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Ecuador Investing in Strategic Sectors

teleSUR | October 22, 2014

For the state general budget plan for 2015 it has been announced that strategic sectors will be the largest investment at 35%. The principal areas of focus will be strengthening electric and hydraulic resources as well as hydrocarbons and increasing social investment.

This investment is intended to provide a financial base upon which the state will focus on other projects, on sectors such as education and technology, to support a future economy which will move away from extractivism.

In an interview with TeleSUR English, Latin American School of Social Sciences (FLACSO) specialist Patricio Trujillo said, “Investment in strategic sectors first creates an infrastructure that is sufficiently self-sustainable so that the second phase can be based on human talent. If we do not have infrastructure it is very difficult to better this human talent, to improve for example investigation.”

Other sectors include production at 22%, social development at 16%, Security at 7% and the rest at 6%. The sector of human talent, expected to receive greater investment in the future a critical base of the Citizen’s Revolution, will receive 14 percent investment at USD $1.19 billion, which will be directed towards basic and higher education as well as culture.

On strategic sectors, President Rafael Correa said that investment will be focused in the Ministries of Electricity and Water. He said, “This investment is just in two ministries. We are beginning with an investment of 3 billion dollars.”

Much of this investment will be directed towards creating the necessary infrastructure for the functioning of hydroelectric dam projects by the end of 2016, with the possibility of exporting energy to neighboring Colombia and Peru.

“For example, with eight hydroelectric dams, by 2016 we will have saved an enormous amount of resources. So this puts pressure on the budget, and the country. This is of course because we are trying to accomplish this in 2, 3 years what was not done in 50. There is spending, spending, spending now but afterwards, we are going to see the fruits of these efforts,” said Correa.

Heightened investment in strategic sectors is aimed at ensuring national sovereignty over energy and natural resources, and at an eventual surplus for internal consumption, allowing for export and greater revenue for investment in other areas.

October 23, 2014 - Posted by | Economics | ,

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