Political relations between Ecuador and Germany go back a long way. The most important issues in the two countries’ relations are development cooperation, environmental policy, trade and investment as well as the dual system of vocational training.

Development cooperation resumed in September 2017 following a temporary interruption. Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier’s visit to Ecuador in February 2019 served to build on this and intensify bilateral relations.

Most German political foundations have offices in Ecuador.

Within the European Union, Germany is one of Ecuador’s most important trading partners, ranking fourth among the 27 member states. Germany exported goods worth 524.2 million euro to Ecuador in 2022 and imported Ecuadorian goods worth 437.4 million euro (Source: DESTATIS).

Since 1977, Quito has been home to a German-Ecuadorian Chamber of Industry and Commerce. As well as its Embassy, Ecuador maintains an Institute for Export and Investment Promotion (PRO ECUADOR) in Germany and has had a Consulate General in Hamburg since 1993. The trade agreement with the European Union which entered into force on 1 January 2017 injected considerable momentum into bilateral economic relations.

Germany is one of Ecuador’s largest bilateral donors in the sphere of development cooperation. The most recent bilateral intergovernmental negotiations on development cooperation were held in Quito in October 2022. Support for projects amounting to 102.5 million euro was pledged. The priority areas of German-Ecuadorian development cooperation are the environment and natural resources; biodiversity and forest conservation; peace and social cohesion; good governance and migration; as well as climate, sustainable urban development and mobility.

The main cultural exchange intermediaries between Germany and Ecuador are the Humboldt-Gesellschaft/Goethe-Zentrum in Quito, the German-Ecuadorian Cultural Centre in Guayaquil, the German Academic Exchange Service via its lectureship in Quito and the German schools in Quito, Guayaquil and Cuenca, as well as increasingly the German Language Certificate School in Samborondón.

Cooperation at university level is promoted primarily through short-term research scholarships, German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) scholarships and lecturer exchange programmes.

Information about German development cooperation with Ecuador can be found on the website of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.