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Ecuador
SOUTH AMERICA
FACTFILE
OFFICIAL NAME: Republic of Ecuador
DATE OF FORMATION: 1830
CAPITAL: Quito
POPULATION: 13.6 million
TOTAL AREA: 109,483 sq. miles
(283,560 sq. km)
DENSITY: 127 people per sq. mile
LANGUAGES: Spanish*, Quechua, other
Amerindian languages
RELIGIONS: Roman Catholic 93%; Protestant,
Jewish, and other 7%
ETHNIC MIX: Mestizo 55%, Amerindian 25%,
White 10%, Black 10%
GOVERNMENT: Presidential system
CURRENCY: US dollar = 100 cents
Once part of the Inca heartland, Ecuador lies on the
western coast of South America. Its territory includes the
fascinating Galápagos Islands, 610 miles (970 km) to the west.
GEOGRAPHY
Broad coastal plain, inter-Andean
central highlands, dense jungle in
upper Amazon basin.
CLIMATE
The climate is hot and moist on
the coast, cool in the Andes, and hot
equatorial in the Amazon basin.
PEOPLE & SOCIETY
Most people are of Amerindian–
Spanish extraction (mestizo). Black
communities exist on the coast. The
strong and largely unified Amerindian
movement leads the pressure for social
reform; one in eight people live in
extreme poverty. Recent left-wing
policies have given greater rights to
women, the poor, and Amerindians.
THE ECONOMY
Oil provides half of export
earnings. World’s biggest banana
exporter. US dollar offers stability,
but less control. Defaulted on debt in
2008, prioritizing social spending.
INSIGHT: Darwin's study on the
Galápagos Islands in 1856 played a
major part in his theory of evolution
3000m/9843ft
2000m/6562ft4000m/13124ft1000m/3281ft
500m/1640ft
200m/656ft
Sea Level100 km100 miles00Colombia
PERUGulf
of
GuayaquilEquatorPACIFIC
OCEANAndesNapoSan(^) Mi
guel
Guayaquil
Manta
Portoviejo
Cuenca
Ambato
Machala
Milagro
Riobamba
Santo Domingo
de los Colorados
Ibarra
Loja
Esmeraldas
QUITO