Anti-government protest set for Jan. 19; PCR test waived for incoming U.S. air travelers; Electricity rates won’t increase; Some good economic news

Lunes, 10/1/2022

Hola, Todos –

Actividades –

From el viernes, 7/1/2022

8 cuerpos humanos reales decodifican el atlas de la anatomía (8 real human bodies decode the atlas of anatomy) – The “Cuerpos Humanos Reales, Gira Ecuador 2021/2022” exhibit which is similar to the Body Worlds exhibits is at the Centro de Convenciones at the Mall del Río until 6/2/22. Hours are lunes a viernes from 12-20:00, sábados from 12-21:00, and domingos from 12-20:00. Entrance fee is $5.00 for adults, $3.00 for children and $2.50 for seniors. A vaccine certificate card is needed to enter, and the use of a mask is obligatory.
The bodies are plastinated to preserve them, and each of the 7 rooms in the exhibit contains 8 bodies, 5 torsos and over a 100 organs to show the different systems in the human body. Healthy and diseased organs are contrasted to show, for example, the effect of smoking on lungs. The preservation process was developed by a German doctor, Gunther von Hagens, over 3 decades ago. Medical students will serve as guides through the exhibit.

Titular –

The national electric company announced that it won’t raise rates in 2022. It also defined the ways to pay power bills. (El Mercurio)

Initia pretemporada (Start of preseason) – As far as I can tell, the A league has signed 107 players so far, but this is sports so you’re on your own.

Cuenca –

Pruebas PCR (PCR tests) – The Ministerio de Salud Pública (MSP) announced that there will be an exception for presenting results from an RT-PCR test for residents returning to Ecuador on flights from the US who have not been able to get a PCR test. This measure will be in effect until 16/1/2022. But travelers must present their vaccine certificate. <So maybe a visit to the US won’t mean you’ll be stuck there indefinitely because you can’t get a PCR test or they can’t give you results in 72 hours.>

Citas para visas a los EE.UU. (Appointments for visas to the U.S.) – The US Embassy in Ecuador has resumed interviews for immigrant and non-immigrant visas which were suspended because of the pandemic. <I’m going to make a big assumption to save myself some work. And that is that you who are reading this don’t need this information.>

From el viernes, 7/1/2022 –

Expectativa por pedido de carnet o certificado en buses (Expectation for requesting cards or certificates on buses) – The Agencia National de Tránsito (ANT) is preparing a protocol for asking for vaccination cards or certificates on public transport which was to be approved or modified by the Comité de Operaciones de Emergencias (COE National) on Friday. The main part of the document calls for operators of interprovincial, intraprovincial, and tourist transport to ask for a vaccination card and cédula prior to the sale of the ticket and boarding the bus. People who work on the bus also have to have a card. If the passenger doesn’t have a card, the operator has to use the cédula number to verify if the passenger has a certificate in the MSP database. Operators who identify a passenger with Covid symptoms will make a necessary stop at a location closest to a health center and notify authorities. <I don’t think I’ve ever seen a proposal more guaranteed to fail in its application. Can you imagine trying to get all these cards from people boarding at a busy stop and staying on schedule? Some bus drivers can’t even drive a bus safely, let alone act as a gatekeeper. Their phrase for the day will be “Sigue no mas.”>

From el domingo, 9/1/2022 –

Hay nuevas medidas en el aeropuerto (New measures at the airport) – As of 6:00 el viernes, only one companion will be allowed into the airport to greet or say goodbye to passengers. Those companions must also present a vaccination card. Passengers over 16 entering Ecuador must show their vaccination card with at least 14 days since the final shot to enter and a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of embarcation. <Today’s paper has an item exempting passengers entering from the US from the PCR requirement. Sounds like the richest country in the world with the best health care in the world is the only one incapable of getting PCR tests and results on time to travelers.> Passengers showing symptoms need to report it by calling the MSP’s 171 number. All passengers entering Ecuador must report if they have or do not have symptoms suggestive of Covid to the MSP.

Sucesos –

Ladrones desactivan una cerca eléctrica (Thieves disable electric fence) – Thieves broke into a house on calle De los Columpios y av. Ricardo Durán in the south of Cuenca last jueves between 19-21:00. They got through different security devices including forcing the main gate and disconnecting the alarm system and electric fence. They broke a metal door to get into the house. <Seems like the best deterrent might be a pack of Rottweilers. Expensive to maintain, though.>

Nacional –

Organizaciones sociales ratifican protestas contra el Gobierno (Social organizations ratify protests against the government) – The Frente Popular of social and union organizations has ratified this coming 19/1 for a protest against Pres. Lasso’s neoliberal economic policies. It’s representative, Nélson Eraso, said that on el 11 & 12/1, there will also be protests in defense of the resources of IESS, but he didn’t provide details.

Buenas noticias (Good news) – The Government offered good news about the economy at the end of 2021. It reported that the reactivation of consumption, investment, and industrial activity was reflected in increased imports (40%) for primary materials (26%), consumer goods (26%), and capital (20%). By volume, non-oil exports (7%) led the growth, and highlighted tuna and fish (68%), mining (66%), and shrimp (18%). From enero to octubre, the value of exports grew by more than 30% including petroleum exports (70%) reflecting high prices, and almost 15% for non-petroleum exports. International reserves reached $7.898 billion, 33% more than in mayo, 2021.

Negocios –

No existirá aumento en el pliego tarifario de energía eléctrica (There will be no increase in the schedule for electric rates) – The Agencia de Regulación y Control de Energía y Recursos Naturales No Renovables issued an announcement that rates for electrical service in 2022 will be the same as in 2021. The increase in electrical bills reflects increased consumption during the confinement with teleworking, virtual classes, and people staying at home all the time. Currently, the Empresa Eléctrica Regional Centrosur is billing “a nivel de espejo” (at mirror level – not sure what that means – using past meter readings?) since it could not read the meters in the field. Clients who couldn’t pay their bills on time will not have their electricity cut off until agosto and can negotiate the debt to maintain service.

A resolution from the Ministerio de Economía y Finanzas said that payment for public services for amounts exceeding $76.00 should be made through a bank debit, electronic money transfer, by debit or credit card or whatever other electronic payment method is authorized by the Central Bank of Ecuador. For payments equal to or less than $76.00, payment can be made electronically or in cash. You can see what your bill is by contacting 136, centrosurEC on Facebook, @centrosur_ec on Twitter, at 0961203354 on WhatsApp, or servicios@centrosur.gob.ec. Subsidies will also be maintained for the Tarifa de la Dignidad, for clients who are disabled, elderly, and have energy efficient cooking and water heating.

And that’s all for today so hasta ? –

Jeanne