Events
Promote Transparent Nation-Building through Open Policy
—– How would you describe the features of Ecuador, famous for the Galapagos Islands?
Ecuador is one of 17 mega diverse countries, with 1,695 species of birds and 3,000 species of orchids. Ecuador is home of 17 different indigenous nationalities with their own cultural traditions; and 14 ancestral languages. Furthermore, Ecuador has four magical regions: the Galapagos Islands with a unique flora and fauna; the Pacific Coast with fabulous historical sites of pre-Columbian cultures and a host place for adventurous water sports; the Andean Highlands with its avenue of volcanoes; 62 with an altitude over 3000 meters above sea level; and the Ecuadorian Amazon Rainforest with its exuberant biodiversity, distinctive landscapes; and home of some uncontacted indigenous communities. Oil and agriculture are main industries in Ecuador.
—– Last year, Ecuador and Japan celebrated the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. How would you overview the development of the relationship of our two countries?
Our diplomatic relations started in 1918. The same year, Doctor Hideyo Noguchi visited Guayaquil to conduct a research on yellow fiber. Trade was, at the beginning, the main objective to establish diplomatic relations. In the 30’s, Japan initiated a line of steam boats to Guayaquil and purchased Ecuadorian oil, and in the 60’s, when Japan became the main export destination for Ecuadorian banana and cocoa beans. High level political mutual visits, since the end of the 50’s, have invigorated the diplomatic relations. The last and most important was the Foreign Minister Kono’s visit to Ecuador as the first visit of a Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs; the official visit of President Lenin Moreno and the working visit of Members of the Friendship Group Ecuador- Japan, in 2018. The celebration of the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations represented an opportunity to redefine the bilateral relations. We established a roadmap to strengthen trade and investment relations, which began with the signing of the agreement to avoid double taxation, in January 2019. Ecuador proposed the negotiation of a bilateral investment agreement and we are working towards the improvement of market access of Ecuadorian products and to broaden bilateral cooperation, such as risks management and telecommunications. There are student exchanges between the Galapagos Islands and the Ogasawara Islands, and a school vegetable garden project in Cayambe by an NPO corporation in Hanno.
—– Would you tell us the characteristics of the Ecuadorian economy and attractive investment areas?
Ecuador has had a dollarized economy since 2000. Market oriented measures have been put in place to assure an economic growth, including the incentives to private and direct investment.Due to the recession and fiscal reduction, Ecuador’s growth rate of 2018 was 1%, but is expected to recover in the following year. In order to encourage foreign investment, Ecuador is proposing tax incentives in prioritized and basic industries, which includes agroforestry, pharmaceutics, energy efficiency, manufacturing, refineries, mining and so further. Those incentives encompass up to 15 years of exemption on income taxes and its advanced payment in concession. There are also additional incentives for investment in the Special Economic Development Zone for tourism or in real state.
—– What is the open-minded political and economic reform implemented by President Moreno?
The Ecuadorian Government, led by President Moreno, has established an open national dialogue, which seeks to promote peace and to give better economic opportunities to all citizens. The Government seeks to build a transparent state abided by democratic principles and the division of powers, which responds to the national objectives and interest of Ecuadorians. At present, the Government is managing wise and transparent economic reforms, teaming up with multilateral financial institutions, with sound financial conditions, to bring the country back to the path of economic growth and further development. Ecuador has now an open trade policy, which is focused on implementing trade agreements with the countries in Latin America; strengthening trade with our main partners such as the US and the EU; and setting up strategic trade and cooperation relations with prioritized partners, such as Japan, China and Russia. They include the proposal of trade and investment bilateral agreements, new economic cooperation mechanisms, and the strategically association with regional integration systems and plurilateral agreements.
—– Would you talk about Ecuador’s foreign policy?
The main objectives of Ecuador’s foreign policy are to strategically position Ecuador in the international community and to achieve our development goals. Ecuador seeks to strengthen the integration mechanisms in Latin America, as well as the bilateral relations with the neighbor countries, based on mutual cooperation, coordination, efficiency and national interests. Our foreign policy is focused on openness to work with multilateral institutions, to improve trade and cooperation with our main partners, to fully implement all the agreements Ecuador has signed and to set up suitable and results-based relations with potential strategic partners. In cooperation, one of our priorities is to foster capability building projects and technology transfer for development. Human mobility issue is also important. We work towards protection of our nationals in vulnerable situations and the assistance and the accomplishment of human rights of foreigners in Ecuador. The current challenge for our foreign policy is to deal with the Venezuelan migratory crisis with the support of the international community and regional cooperative actions.
(Interview by Shu Tamaru, FEC Counsellor)