ILAPS´s visit to Ecuador

As part of ILAPS’ regional projection strategy, our team traveled to Quito to hold a series of meetings with ONG´s, Academic entitities, organizations, Ecuadorian government entities, the police, and the armed forces. The visit sought to map and analyze the current security and criminal landscape in Ecuador from a multidimensional perspective. The discussions addressed the challenges at the urban level, where criminal violence has increasingly affected public life; the prison system, which has become a focal point for organized crime; the rural peripheries, where state presence remains limited; and the border areas with Colombia, where shared dynamics of violence and illegal economies continue to shape local realities. Particular attention was given to institutional relations with Colombia, recognizing the transnational nature of security threats and the need for stronger bilateral mechanisms of cooperation. Likewise, the analysis emphasized the role of illicit economies, including narcotrafficking, illegal mining, and contraband, which interlink both…