The country of Ecuador gets its name from a rather interesting place. The name Ecuador is derived from the equator and this South American country isn’t boasting an economy that is as hot as its namesake suggests.

Visitors to Ecuador are often oblivious to how dire the circumstances are in this Latin country. Over 70% of the countries citizens live in poverty. Although the government has taken steps to remedy this situation, to date their efforts have been less than successful.

One of the main reasons that Ecuador is facing such a financial shortfall is the nature of their natural resources. Ecuador is rich in items such as bananas, coffee and shrimp. When world prices are high, Ecuador can see a profit, but that’s simply not the case any longer. Prices for these types of items remain low which means no additional money is making its way into the economy of this country.

If one was to pinpoint when the difficulties began with the export of these products it could be tied, in part at least, to El Nino in the late 1990s. The crops and seafood production were damaged and have never fully recovered.

These products are also sold in large quantities within the country itself. Prices remain low though because of the overabundance of product with limited demand. Although one bright spot on this horizon is the fact that Ecuador still remains the world’s largest exporter of shrimp, bypassing Mexico for that esteemed title several years ago.

One of the benefits of agriculture in Ecuador has been that it has continued to employ millions of individuals. Agriculture is still the main industry in Ecuador today.

Raising livestock is a relatively new part of the Ecuador economic system. Raising both beef and chickens has proven to be mildly successful. One drawback came during the difficult weather patterns associated with El Nino, when many in the livestock industry suffered losses. Although this industry is not exporting much product presently, there is a market within Ecuador that they are catering to.

Petroleum is also one of the exports of Ecuador. In recent months the increased price of oil has helped to generate more income for the country, but unfortunately it cannot make up for all of the past problems.

Several years ago Ecuador adopted a new form of currency in an attempt to help bolster the local economy. The American dollar was introduced and although there were high hopes placed within this strategy, the results never quite reached those heights.

Although Ecuador certainly cannot be considered a hotbed of economic activity it is still leaps and bounds ahead of many countries in South America. For a country with such a high unemployment rate it is surprising that over a third of the citizens of this country are economically active.

With the continued increase in the price of oil, Ecuador’s economy will continue to reap some of those benefits. With a country facing such hardships, this is indeed welcomed news.