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By David Morrill Angel Salvador Ortega stowed away on a banana boat out of Puerto Bolivar in 1994 and was on his way, he hoped, to being an illegal alien in the U.S. when his fortunes took a dramatic turn. Life was hard in his native Oña, a town of 3,000, set in a dry...
By Sylvan Hardy Although it appears that the final obstacles for Cuenca’s new electric tram system have been overcome, controversy surrounding the project continues. As one city transportation official put it, “The train has left the station, but there are still some...
By Ruxandra Guidi Last April, Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa took his weekly radio show "Enlace Cuidadano" on the road to the Italian city of Genoa. He wasn't there for the salami. Instead he implored Genoa's Ecuadorean expatriate population - the largest in Italy...
The city has agreed to the demands of the Cuenca Civic Collective to reroute the tram outside of the historic district. City transportation director Gerard Fernandez said on Saturday that the decision was made to move the tram lines north to Av. Las Amercas from the...
Ecuador has halted environmental cooperation deals with Germany worth some 43 million euros to the Latin American country after German lawmakers tried to visit an Amazon rainforest recently opened for oil production, the foreign minister said on Friday. President...
Bar owners in Cuenca’s historic district are asking for a change to a 30-year-old ordinance that has been used to shut down eight bars and night clubs. Last week's closures were ordered under an ordinance adopted in 1985 that stipulates that bars and night clubs...
By Nathan Vardi GMO Trust, the Boston investment company co-founded by prominent investor Jeremy Grantham, has sued the Republic of Ecuador in Manhattan’s federal court over the default of Ecuador’s foreign bonds in 2008, setting the stage for a second big U.S. court...
By Eduardo Porter Few people are as intensely worried about the slowing Chinese economy as Latin Americans. Not only does China buy nearly 40 percent of Chile’s copper, but its once-insatiable demand helped push copper prices from $1 to $4 a pound. Meanwhile, Beijing...
Ecuador’s Central Bank began opening customer accounts on Christmas Eve for its new electronic money transaction system. The bank said that that the system will begin offering banking services, via cell phone, in mid-February and will begin accepting payment for...
Telecom giants Claro and DirecTV are complaining about new rules that will take a bite out of their income. Ecuador’s National Assembly has passed and sent to President Rafael Correa a telecommunications act that would tax income based on market share and would change...
Ecuador’s appliance manufacturers say they have been “ambushed” by provision in new legislation that would levy a 100% tax on gas stoves and hot water heaters. The tax was added shortly before the final vote on the Production Incentives and Tax Fraud Prevention law....
Ecuador’s National Police statistics show that crime in Azuay Province declined more than 14% in 2014 with a similar drop for the city of Cuenca. Azuay home burglaries dropped 23% while crimes against persons were down by 26%. The number of murders also declined, from...
Cuenca’s transportation office says it will have professional archeologists on site when tram construction begins in the historic district in January. In announcing steps it will take to reduce the impact on the district, Gerard Fernandez, transportation director,...
Under growing budgetary pressure, Ecuador’s National Assembly is proposing a 100% tax on the purchase of gas-burning appliances, including stoves and hot water heaters. The tax is part of legislation intended to produce $200 million in income for the government. The...
President Rafael Correa repeated on Tuesday his criticism of Ecuador’s decision to use the U.S. dollar as its currency. His comments come as oil prices, which are based on the dollar, are approaching five-year lows. Correa said that if Ecuador had its own currency or...
By Andrew Ross At the point where the lazy, blackwater Cuyabeno runs into the faster currents of the Aguarico, carrying a chill from their Andean source, sandbars stretch out from the verdant banks. These are the Playas de Cuyabeno, and the name has attached itself to...
Ecuador’s Ministry of Economic and Social Inclusion (MIES) said Wednesday that its campaign 'Give Dignity' has been reduced street begging in Ecuador by 80% since 2008. According to Cecilia Tamayo, MIES deputy director, the campaign has focused on child begging, which...
By Frances Robles The Obama administration overturned a ban preventing a wealthy, politically connected Ecuadorean woman from entering the United States after her family gave tens of thousands of dollars to Democratic campaigns, according to finance records and...
According to several constructions workers at the Coca Codo Sinclair hydro-electric plant east of Quito, employees have been warned by project managers not to discuss last weekend’s deadly cave-in on the site with the media. The 1,500 megawatt plant is scheduled to...
By Kate Kilpatrick Latin America’s top officials appeared unanimous in their celebration Wednesday of a new chapter in United States-Cuba relations, which will witness the renewal of diplomatic ties and the easing of sanctions that have helped raze the Cuban economy....
