Environmental Shock Resilience in Ecuador

Historical precipitation patterns in Ecuador

Ecuador has a diverse set of climatological zones, with tropical areas in the West along the coast and the east in the Amazon, and more temperate inland mountainous regions generating variations in weather events across the country in any given year. Due to its orientation on the Pacific coast of South America, it is subject to periodic extreme weather events including the El Niño/La Niña cycles, which bring high and low levels of rainfall respectively. Like other extreme weather events, research suggests that climate change is poised to increase the magnitude of the impact of these extreme weather conditions.

The above map displays monthly precipitation patterns from each of the weather stations maintained by the Ecuadorian National Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology over the period 1985-2015. Colors display the deciles of precipitation, red corresponding to low and blue to high. Scroll through the months to see the data over time.

Public Healthcare sector capacity, 2001-2020

Over the last 20 years, Ecuador has undertaken a large-scale public investment in healthcare. The above interactive web map shows the total public sector hospital beds available per 10,000 residents in the years 2001, 2010, and 2020.