Didn’t stick to your contract with ETAPA? Then you may have a problem. ETAPA (Municipal Telecomm., Water Service, Drainage and Sewage Company) has begun notifying customers who ended their contracts early that they are now going to be charged for the “free installation” that was part of their contract. “Our contracts provide a zero-installation cost […]
Art exhibition in Puente Roto (Broken Bridge) every Saturday
The Association of Fine Artists of Puente Roto (Broken Bridge) are no having full-day exhibitions of their paintings on Saturdays. “We start early Saturday mornings. We do this so the community can enjoy some contact with art, and enjoy of the sensibility it creates in human beings,” said Holger Zavala, president of the association. Gabriel […]
Arbitration for Tranvia will not be resolved this year
The Municipality of Cuenca is still amidst Arbitration in Chile with the Consorcio Cuatro Rios de Cuenca (CCRC; Consortium Four Rivers of Cuenca), the former construction company of the tram system. Juan Peralta, statutory auditor for the municipality, traveled to Chile to provide support in this process. “If there is to be a new memorial […]
Returns and refunds laws in Ecuador defends consumer rights even on virtual purchases
‘The Organic Law for the Defense of the Consumer,’ allows for the return of products and services strictly on the basis of defects. In stores, you can generally always return a product as long as it’s in an acceptable condition, just as when it was sold. Previously, in general there was an exception to this […]
New type-C hospital to be constructed soon in Cuenca
The last phase of planning for a new type-C hospital is about to end. The Ministry of Health, along with the Service of Public Works Contracting (Secob) and the Italian Agency of Cooperation for Development (AICS), held a meeting in order to settle the final details in order to start the construction. A type-C hospital, […]
Ecuador filing document to control international investments and their effects on communities
Ecuador is endorsing a proposal for a treaty—with the purpose of making it a binding instrument—that regulates the activities of transnational corporations and other commercial companies, emphasizing on resource extraction companies. The document will be presented before the United Nations this October. “This document will work as an umbrella for communities in resistance, for indigenous […]
Cuenca could be facing a long-term traffic problem
A recent study done by the Llactalab group from the Universidad de Cuenca suggests that public policies should be restructured if there is to be a future solution to Cuenca’s traffic problems. The study focused on urbanization, housing construction, outskirts urbanization and the regular transportation means of the inhabitants, in order to make this assessment. […]
Institutions call for the revision of the drug schedule
“The Citizen’s Assembly for Safety of Cuenca,” is requesting the National Government and the National Assembly revise and reform the ‘drug schedule.’ According to data of the Ministry of Public Health (MSP), Cuenca is over the average of underage (12 to 17 years old) drug use in the country, including cigarettes and alcohol. “In Cuenca, […]
Statistics show Cuenca’s violence is lower this year
According to the Cuencano digital paper La Andariega, the homicide rate in the city is one of the lowest since 2012. Only 11 intentional homicides have been committed during this year. The homicide rate was only lower in 2015 (eight cases) and 2018 (eight cases, but only as of the first half of the year). […]
CIDAP, a Crafts and Arts Museum worth visiting
The Inter-American Center of Popular Arts and Crafts (CIDAP), is a museum and cultural space with over 8,000 art and craft pieces from over 28 countries. It’s located right next to the stairs down towards Parque de La Madre from Calle Larga, on the 3 de Noviembre Road. The institution was created in 1975 and […]
CGA investigates possible contamination cases
Inhabitants of the Industrial Park in Cuenca have warned the Environmental Management Commission (CGA) of the presence of red and yellow dust around the sector. This dust was appearing all of the sudden on people’s roofs, walls, sidewalk and over vehicles. “This dust is due to the change of filters of the industrial spray units […]
Whale was released from fishing nets in Manta
In the early afternoon of July 17th, the fishermen that worked on the 2nd international dock in the Manta port, realized that a baby humpback whale was trapped in one of their nets. They immediately alerted the authorities in order for a scuba team to be deployed for the rescue mission. The Ministry of Environment […]
Go where?
This last week as we closed down our restaurant (that was sold and is moving to Ordonez Lasso with a goal of opening on August 1st), several people came up to me and asked me if I was going to keep writing this column. They told me that they really enjoyed it and appreciated my […]
Sigsig signs an intention document to become a Healthy Municipality
The Sigsig Municipality is working with the Sixth Zonal Health Coordination to become a “Healthy Municipality.” This is a program created by the Ministry of health where Decentralized Governments (GADs) file their intention to adhere to the standards set by the ministry in order to be certified as a town for healthy living. The standards […]
Ecuadorian government presents new strategy to prevent early pregnancies
Ecuador has the highest child and teen pregnancy rate in all of Latin-America. Because of that, the Ministries of Health, Education and Social and Economic Inclusion have created a new “Methodical Guideline for Pregnancy Prevention in Girls and Teenagers.” This is the third campaign created in on this topic by the Government since 2011. This […]
Fake calls to 911 have a high cost to Ecuador
Since the beginning of 2019, Ecu-911, as the emergencies agency is called, has been receiving around 170 fake calls a day—just in the Austro region alone. This represents a high waste in time and resources for the institution. The average fake call lasts around 1 minute and 11 seconds and costs the institution —according to […]
Four hikers rescued on the Cayambe peak
A group of four hikers got lost on the Cayambe peak on July 20th. The hikers, between the ages of 32 and 44, weren’t able to find the trail back from the mountain and one of the members of the group had injured his arm. Police and firemen were alerted thanks to a call to […]
Nulti offers a ‘living tour’ package
Inhabitants from the town of Nulti have made an alliance with a travel agency from Cuenca to offer tourist packages to visit the community to see the day-to-day living in the locality. They are seeking to draw attention from expats who might wish to live there. The inhabitants of Nulti are mostly local crafters and […]
Dog rescue shelters in Quito given poisoned dog food
On Friday, July 12, activists from Accion Animal Ecuador and Lucky Bienestar Animal shelters reported the deaths of at least 12 dogs. “We’re investigating how this happened. Apparently, a SEALED dog food bag, which was left at our donations center, had poisoned food sent by someone!” stated Accion Animal Ecuador in a social media post. […]
Cuenca wakes to small earthquake tremor
A slight tremor was felt at dawn on Wednesday, in Cuenca. According to information from the Geophysical Institute, IG, the epicenter was registered in the province of Chimborazo. The movement was recorded at 04:41, with an earthquake of magnitude 4.65, at a depth of 9.85 km, 26.81km in Cumandá, Chimborazo. No material damage or injured persons have […]
Aggressive vendors and beggars on buses creating real problems for drivers and passengers
Assaults against a bus driver on July 11th and an the attack with of a bus a day later caused the Transportation Chamber to warn bus drivers of beggars and “informal vendors” on the buses who are threatening drivers (and passengers) and demanding money. On Wednesday, the bus driver’s guild and the Government of Azuay held […]
Street salespeople in Cuenca willing to leave the streets if space is made for them
The Federation of Autonomous Workers of Azuay (Fetrapaz), met once again with the Municipality of Cuenca to request the provision of new spaces for informal merchants. They are requesting that the Municipality appoints certain spaces for them to occupy, if they are to leave the streets. The organization has detected multiple spaces in the Canton […]
Ecuadorian students develop educational software to learn sign language
Students from the Universidad Catolica de Cuenca (UCACUE) have developed a software able to translate voice into sign language. The software also has a glossary and word games to improve the reading and writing of hearing impaired students. The name of the software is ‘Edu Kids.’ The students from the UCACUE developed it especially for […]
Face reality or face regrets
Like all of us I have some regrets at this point in my life. Like, I really regret trying to break into Fenway Park when I was 19 years-old so that my friends and I could play baseball. Or more precisely, I regret falling off the roof of Fenway Park and breaking my leg in […]
US Government to provide $35 million in humanitarian aid to Ecuador
Recently, the US State Secretary and President Lenin Moreno met in Ecuador to discuss various matters; security, democracy, foreign commerce, war against corruption and drugs. Mr. Pompeo stated that the Trump Administration will be providing a $35 million humanitarian aid to Ecuador. “$30 Million dollars will be to deal directly with the Venezuelan immigrants that […]
CRIME REPORT AND ACCIDENT REPORT
Cuenca Area Traffic Accidents On the morning of Tuesday, July 23, 2019, the Integrated Security Service ECU 911 coordinated the response of a traffic accident registered in the El Tambo canton, where three people were reported injured. ECU 911 said that the accident occurred because one of the drivers of the two tucks involved in […]
‘Siente Cuenca,’ the new tourism advertising campaign for the city
“Siente Cuenca,” which means “Feel Cuenca,” is the key phrase for a new tourism advertising campaign organized by City Hall. The Municipal Foundation presented this new project in a press release on Friday, July 12th. The campaign is aimed at both international and national tourist and the Mayor’s office highlighted that there are a bundle […]
Taxi drivers protest lack of subsidy payments
This past Wednesday morning the Azuay taxi drivers guild took to the streets of the Historic Center of Cuenca to demand that the National Government make changes to the Law of Transit, Safety, and Compensation with respect to the reduction of the fuel subsidy and other topics. At 10:00 AM, the drivers began their walk […]
Moreno meets with UK Minister for bilateral cooperation talks
On July 15th, Ecuador President Lenin Moreno and Ecuadorian Chancellor, Jose Valencia, met in Guayaquil with Alan Ducan, the United Kingdom’s Minister for Europe and the Americas. The purpose of the meeting was to reestablish bilateral relations “to the highest level,” according to the General Press Secretary of the President’s Office. The meeting agenda included […]
United States will provide cyber security assessment to Ecuador
The United States Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, said this week that a group of cyber security experts would be coming to Ecuador. This came up a one of the topics discussed between the Secretary of State and Ecuadorian President, Lenin Moreno. They also discussed the Venezuelan immigration problems and the Maduro regime, cooperation in […]