Ecuador is one of the founding members of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and its partner in progress during the Bank’s 52-year-history.

This longtime cooperation has included financing for major projects such as the Paute Hydroelectric Project, road and highway infrastructure, cleanup and restoration of polluted ecosystems and drinking water systems. Another important project is the restoration of Quito’s historic center, considered a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

The IDB has an active portfolio in Ecuador (loans and grants approved and implemented) worth $1.74 billion, of which $1.57 billion is invested in the public sector projects and $169 million is financing projects in the private sector.

Projects carried out and currently being executed in Ecuador include:

• Strengthening the Public Health System. The project focuses on improving the country’s health and social protection system, with special emphasis on the most vulnerable populations, through a comprehensive health care model. Works will include the construction of a major network of hospitals, health centers, and infrastructure, which will increase preventive care to a greater number of children under five years and prenatal care for pregnant women as well as support vaccination initiatives. The project is expected to improve the supply and quality of health services and help reduce hospitalizations for acute respiratory diseases, mortality, and chronic malnutrition among children under five years
• Modernization of the Civil Registry. The project will improve the registry of births and identification, including the creation of registry centers to enable the majority of Ecuadoran citizens to obtain a document of identity. The project will finance the construction, renovation, and equipping of 183 provincial and cantonal agencies, 100 birth certificate agencies, and 130 mobile teams. This project will ensure that services reach even the most remote sites in the country.
• Financial Safety Net. The present network is aimed at preventing and mitigating risks to the national economy and for depositors. The Safety Net puts Ecuador’s financial system in a better competitive position in Latin America for addressing potential external contingencies.
• Modernization of Petroecuador Pumping Stations. The project will support the improvement of the system for transporting refined petroleum products through the modernization of four pumping stations in the multi-product pipeline Esmeraldas-Quito, which carries 45 percent of company products.
• Increased Power Transmission Capacity. The project will improve the transmission system through the construction and expansion of substations and transmission lines that will triple the country’s reserve energy transport capacity and serve the needs of some 500,000 Ecuadorian households.
• Rural Land Titling. The project will promote agricultural productivity through the regularization of land tenure and the modernization of the rural cadastral system.
• Bridge Over the River Babahoyo. This 1,950-meter span is part of larger bridge called "National Unity Bridge" that connects Ecuador’s coastal provinces to Guayaquil, the country’s major port.
• Program to Restore the Historic Center of Quito. Now in its second stage, the principal objective of this initiative is to develop the center’s economic, social, and cultural potential to add value to the impressive architecture of this district, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. As one of the best examples of urban renewal in Latin America, this program is being replicated in other parts of the region.
• Municipal Modernization and Comprehensive Neighborhood Enhancement Program Phase I. The program will strengthen economic, financial, and spatial planning, as well as improve the lives of families in the district’s poorest neighborhoods. It has benefited 35,000 families and improved 50 low-income neighborhoods where poverty levels exceed 50 percent through the delivery of a comprehensive package of services.
• Program to Strengthen Urban Service Centers of Quito. The project is helping to make the city more efficient and equitable through the consolidation of urban service centers that provide access to goods, services, and employment, especially in low-income neighborhoods. It will improve regional planning and financing of public investment and will strengthen a group of centers through complementary investments.
• Artisanal Fishing Program. The IDB is supporting the construction of ports and infrastructure in 50 towns along the Ecuadoran coast, training, and a security and surveillance program for fishermen.
• Social Entrepreneurship. In its portfolio for Ecuador, the Bank provides special support for social entrepreneurship, which includes microenterprise development projects in low-income areas with emphasis on support to microentrepreneurs. Bank resources are extended on concessional terms, with maturities of up to 20 years and interest rates of 2-4 percent.