Rapid Trade and Environment Assessment (RTEA) / Evaluación rápida sobre comercio y ambiente - Informe Nacional de Ecuador

This 2009 report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) provides a Rapid Trade and Environment Assessment (RTEA) for Ecuador. It analyzes the intersection of international trade, foreign direct investment (FDI), and environmental sustainability, focusing on five key sectors: flowers, shrimp, timber, tourism, and mining. The document highlights a systemic tension where economic growth driven by raw material exports often occurs at the expense of critical ecosystems, such as mangroves and native forests, and notes a lack of coordinated state policy to integrate environmental costs into productive models.

• Ecuador's economy is heavily dependent on natural resources, with crude oil representing 60% of its export portfolio, though this has fluctuated between 40% and 60% over seven years.
• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Ecuador has been irregular and small compared to the country's GDP growth and regional trends in Latin America and the Caribbean.
• The flower sector is a major employer in the Sierra region, with 60% of its direct workforce being female, but it causes significant pollution through the intensive use of approximately 80 chemical inputs.
• The shrimp industry has caused a radical transformation of the mangrove ecosystem, with a reported 70% loss of these ecosystems in Ecuador over three decades.
• Ecuador's timber sector suffers from high rates of deforestation, estimated at 1.4% annually, which is among the highest in South America.
• Tourism contributes 4.4% to the GDP and is growing, but the sector faces challenges such as the overcapacity of tourists in the fragile ecosystem of the Galápagos Islands.
• While the mining sector has a low historical contribution to the GDP (0.4% in 2007), it possesses significant potential reserves of copper, gold, silver, and molybdenum, primarily in the south of the country.
• The 2008 Constitution of Ecuador restricts international arbitration for disputes between private persons and the State to regional and Latin American forums, excluding the World Bank's ICSID.
• There is a marked lack of coordination between the Ministry of the Environment and the ministries responsible for production, industry, and trade, leading to contradictory policies such as subsidies for agrochemicals while promoting sustainable development.
• Ecuador's trade policy is characterized by a lack of continuity and planning, relying heavily on unilateral preferences like ATPDEA (USA) and SGP Plus (EU) for market access.

APA

Albán, M. A., Espinosa, C., Albán, M., Muñoz, G., Gross, M., & Torres, M. (2009). Rapid Trade and Environment Assessment (RTEA) / Evaluación rápida sobre comercio y ambiente - Informe Nacional de Ecuador. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/rtea_ecuador.pdf

Chicago

Albán, María Amparo, Cristian Espinosa, Montserrat Albán, Gabriela Muñoz, Marcel Gross, and Marcela Torres. Rapid Trade and Environment Assessment (RTEA) / Evaluación rápida sobre comercio y ambiente - Informe Nacional de Ecuador. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2009. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/rtea_ecuador.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Albán |first1=María Amparo |last2=Espinosa |first2=Cristian |last3=Albán |first3=Montserrat |last4=Muñoz |first4=Gabriela |last5=Gross |first5=Marcel |last6=Torres |first6=Marcela |title=Rapid Trade and Environment Assessment (RTEA) / Evaluación rápida sobre comercio y ambiente - Informe Nacional de Ecuador |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=2009 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/rtea_ecuador.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{albn2009rapid, author = {Albán, María Amparo and Espinosa, Cristian and Albán, Montserrat and Muñoz, Gabriela and Gross, Marcel and Torres, Marcela}, title = {{Rapid Trade and Environment Assessment (RTEA) / Evaluación rápida sobre comercio y ambiente - Informe Nacional de Ecuador}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2009}, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/rtea_ecuador.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }