Main points

• On Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index 2019, Ecuador scored 38 of out 100, giving it a rank of 93 out of 180 countries. About 56% of respondents in Latinobarometer perceived that the level of corruption in Ecuador increased in 2018.
• According to a 2017 study on 308 rural women in Ecuador, about 57% of the respondents said they had experienced extortion from public officials and teachers.
• There is some evidence of corruption in COVID-related procurement processes, notably one case in which medical products were bought for US$615,000 instead of the standard price of US$46,910. In addition, some relief food kits were purchased at US$150 each when the market value was less than US$85. In both cases, corruption hindered the government’s ability to fulfil citizens’ rights to health and food respectively.
• Political interference in the judiciary has compromised the right to a fair trial, and corruption in the country’s security forces facilitates a growth drug trafficking, which greatly affects the right to security of the person due to increased crime.