The new prison in Santa Elena, located between the Juntas del Pacífico and Bajada de Chanduy communes, is 30% complete, with construction efforts intensifying across multiple areas.

Access to the site is from the peninsular commune of Juntas del Pacífico, just a few minutes off the Guayaquil-Salinas highway. From there, it’s a 20-minute drive along a widened gravel road, surrounded by dense vegetation and with no telecommunications signal.

On Friday, President Daniel Noboa made an unannounced visit to the site, arriving by helicopter around 12:30 p.m. He spent approximately 45 minutes inspecting the construction progress, which is located about 20 kilometers from the town of Juntas del Pacífico. The visit, under heavy military and police protection, was closed to the media. Noboa departed at 1:15 p.m. to attend other engagements.

During his visit, Noboa emphasized the goal of creating an advanced penitentiary system with special isolation measures for high-security inmates.

“The centers of deprivation of liberty will not be centers of crime but rather places for serving real sentences and fostering genuine rehabilitation,” he said.

Following Noboa’s departure, Luis Zaldumbide, director of SNAI—the governing body of the prison system—offered further insights into the project. Zaldumbide confirmed that construction is on schedule, with 30% of the work completed.

The project, which costs $52,157,764.15, has a contractual timeline of 300 days, and financial progress currently stands at 11.50%. He explained that some payments are pending due to unfinished work on key structures.

“Although the towers are well underway, payment cannot be processed until their completion,” Zaldumbide said.

The prison will feature five octagonal pavilions and six perimeter control towers, all designed to meet global standards for penitentiary systems. The facility will hold up to 800 inmates and span 16.6 hectares, including four courts and designated areas for visits and legal consultations.

Construction activities include leveling and shaping platforms, laying foundations for the surveillance towers, and constructing access roads for better connectivity. Work is also underway on prefabricated panels for murals and the foundational structures of the prison’s modules.

Currently, the construction site is cordoned off by large canvas screens and wooden gates, with security managed by a private company enforcing strict access control. Camps have been set up to accommodate administrative tasks, and there is a steady flow of heavy trucks delivering materials and equipment to the site.

As you approach the area, a massive plot of land comes into view where the central section of the prison will stand. Already, a tower is rising at one end, while construction on the perimeter wall and the foundations for five more towers and the pavilions is progressing.

Zaldumbide also highlighted the employment opportunities created by the project, with 51 local workers from Juntas del Pacífico involved in the construction.

“This project not only provides security but also stimulates local development through indirect activities,” he stated.

President Noboa first visited the site in June when he unveiled the project’s model in Juntas del Pacífico. At that time, it was announced that construction would officially begin on June 24, and the facility is slated for completion in May 2025.