: 4.4% (male 276,482; female 319,701) (2002 est.)
0-14 years: 29.2% (male 932,581,592; female 885,688,851)


15-64 years: 63.7% (male 2,009,997,089; female 1,964,938,201)


65 years and over: 7.1% (male 193,549,180; female 247,067,032) (2003 est.)


note: some countries do not maintain age structure information, thus a slight discrepancy exists between the total world population and the total for world age structure
Agriculture - products bananas, coffee, cocoa, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca), plantains, sugarcane; cattle, sheep, pigs, beef, pork, dairy products; balsa wood; fish, shrimp -
Airports 205 (2001) -
Airports - with paved runways total: 61


over 3,047 m: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 4


1,524 to 2,437 m: 18


914 to 1,523 m: 18


under 914 m: 18 (2002)
-
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 144


914 to 1,523 m: 31


under 914 m: 113 (2002)
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Area total: 283,560 sq km


land: 276,840 sq km


water: 6,720 sq km


note: includes Galapagos Islands
total: 510.072 million sq km


land: 148.94 million sq km


water: 361.132 million sq km


note: 70.8% of the world's surface is water, 29.2% is land
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Nevada land area about 16 times the size of the US
Background The "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 neighbors. A border war with Peru that flared in 1995 was resolved in 1999. Globally, the 20th century was marked by: (a) two devastating world wars; (b) the Great Depression of the 1930s; (c) the end of vast colonial empires; (d) rapid advances in science and technology, from the first airplane flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina (US) to the landing on the moon; (e) the Cold War between the Western alliance and the Warsaw Pact nations; (f) a sharp rise in living standards in North America, Europe, and Japan; (g) increased concerns about the environment, including loss of forests, shortages of energy and water, the decline in biological diversity, and air pollution; (h) the onset of the AIDS epidemic; and (i) the ultimate emergence of the US as the only world superpower. The planet's population continues to explode: from 1 billion in 1820, to 2 billion in 1930, 3 billion in 1960, 4 billion in 1974, 5 billion in 1988, and 6 billion in 2000. For the 21st century, the continued exponential growth in science and technology raises both hopes (e.g., advances in medicine) and fears (e.g., development of even more lethal weapons of war).
Birth rate 25.47 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) 20.43 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget revenues: $5.6 billion


expenditures: planned $5.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
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Capital Quito -
Climate tropical along coast, becoming cooler inland at higher elevations; tropical in Amazonian jungle lowlands two large areas of polar climates separated by two rather narrow temperate zones form a wide equatorial band of tropical to subtropical climates
Coastline 2,237 km 356,000 km
Constitution 10 August 1998 -
Country name conventional long form: Republic of Ecuador


conventional short form: Ecuador


local long form: Republica del Ecuador


local short form: Ecuador
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Currency US dollar (USD) -
Death rate 5.36 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) 8.83 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external $14 billion (2001) (2001) $2 trillion for less developed countries (2002 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Kristie Anne KENNEY


embassy: Avenida 12 de Octubre y Avenida Patria, Quito


mailing address: APO AA 34039


telephone: [593] (2) 256-2890


FAX: [593] (2) 250-2052


consulate(s) general: Guayaquil
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Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Ivonne A-BAKI


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, Philadelphia, and San Francisco
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Disputes - international none Globally, there are over 250,000 km of international land boundaries that separate the world's 192 independent states, along with 70 dependencies, areas of special sovereignty, and other miscellaneous entities. Maritime states have claimed limits and have so far established over 130 maritime boundaries and joint development zones to allocate ocean resources and to provide for their national security at sea. On land, ethnicity, culture, race, religion, and language have divided states into separate political entities as much as history, physical terrain, political fiat, or conquest, resulting in sometimes arbitrary and imposed boundaries. All of these factors have contributed to a wide array of boundary, borderland, and territorial disagreements that vary in intensity from unresolved or dormant to outright war. Territorial disputes may evolve from historical and/or cultural animosities, or they may be brought on by resource competition. Ethnic clashes continue to be responsible for territorial fragmentation around the world. Undemarcated, indefinite, porous, and unmanaged boundaries encourage illegal cross-border activities, uncontrolled migration, and political confrontation over boundary allocations. Other sources of contention include the use of water and mineral (especially petroleum) resources, fisheries, dams, and nuclear power plants. Many islands or island groups are also disputed, including those at sea and in streams. Nonetheless, many nations are actively cooperating to clarify, delineate, and demarcate their international borders. The tragic aspect of international discord is the impact on the sustenance and welfare of populations caught in the conflict. It is frequently left to members of the world community to cope with enormous refugee situations, and the resultant hunger, disease, and impoverishment that they create.
Economic aid - recipient $120 million (2001) (2001) official development assistance (ODA) $50 billion
Economy - overview Ecuador has substantial oil resources and rich agricultural areas. Because the country exports primary products such as oil, bananas, and shrimp, fluctuations in world market prices can have a substantial domestic impact. Ecuador joined the World Trade Organization in 1996, but has failed to comply with many of its accession commitments. The aftermath of El Nino and depressed oil market of 1997-98 drove Ecuador's economy into a free-fall in 1999. The beginning of 1999 saw the banking sector collapse, which helped precipitate an unprecedented default on external loans later that year. Continued economic instability drove a 70% depreciation of the currency throughout 1999, which forced a desperate government to "dollarize" the currency regime in 2000. The move stabilized the currency, but did not stave off the ouster of the government. Gustavo NOBOA, who assumed the presidency in January 2000, has managed to pass substantial economic reforms and mend relations with international financial institutions. Ecuador completed its first standby agreement since 1986 when the IMF Board approved a 10 December 2001 disbursement of $96 million, the final installment of a $300 million standby credit agreement. Growth in global output (gross world product, GWP) fell from 4.8% in 2000 to 2.2% in 2001 and 2.7% in 2002. The causes: sluggishness in the US economy (21% of GWP) and in the 15 EU economies (19% of GWP); continued stagnation in the Japanese economy (7.2% of GWP); and spillover effects in the less developed regions of the world. China, the second-largest economy in the world (12% of GWP), proved an exception, continuing its rapid annual growth, officially announced as 8% but estimated by many observers as perhaps two percentage points lower. Russia (2.6% of GWP), with 4% growth, continued to make uneven progress, its GDP per capita still only one-third that of the leading industrial nations. The other 14 successor nations of the USSR and the other old Warsaw Pact nations again experienced widely divergent growth rates; the three Baltic nations continued as strong performers, in the 5% range of growth. The developing nations also varied in their growth results, with many countries facing population increases that erode gains in output. Externally, the nation-state, as a bedrock economic-political institution, is steadily losing control over international flows of people, goods, funds, and technology. Internally, the central government often finds its control over resources slipping as separatist regional movements - typically based on ethnicity - gain momentum, e.g., in many of the successor states of the former Soviet Union, in the former Yugoslavia, in India, in Indonesia, and in Canada. Externally, the central government is losing decision-making powers to international bodies. In Western Europe, governments face the difficult political problem of channeling resources away from welfare programs in order to increase investment and strengthen incentives to seek employment. The addition of 80 million people each year to an already overcrowded globe is exacerbating the problems of pollution, desertification, underemployment, epidemics, and famine. Because of their own internal problems and priorities, the industrialized countries devote insufficient resources to deal effectively with the poorer areas of the world, which, at least from the economic point of view, are becoming further marginalized. The introduction of the euro as the common currency of much of Western Europe in January 1999, while paving the way for an integrated economic powerhouse, poses economic risks because of varying levels of income and cultural and political differences among the participating nations. The terrorist attacks on the US on 11 September 2001 accentuate a further growing risk to global prosperity, illustrated, for example, by the reallocation of resources away from investment to anti-terrorist programs. The opening of war in March 2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq added new uncertainties to global economic prospects. (For specific economic developments in each country of the world in 2002, see the individual country entries.)
Electricity - consumption 9.667 billion kWh (2000) 13.93 trillion kWh (2001 est.)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2000) -
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2000) -
Electricity - production 10.395 billion kWh (2000) 14.85 trillion kWh (2001 est.)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 25%


hydro: 75%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
fossil fuel: NA%


hydro: NA%


nuclear: NA%


other: NA%
Elevation extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: Chimborazo 6,267 m
lowest point: Bentley Subglacial Trench -2,540 m


note: in the oceanic realm, Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench is the lowest point, lying -10,924 m below the surface of the Pacific Ocean


highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.)
Environment - current issues deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution; pollution from oil production wastes in ecologically sensitive areas of the Galapagos Islands large areas subject to overpopulation, industrial disasters, pollution (air, water, acid rain, toxic substances), loss of vegetation (overgrazing, deforestation, desertification), loss of wildlife, soil degradation, soil depletion, erosion
Environment - international agreements party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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Ethnic groups mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 65%, Amerindian 25%, Spanish and others 7%, black 3% -
Exchange rates sucres per US dollar - 25,000.0 (January 2002), 25,000.0 (2001), 24,988.4 (2000), 11,786.8 (1999), 5,446.6 (1998), 3,988.3 (1997)


note: on 13 March 2000, the National Congress approved a new exchange system whereby the US dollar was adopted as the main legal tender in Ecuador for all purposes; on 20 March 2000, the Central Bank of Ecuador started to exchange sucres for US dollars at a fixed rate of 25,000 sucres per US dollar; since 30 April 2000, all transactions are denominated in US dollars
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Executive branch chief of state: President Lucio GUTIERREZ (since 15 January 2003); Vice President Alfredo PALACIO (since 15 January 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Lucio GUTIERREZ (since 15 January 2003); Vice President Alfredo PALACIO (since 15 January 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president


elections: the president and vice president are elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year term (no reelection); election last held 20 October 2002; runoff election held 24 November 2002 (next to be held NA October 2006)


election results: results of the 24 November 2002 runoff election - Lucio GUTIERREZ elected president; percent of vote - Lucio GUTIERREZ 54.3%; Alvaro NOBOA 45.7%
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Exports $4.8 billion (2001 est.) 703.9 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Exports - commodities petroleum, bananas, shrimp, coffee, cocoa, cut flowers, fish the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services
Exports - partners US 38%, Peru 6%, Chile 5%, Colombia 5%, Italy 3% (2000) US 17.4%, Germany 7.6%, UK 5.4%, France 5.1%, Japan 4.8%, China 4% (2002)
Fiscal year calendar year -
Flag description 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 which is shorter and does not bear a coat of arms -
GDP purchasing power parity - $39.6 billion (2001 est.) GWP (gross world product) - purchasing power parity - $49 trillion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 11%


industry: 25%


services: 64% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 4%


industry: 32%


services: 64% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $3,000 (2001 est.) purchasing power parity - $7,900 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 4.3% (2001 est.) 2.7% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates 2 00 S, 77 30 W -
Geography - note Cotopaxi in Andes is highest active volcano in world the world is now thought to be about 4.55 billion years old, just about one-third of the 13-billion-year age estimated for the universe
Heliports 1 (2002) -
Highways total: 43,197 km


paved: 8,165 km


unpaved: 35,032 km (2001)
total: NA km


paved: NA km


unpaved: NA km
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 2%


highest 10%: 34% (1995) (1995)
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs significant transit country for cocaine originating in Colombia and Peru; importer of precursor chemicals used in production of illicit narcotics; dollarization may raise the volume of money-laundering activity, especially along the border with Colombia; increased activity on the northern frontier by trafficking groups and Colombian insurgents cocaine: worldwide, coca is grown on an estimated 205,450 hectares - almost exclusively in South America with 70% in Colombia; potential cocaine production during 2002 is estimated at 938 metric tons (or 1,200 metric tons of export quality cocaine at an average of 78% purity); coca eradication programs continue in Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru, and 292 metric tons of export quality cocaine are documented to have been seized in 2002; consumption of export quality cocaine is estimated to have been 875 metric tons


opiates: cultivation of opium poppy occurred on an estimated 141,213 hectares in 2002 and potentially produced 2,183 metric tons of opium - which conceivably could be converted to the equivalent of 238 metric tons of pure heroin; opium eradication programs have been undertaken in Afghanistan, Burma, Colombia, Mexico, Pakistan, Thailand, and Vietnam, and the annual average for opiates seized worldwide over the past five years (1998-2002) has been 45 metric tons of pure heroin equivalent; estimates for average annual consumption over this time period are 315 metric tons pure heroin equivalent
Imports $4.8 billion (2001 est.) 697.5 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, chemicals, raw materials, fuels; consumer goods the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services
Imports - partners US 25%, Colombia 13%, Japan 8%, Venezuela 8%, Brazil 4% (2000) US 11.2%, Germany 9.2%, China 7%, Japan 6.8%, France 4.7%, UK 4% (2002)
Independence 24 May 1822 (from Spain) -
Industrial production growth rate 5.1% (2001 est.) 3% (2002 est.)
Industries petroleum, food processing, textiles, metal work, paper products, wood products, chemicals, plastics, fishing, lumber dominated by the onrush of technology, especially in computers, robotics, telecommunications, and medicines and medical equipment; most of these advances take place in OECD nations; only a small portion of non-OECD countries have succeeded in rapidly adjusting to these technological forces; the accelerated development of new industrial (and agricultural) technology is complicating already grim environmental problems
Infant mortality rate 33.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) total: 51.38 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 53.81 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 48.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 22% (2001 est.) developed countries 1% to 4% typically; developing countries 5% to 60% typically; national inflation rates vary widely in individual cases, from declining prices in Japan to hyperinflation in several Third World countries
International organization participation CAN, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO -
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 31 (2001) 10,350 (2000 est.)
Irrigated land 8,650 sq km (1998 est.) 2,714,320 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (new justices are elected by the full Supreme Court) -
Labor force 3.7 million (urban) NA
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (2001 est.) agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%
Land boundaries total: 2,010 km


border countries: Colombia 590 km, Peru 1,420 km
the land boundaries in the world total 250,472 km (not counting shared boundaries twice)
Land use arable land: 5.69%


permanent crops: 5.15%


other: 89.16% (1998 est.)
arable land: 10.58%


permanent crops: 1%


other: 88.42% (1998 est.)
Languages Spanish (official), Amerindian languages (especially Quechua) Chinese, Mandarin 14.37%, Hindi 6.02%, English 5.61%, Spanish 5.59%, Bengali 3.4%, Portuguese 2.63%, Russian 2.75%, Japanese 2.06%, German, Standard 1.64%, Korean 1.28%, French 1.27% (2000 est.)


note: percents are for "first language" speakers only
Legal system based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction all members of the UN plus Switzerland are parties to the statute that established the International Court of Justice (ICJ) or World Court
Legislative branch unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (123 seats; 20 members are popularly elected at-large nationally to serve four-year terms; 103 members are popularly elected by province to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 31 May 1998 (next to be held 20 October 2002)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - DP 32, PSC 27, PRE 24, ID 18, P-NP 9, FRA 5, PCE 3, MPD 2, CFP 1; note - defections by members of National Congress are commonplace, resulting in frequent changes in the numbers of seats held by the various parties
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Life expectancy at birth total population: 71.61 years


male: 68.79 years


female: 74.57 years (2002 est.)
total population: 63.95 years


male: 62 years


female: 70.23 years (2003 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 90.1%


male: 92%


female: 88.2% (1995 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 77%


male: 83%


female: 71% (1995 est.)
Location Western South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean at the Equator, between Colombia and Peru -
Map references South America Physical Map of the World, Political Map of the World, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims continental shelf: claims continental shelf between mainland and Galapagos Islands


territorial sea: 200 NM
a variety of situations exist, but in general, most countries make the following claims: contiguous zone - 24 NM; continental shelf - 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation, or 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin; exclusive fishing zone - 200 NM; exclusive economic zone - 200 NM; territorial sea - 12 NM; boundary situations with neighboring states prevent many countries from extending their fishing or economic zones to a full 200 NM; 43 nations and other areas that are landlocked include Afghanistan, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Czech Republic, Ethiopia, Holy See (Vatican City), Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malawi, Mali, Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Paraguay, Rwanda, San Marino, Slovakia, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tajikistan, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, West Bank, Zambia, Zimbabwe; two of these, Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan, are doubly landlocked
Merchant marine total: 33 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 239,876 GRT/393,680 DWT


ships by type: cargo 2, chemical tanker 3, liquefied gas 1, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 23, specialized tanker 1


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Chile 1, Greece 1 (2002 est.)
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Military branches Army, Navy (including Marines), Air Force, National Police -
Military expenditures - dollar figure $720 million (FY98) aggregate real expenditure on arms worldwide in 1999 remained at approximately the 1998 level, about three-quarters of a trillion dollars (1999 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 3.4% (FY98) roughly 2% of gross world product (1999 est.)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 3,468,678 (2002 est.) -
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 2,337,944 (2002 est.) -
Military manpower - military age 20 years of age (2002 est.) -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 132,978 (2002 est.) -
National holiday Independence Day (independence of Quito), 10 August (1809) -
Nationality noun: Ecuadorian(s)


adjective: Ecuadorian
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Natural hazards frequent earthquakes, landslides, volcanic activity; floods; periodic droughts large areas subject to severe weather (tropical cyclones), natural disasters (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions)
Natural resources petroleum, fish, timber, hydropower the rapid depletion of nonrenewable mineral resources, the depletion of forest areas and wetlands, the extinction of animal and plant species, and the deterioration in air and water quality (especially in Eastern Europe, the former USSR, and China) pose serious long-term problems that governments and peoples are only beginning to address
Net migration rate -0.53 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) -
Pipelines crude oil 800 km; petroleum products 1,358 km -
Political parties and leaders Concentration of Popular Forces or CFP [Averroes BUCARAM]; Democratic Left or ID [Rodrigo BORJA Cevallos]; Ecuadorian Conservative Party or PCE [Jacinto JIJON Y CAMANO]; Independent National Movement or MIN [Eliseo AZUERO]; Pachakutik-New Country or P-NP [Miguel LLUCO]; Popular Democracy or DP [Dr. Juan Manuel FUERTES]; Popular Democratic Movement or MPD [Gustavo TERAN Acosta]; Radical Alfarista Front or FRA [Fabian ALARCON, director]; Roldosist Party or PRE [Abdala BUCARAM Ortiz, director]; Social Christian Party or PSC [Pascual DEL CIOPPO] -
Political pressure groups and leaders Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador or CONAIE [Leonidas IZA, president]; Coordinator of Social Movements or CMS [F. Napoleon SANTOS]; Federation of Indigenous Evangelists of Ecuador or FEINE [Marco MURILLO, president]; National Federation of Indigenous Afro-Ecuatorianos and Peasants or FENOCIN [Pedro DE LA CRUZ, president]; Popular Front or FP [Luis VILLACIS] -
Population 13,447,494 (July 2002 est.) 6,302,309,691 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line 70% (2001 est.) -
Population growth rate 1.96% (2002 est.) 1.17% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors Esmeraldas, Guayaquil, La Libertad, Manta, Puerto Bolivar, San Lorenzo Chiba, Houston, Kawasaki, Kobe, Marseille, Mina' al Ahmadi (Kuwait), New Orleans, New York, Rotterdam, Yokohama
Radio broadcast stations AM 392, FM 35, shortwave 29 (2001) AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
Radios 5 million (2001) -
Railways total: 965 km


narrow gauge: 965 km 1.067-m gauge (2000 est.)
total: 1,122,650 km includes about 190,000 to 195,000 km of electrified routes of which 147,760 km are in Europe, 24,509 km in the Far East, 11,050 km in Africa, 4,223 km in South America, and 4,160 km in North America; note - fastest speed in daily service is 300 km/hr attained by France's Societe Nationale des Chemins-de-Fer Francais (SNCF) Le Train a Grande Vitesse (TGV) - Atlantique line


broad gauge: 251,153 km


standard gauge: 710,754 km


narrow gauge: 239,430 km
Religions Roman Catholic 95% Christians 32.79% (of which Roman Catholics 17.33%, Protestants 5.62%, Orthodox 3.51%, Anglicans 1.31%), Muslims 19.6%, Hindus 13.31%, Buddhists 5.88%, Sikhs 0.38%, Jews 0.24%, other religions 12.83%, non-religious 12.53%, atheists 2.44% (2001 est.)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female


total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female


total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal, compulsory for literate persons ages 18-65, optional for other eligible voters -
Telephone system general assessment: generally elementary but being expanded


domestic: facilities generally inadequate and unreliable


international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
general assessment: NA


domestic: NA


international: NA
Telephones - main lines in use 1,115,272 (1999) NA
Telephones - mobile cellular 384,000 (1999) NA
Television broadcast stations 7 (plus 14 repeaters) (2001) NA
Terrain coastal plain (costa), inter-Andean central highlands (sierra), and flat to rolling eastern jungle (oriente) the greatest ocean depth is the Mariana Trench at 10,924 m in the Pacific Ocean
Total fertility rate 3.05 children born/woman (2002 est.) 2.65 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate 14%; note - widespread underemployment (2001 est.) 30% combined unemployment and underemployment in many non-industrialized countries; developed countries typically 4%-12% unemployment
Waterways 1,500 km -
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