Ecuador (2008) | Macau (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | 24 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, Santa Elena, Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas, Sucumbios, Tungurahua, Zamora-Chinchipe | none (special administrative region of China) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 32.6% (male 2,282,319/female 2,196,685)
15-64 years: 62.3% (male 4,271,848/female 4,301,149) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 330,302/female 373,377) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 18% (male 41,460; female 38,595)
15-64 years: 74.2% (male 157,629; female 172,810) 65 years and over: 7.8% (male 14,380; female 20,412) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coffee, cocoa, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca), plantains, sugarcane; cattle, sheep, pigs, beef, pork, dairy products; balsa wood; fish, shrimp | vegetables, livestock |
Airports | 406 (2007) | 1 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 104
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 26 under 914 m: 54 (2007) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 302
914 to 1,523 m: 34 under 914 m: 268 (2007) |
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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: 25.4 sq km
land: 25.4 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Nevada | about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | What is now Ecuador formed part of the northern Inca Empire until the Spanish conquest in 1533. Quito became a seat of Spanish colonial government in 1563 and part of the Viceroyalty of New Granada in 1717. The territories of the Viceroyalty - New Granada (Colombia), Venezuela, and Quito - gained their independence between 1819 and 1822 and formed a federation known as Gran Colombia. When Quito withdrew in 1830, the traditional name was changed in favor of the "Republic of the Equator." 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. Although Ecuador marked 25 years of civilian governance in 2004, the period has been marred by political instability. Protests in Quito have contributed to the mid-term ouster of Ecuador's last three democratically elected Presidents. | Colonized by the Portuguese in the 16th century, Macau was the first European settlement in the Far East. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and Portugal on 13 April 1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 20 December 1999. China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be practiced in Macau, and that Macau will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years. |
Birth rate | 21.91 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 8.04 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $13.1 billion
expenditures: planned $11.3 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues: $1.9 billion
expenditures: $1.68 billion, including capital expenditures of $194 million (2002) |
Capital | name: Quito
geographic coordinates: 0 13 S, 78 30 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
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Climate | tropical along coast, becoming cooler inland at higher elevations; tropical in Amazonian jungle lowlands | subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers |
Coastline | 2,237 km | 41 km |
Constitution | 10 August 1998 | Basic Law, approved in March 1993 by China's National People's Congress, is Macau's "mini-constitution" |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Ecuador
conventional short form: Ecuador local long form: Republica del Ecuador local short form: Ecuador |
conventional long form: Macau Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Macau local long form: Aomen Tebie Xingzhengqu (Chinese); Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau (Portuguese) local short form: Aomen (Chinese); Macau (Portuguese) |
Currency | - | pataca (MOP) |
Death rate | 4.21 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 4.23 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $17.56 billion (31 October 2007) | $121 million (2001 est.) |
Dependency status | - | special administrative region of China |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Linda L. JEWELL
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 |
the US has no offices in Macau; US interests are monitored by the US Consulate General in Hong Kong |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Luis Benigno GALLEGOS Chiriboga
chancery: 2535 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-7200 FAX: [1] (202) 667-3482 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Jersey City (New Jersey), Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, Washington, DC |
none (special administrative region of China) |
Disputes - international | organized illegal narcotics operations in Colombia penetrate across Ecuador's shared border, which thousands of Colombians also cross to escape the violence in their home country | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $209.5 million (2005) | NA (1997) |
Economy - overview | Ecuador is substantially dependent on its petroleum resources, which have accounted for more than half of the country's export earnings and one-fourth of public sector revenues in recent years. In 1999/2000, Ecuador suffered a severe economic crisis, with GDP contracted by more than 6%, with a significant increase in poverty. The banking system also collapsed, and Ecuador defaulted on its external debt later that year. In March 2000, Congress approved a series of structural reforms that also provided for the adoption of the US dollar as legal tender. Dollarization stabilized the economy, and positive growth returned in the years that followed, helped by high oil prices, remittances, and increased non-traditional exports. From 2002-2006 the economy grew 5.5%, the highest five-year average in 25 years. The poverty rate declined but remained high at 38% in 2006. In 2006 the government of Alfredo PALACIO (2005-07) seized the assets of Occidental Petroleum for alleged contract violations and imposed a windfall revenue tax on foreign oil companies, leading to the suspension of free trade negotiations with the US. These measures, combined with chronic underinvestment in the state oil company, Petroecuador, led to a drop in petroleum production in 2007. PALACIO's successor, Rafael CORREA, raised the specter of debt default - but Ecuador has paid its debt on time. He also decreed a higher windfall revenue tax on private oil companies, then sought to renegotiate their contracts to overcome the debilitating effect of the tax. This generated economic uncertainty; private investment has dropped and economic growth has slowed significantly. | Macau's well-to-do economy has remained one of the most open in the world since its reversion to China in 1999. The territory's net exports of goods and services account for roughly 41% of GDP with tourism and apparel exports as the mainstays. Although the territory was hit hard by the 1998 Asian financial crisis and the global downturn in 2001, its economy grew 9.5% in 2002. A rapid rise in the number of mainland visitors because of China's easing of restrictions on travel drove the recovery. The budget also returned to surplus in 2002 because of the surge in visitors from China and a hike in taxes on gambling profits, which generated about 70% of government revenue. The liberalization of Macao's gambling monopoly contributes to GDP growth, as the three companies awarded gambling licenses have pledged to invest $2.2 billion in the territory. Much of Macau's textile industry may move to the mainland as the Multi-Fiber Agreement is phased out. The territory may have to rely more on gambling and trade-related services to generate growth. The government estimated GDP growth at 4% in 2003 with the drop in large measure due to concerns over the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), but private sector analysts think the figure may have been higher because of the continuing boom in tourism. |
Electricity - consumption | 8.855 billion kWh (2005) | 1.688 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 16 million kWh (2005) | 1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 1.723 billion kWh (2005) | 193 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 12.94 billion kWh (2005) | 1.611 billion kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Chimborazo 6,267 m |
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Coloane Alto 172.4 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution; pollution from oil production wastes in ecologically sensitive areas of the Amazon Basin and Galapagos Islands | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, 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% | Chinese 95%, Macanese (mixed Portuguese and Asian ancestry), Portuguese, other |
Exchange rates | 1 the US dollar is used; the sucre was eliminated in 2000 | patacas per US dollar - 8.0212 (2003), 8.0334 (2002), 8.0335 (2001), 8.0259 (2000), 7.9919 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Rafael CORREA Delgado (since 15 January 2007); Vice President Lenin MORENO Garces (since 15 January 2007); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Rafael CORREA Delgado (since 15 January 2007); Vice President Lenin MORENO Garces (since 15 January 2007) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: the president and vice president are elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a four-year term (may not serve consecutive terms); election last held 15 October 2006 with a runoff election on 26 November 2006 (next to be held in October 2010) election results: Rafael CORREA Delgado elected president; percent of vote - Rafael CORREA Delgado 56.7%; Alvaro NOBOA 43.3% |
chief of state: President of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive Edmund HO Hau-wah (since 20 December 1999) cabinet: Executive Council consists of all one government secretary, four legislators, four businessmen, and one pro-Beijing unionist elections: chief executive chosen by a 300-member selection committee for up to two five-year terms election results: Edmund HO Hau-wah reelected on 29 August 2004; received 296 votes in Election Committee out of 300 possible; 3 members submitted blank ballots; 1 member was absent |
Exports | 420,600 bbl/day (2004 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, bananas, cut flowers, shrimp, cacao, coffee, hemp, wood, fish | clothing, textiles, footwear, cement, machines, and parts |
Exports - partners | US 53.6%, Peru 8.2%, Colombia 5.6%, Chile 4.4% (2006) | US 49.4%, China 14.1%, Germany 8.1%, Hong Kong 6.7%, UK 4.5% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar 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 | light green with a lotus flower above a stylized bridge and water in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: one large in center of arc and four smaller |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $9.1 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 10%
industry: 35% services: 54% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 12% services: 87% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $19,400 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.6% (2007 est.) | 4% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 S, 77 30 W | 22 10 N, 113 33 E |
Geography - note | Cotopaxi in Andes is highest active volcano in world | essentially urban; one causeway and two bridges connect the two islands of Coloane and Taipa to the peninsula on mainland |
Heliports | 1 (2007) | - |
Highways | - | total: 271 km
paved: 271 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 35% note: data for urban households only (October 2006) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | significant transit country for cocaine originating in Colombia and Peru, with over half of the US-bound cocaine passing through Ecuadorian Pacific waters; importer of precursor chemicals used in production of illicit narcotics; attractive location for cash-placement by drug traffickers laundering money because of dollarization and weak anti-money-laundering regime; increased activity on the northern frontier by trafficking groups and Colombian insurgents | - |
Imports | 44,680 bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | industrial materials, fuels and lubricants, nondurable consumer goods | clothing, textiles, yarn, foodstuffs, fuel, automobiles, capital goods |
Imports - partners | US 23.1%, Colombia 13.3%, Brazil 7.3%, Panama 4% (2006) | China 43%, Hong Kong 12.7%, Japan 8.7%, Taiwan 5.6% (2003) |
Independence | 24 May 1822 (from Spain) | none (special administrative region of China) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1.4% (2007 est.) | NA |
Industries | petroleum, food processing, textiles, wood products, chemicals | tourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics, footwear, toys |
Infant mortality rate | total: 22.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.5 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 4.39 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.59 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.3% (2007 est.) | -2.6% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | CAN, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | IMF, IMO (associate), Interpol (sub-bureau), ISO (correspondent), UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate), WTO |
Irrigated land | 8,650 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (according to the Constitution, new justices are elected by the full Supreme Court; in December 2004, however, Congress successfully replaced the entire court via a simple-majority resolution) | The Court of Final Appeal in the Macau Special Administrative Region |
Labor force | 4.55 million (urban) (2007 est.) | 214,000 (2002) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 8%
industry: 24% services: 68% (2001) |
manufacturing 20%, construction 7%, transport and communications 6%, wholesale and retail trade 15%, restaurants and hotels 12%, gambling 7%, public sector 8%, other services and agriculture 25% (2002 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,010 km
border countries: Colombia 590 km, Peru 1,420 km |
total: 0.34 km
regional border: China 0.34 km |
Land use | arable land: 5.71%
permanent crops: 4.81% other: 89.48% (2005) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% note: "green areas" represent 22.4% (2001) |
Languages | Spanish (official), Amerindian languages (especially Quechua) | Portuguese, Chinese (Cantonese) |
Legal system | based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Portuguese civil law system |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (100 seats; members are elected through a party-list proportional representation system to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 October 2006 (next to be held in October 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRIAN 28; PSP 24; PSC 13; ID 7; PRE 6; MUPP-NP 6; RED 5; UDC 5; other 6; note - defections by members of National Congress are commonplace, resulting in frequent changes in the numbers of seats held by the various parties; as of 29 November 2007, Congress is on indefinite recess |
unicameral Legislative Council or LEGCO (27 seats; 10 elected by popular vote, 10 by indirect vote, and sevem appointed by the chief executive; members serve four-year terms); number of legislators will increase to 29 from September 2005
elections: last held 23 September 2001 (next to be September 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by political bloc - Entertainment Industry 3, pro-democracy 2, pro-Beijing Labor Union 2, pro-Beijing Neighborhood Association 2, pro-business 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.62 years
male: 73.74 years female: 79.63 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 82.03 years
male: 79.2 years female: 84.99 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91% male: 92.3% female: 89.7% (2001 census) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 94.5% male: 97.2% female: 92% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean at the Equator, between Colombia and Peru | Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China |
Map references | South America | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 200 nm
continental shelf: 100 nm from 2,500 meter isobath |
not specified |
Merchant marine | total: 33 ships (1000 GRT or over) 190,931 GRT/306,280 DWT
by type: chemical tanker 1, liquefied gas 1, passenger 8, petroleum tanker 22, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 2 (Philippines 1, US 1) registered in other countries: 3 (China 1, Panama 2) (2007) |
none |
Military branches | Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry, Naval Aviation, Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Ecuatoriana, FAE) (2007) | responsibility for defense reverted to China on 20 December 1999; there are local police forces |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.8% (2006) | - |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 125,060 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 68,913 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day (independence of Quito), 10 August (1809) | National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 20 December 1999 is celebrated as Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day |
Nationality | noun: Ecuadorian(s)
adjective: Ecuadorian |
noun: Chinese
adjective: Chinese |
Natural hazards | frequent earthquakes, landslides, volcanic activity; floods; periodic droughts | typhoons |
Natural resources | petroleum, fish, timber, hydropower | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -2.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 4.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | extra heavy crude oil 578 km; gas 71 km; oil 1,389 km; refined products 1,185 km (2007) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Alianza PAIS Movement [Rafael Vicente CORREA Delgado]; Christian Democratic Union or UDC [Diego ORDONEZ Guerrero]; Concentration of Popular Forces or CFP; Democratic Left or ID [Andres PAEZ Benalcazar]; Ethical and Democratic Network or RED [Leon ROLDOS]; National Action Institutional Renewal Party or PRIAN [Alvaro NOBOA]; Pachakutik Plurinational Unity Movement - New Country or MUPP-NP [Gilberto TALAHUA]; Patriotic Society Party or PSP [Lucio GUTIERREZ Borbua]; Popular Democratic Movement or MPD [Ciro GUZMAN Aldaz]; Roldosist Party or PRE [Abdala BUCARAM Ortiz, director]; Social Christian Party or PSC [Pascual DEL CIOPPO]; Socialist Party - Broad Front or PS-FA [Gustavo AYALA Cruz] | Some civic associations operate as de facto political parties: Electoral Union; Pro-Macao and Flower of Friendship and Development of Macao; Associacao para a Defesa dos Interesses de Macao; Centro Democratico de Macao; Grupo Independente de Macao; Macau Economic Promotion Association; Progress Promotion Union; Development Union |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador or CONAIE [Luis MACAS, 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] | Catholic Church [LAI Hung-sing, bishop]; Macau Society of Tourism and Entertainment or STDM [Stanley HO, managing director]; Union for Democracy Development [Antonio NG Kuok-cheong, leader] |
Population | 13,755,680 (July 2007 est.) | 445,286 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 38.3% (2006) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.554% (2007 est.) | 0.87% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Macau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 392, FM 35, shortwave 29 (2001) | AM 0, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 966 km
narrow gauge: 966 km 1.067-m gauge (2006) |
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Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, other 5% | Buddhist 50%, Roman Catholic 15%, none and other 35% (1997 est.) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.039 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.993 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.885 male(s)/female total population: 1.002 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal, compulsory for literate persons ages 18-65, optional for other eligible voters | direct election 18 years of age, universal for permanent residents living in Macau for the past seven years; indirect election limited to organizations registered as "corporate voters" (257 are currently registered) and a 300-member Election Committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies |
Telephone system | general assessment: generally elementary but being expanded
domestic: fixed-line services provided by three state-owned enterprises; plans to transfer the state-owned operators to private ownership have repeatedly failed; fixed-line density stands at about 13 per 100 persons; mobile cellular use has surged and has a subscribership of nearly 65 per 100 persons international: country code - 593; landing point for the PAN-AM submarine telecommunications cable that provides links to the west coast of South America, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, and extending onward to Aruba and the US Virgin Islands in the Caribbean; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007) |
general assessment: fairly modern communication facilities maintained for domestic and international services
domestic: NA international: country code - 853; HF radiotelephone communication facility; access to international communications carriers provided via Hong Kong and China; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.754 million (2006) | 174,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 8.485 million (2006) | 364,000 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (plus 14 repeaters) (2000) | 1 (2003) |
Terrain | coastal plain (costa), inter-Andean central highlands (sierra), and flat to rolling eastern jungle (oriente) | generally flat |
Total fertility rate | 2.63 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 0.93 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.8% (2007 est.) | 6.3% (2003) |
Waterways | 1,500 km (most inaccessible) (2006) | - |