Page 55 - Ecuador's Banana Sector under Climate Change

chapter 2: economic and policy analysis of the banana sector in ecuador and implications for social and environmental sustainability
and health insurance benefits for workers. This is an important social policy,
since almost 10 percent of the population derives its economic livelihood directly or indirectly from the banana industry. To meet this social policy objective, the Government of Ecuador is registering all producers to ensure that they comply with their employer obligations by ensuring that all workers have a contract, enjoy social security benefits, and receive at least the minimum and overtime wages.
Since the passage of the new Banana Law in July 2011, it was hoped that
all banana plantations would be registered by December 2013 and that the
state of workers would be sanctioned through regular contracts. To set the minimum price to the producer, the Government authorities need to establish the production cost, according to plantation size and volume of exports, and then calculate the profits and taxes to be added. The Government also monitors employers to ensure that they pay the minimum salary and the payroll tax. In 2013, the minimum monthly wage in Ecuador stood at USD 437 (LACENA).
The obligation for producers to sell only through contracts has compelled more than 3 700 of the 4 000 producers, who are not registered with the Ministry of Agriculture, to legitimize their activities, including meeting employer obligations to the social security system.
4.5 Environmental regulations
Among the priorities of the Government of Ecuador with regard to the banana sector is the need to develop an adaptation strategy to improve the phytosanitary practices within the sector. The legal framework for the new phytosanitary strategy is embodied within the reformed Banana Law. Under this law, farms
of up to 20 ha require registration cards, while larger plantations require environmental permits or licences. These cards are issued after MAGAP has determined that risks to the health of nearby populations and workers on the plantations have been minimized. Other requirements are remediation strategies as a result of emergency events on the banana plantations (e.g. floods, disease outbreaks). Given that environmental compliance varies significantly from one banana-producing region to another, the objective is to harmonize compliance across the provinces. The environmental performance for Los Rios, for example, is good since, in terms of indicators, 47 percent of the farms have registered
and 37 percent are in the process of doing so. On the other hand, the banana provinces of El Oro and Guayas have much lower rates of compliance with environmental regulations. According to the Ministry of the Environment, only
2 percent of the banana plantations in the Guayas region are appropriately licensed and 4 percent are in the process of being licensed. In El Oro, the figures are 1 percent and 9 percent, respectively (LACENA).
The Government of Ecuador also regulates and sets limits to aerial chemical spraying. The aerial applications are restricted to within 100 metres of the river banks, and by the same distance from village schools and health centres. For the manual application of agrochemicals, the buffer zone is 50 metres from these specific areas.
The Government is now implementing a broader environmental tax policy in the form of a green tax to influence consumer behaviour, reduce vehicular pollution
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