This upcoming Sunday, Ecuador will be holding presidential elections. This election will determine the future of the country. The economic crisis has only been exacerbated because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the past year, numbers of people going into poverty and businesses closing have skyrocketed, especially in the capital, which is one of the most economically significant cities. There are over a dozen candidates in the race for the presidency, which means there will be runoffs during the beginning of April. First, there’s Andrés Arauz, who proposes raising taxes on the wealthy, supports public banking, and local credit. Guillermo Lasso is the second main candidate, who supports free market policies and wants to attract international banks.
The oil rich country began seeing a decrease in the economy when oil prices dropped in 2015. Lasso wants to boost the oil sector through the participation of private entities to replace state financing. By building partnerships with oil companies, he’s depending on the nation’s resources to raise money and rebuild the economy. A big issue that his policies pose is that the involvement of the private sector can become problematic and create room for corruption. Arauz’s policy ideas for local credit and public banking can help lower the cost of finances and make loans more accessible, which can help increase economic activity, but the economic crisis may still make it hard for unemployed citizens to take out large loans for businesses. Both candidates have great policies that could spur the economy into action, but they need to actually follow through on promises. Gaining control of the spread of the virus is also crucial to improving conditions in Ecuador. The candidates should also focus on vaccination plans so that citizens can start working again.
Lasso seems to have a more realist approach towards the economic crisis since he is looking towards reaping the benefits of having partnerships with oil companies and international banks. Aurez on the other hand has more liberal perspectives when compared to Lasso. By raising taxes on the wealthy, and focusing on boosting small businesses, Aurez is hoping his approach will serve Ecuador’s long term interests and protect the economy from going into a crisis this bad again.