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Beginning this month, Ecuador’s supermarkets and other large retailers face new rules governing how they work with their supplies, even which suppliers they do business with. The country’s Superintendency of Market Control (SCPM) has delivered a Manual of Good...
One of the world’s largest orchid growers says Ecuador needs to do a better job promoting the industry and a Japanese orchid expert agrees. “All we lack is the government support to make Ecuador the top destination for orchids,” says José “Pepe” Portilla, manager...
Although a report by a UNESCO team assessing Cuenca’s historic district does not recommend major changes to the city's light rail system -- officially, Tranvía de los Cuatros Rios-- it has plenty to say about how the city should manage traffic in the historic...
Cuenca’s fourth annual Festival de Cine La Orquídea kicks off tomorrow morning at 11 with opening ceremonies at the Mall del Rio convention center. Guest of honor is award-winning Spanish director David Trueba and the Spanish actresses Carmen Maura, Victoria Abril and...
When happiness is studied, Latin America always manages to make it to the forefront. Last year, a survey by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, titled the 2013 World Happiness Report, found that Latin America made some major improvements in...
Monday's delivery of a report that may contain recommendations for the construction of Cuenca’s light rail system appeared to draw only limited interest from city officials. The 66-page report from a UNESCO team of experts was once considered a tool that would allow...
President Rafael Correa says that tax income continues to rise despite the fact that no new taxes have been added in three years. “This is the result of greater efficiency in collecting the taxes that are owed,” he said on Saturday. According to Correa, tax revenue...
Interpol has issued an international alert for nine Ecuadorian police officers convicted of extrajudicial killings in 2003. According to Interior Minister José Serrano, some of the suspects are living in the U.S. The case stems from a police assault on a Fybeca...
In an effort to stem a rising tide of smuggling across the Colombian and Peruvian borders, Ecuador customs officials have established new rules for items that travelers can bring into the country over land. International travelers entering Ecuador by land and air will...
National police have begun 24-hour surveillance of the La Merced neighborhood in the historic district. According to Azuay Province Governor Leonardo Berrezueta, the step is necessary to combat drug sales and thefts. The area of greatest concern, police say, is along...
Thousands of spectators will be treated to a fast-paced variety show of law enforcement skills and talents in Alejandro Serrano stadium beginning at 10 this morning. Event sponsors expect a crowd of 18,000 to attend demonstrations of crime fighting techniques as well...
Do you find yourself spending more time waiting for a taxi? Cuenca’s transportation office says it is receiving complaints from passengers about slow taxi response time, some claiming that a new Internet-based program called Easy Taxi is to blame. Easy Taxi allows...
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere Roberta Jacobson says that the U.S. may soon send Roberto and William Isaias back to Ecuador to face eight-year prison sentences. Jacobson was in Quito earlier this week to discuss a number of issues with...
Electronic money guidelines announced Ecuador’s Central Bank has set limits of $2,000 per month and $300 per day for transactions under its new electronic money system. For companies, the limit is $20,000 per month, but the amount can be extended with prior approval,...
National car sales show little growth Car dealers are blaming national tariffs and import quotas on continuing slow sales. In the first nine months of 2014, sales grew only 1.31%. The president of the Association of Automobile Companies, Diego Luna, says that growth...
A delegation calling itself the Cuenca Civic Collective is asking the country’s comptroller general to investigate the financial arrangements of the city’s light rail system, Tranvía de los Cuatro Rios. Collective members are demanding that the investigation begin...
Ordoñez Lasso construction to begin in early 2015 Ecuador’s Ministry of Transport and Public Works (MTOP) says it has almost completed right-of-way purchases for the expansion and reconstruction of Av. Ordoñez Lasso and work should begin in February or March 2015....
The British government has invited Sweden’s chief prosecutor to question Julian Assange, prior to a court hearing in Sweden, on whether to withdraw a warrant for his arrest on rape charges. The UK Foreign Office said it would “actively welcome” a request by the...
Although the date of Cuenca’s independence from Spain doesn’t arrive officially until Monday, holiday activities are already in full swing. Vendors of crafts, housed in white tents along Av. Doce de Abril, have been busy making sales since Tuesday. Doce de Abril...
President Rafael Correa highlighted advances in gender equality on Wednesday, acknowledging the recently released World Economic Forum report, Global Gender Gap for 2014. “Finally, gender justice in the country,” said President Correa via his Twitter account. Ecuador...
