President Daniel Noboa announced a series of mergers within the government that included folding the Ministry of Environment into the Ministry of Energy and Mines.

The presidential decree, published July 24, builds on an institutional reform plan introduced last year to limit spending and improve government efficiency — part of a larger effort to revive the national economy.

Earlier this month, the International Monetary Fund recommended Ecuador diversify its economy through the development of mining, natural gas and energy.

Critics call the merger a conscious decision by the government to appease international creditors and prioritize GDP growth over nature. See All Key Ideas

Ecuador announced this month that it’s eliminating the Ministry of Environment and folding its responsibilities into the Ministry of Energy and Mines — a move that could prove disastrous for conservation efforts, critics say.

President Daniel Noboa announced the mergers of more than a dozen ministries as part of a larger effort to cut back on public spending. But conservationists say the country needs an independent Ministry of Environment to protect fragile forest ecosystems from mining, oil and gas, and other forms of development.

“It’s not a simple institutional reorganization,” the Ecuadorian Coordinator of Organizations for the Defense of Nature and the Environment, a coalition of green groups, said in a statement. “It represents an unprecedented setback in environmental protection and constitutes a direct attack on the rights of nature, the rights of present and future generations, and the constitutional framework of Ecuador.”

The presidential decree, published July 24, builds on an institutional reform plan introduced last year to limit spending and improve “efficiency and effectiveness” in the government — part of a larger effort to revive the national economy.

The country experienced a sharp economic slowdown in 2023 fueled by drought-driven electricity shortages and tight public budget constraints, which stifled investment and prevented businesses from operating normally. The security crisis, caused by a rise in organized crime, also contributed to the slowdown, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said last year during loan talks.

In July, the IMF encouraged Ecuador to diversify its economy through private investment in “high potential” sectors like mining and natural gas, while developing renewable energy sources like solar, wind and geothermal. The IMF is considering giving the country additional financial support, but only if it meets the criteria for responsible spending.

Critics say folding the Ministry of Environment into the Ministry of Energy and Mines is a conscious decision by the government to appease international creditors and prioritize GDP growth over nature. It could create serious conflicts of interest in the future as the country tries to rebound economically, they said.

“Who will safeguard the rights of nature when they get in the way of mining or oil interests?” YASunidos, an anti-extractives group, said in a statement. “This is not merely an administrative decision — it is a political act that deepens the extractivist model, further endangers the conditions for a dignified life, and blocks the possibility of imagining a future where life, not capital, is the focus.”

The decree also reportedly cuts 5,000 government jobs and folds the Ministry of Women and Human Rights into the Ministry of Government. The Ministry of Women and Human Rights deals with issues faced by Indigenous communities and previously worked with the U.N. on land evictions and support for Indigenous girls.

In a statement, WWF argued that neglecting the environment will hurt Ecuador’s economy in the long run. Climate change has already exacerbated the drought contributing to its energy crisis, and oil spills in the Amazon cost millions to clean up.

“In an economy highly dependent on the services provided by nature — such as water, soil fertility, climate regulation, and the provision of clean energy — this is not only environmentally risky but also economically unsustainable,” its statement said.

The office of President Noboa didn’t respond to a request for comment for this story.

A package of laws

President Noboa has introduced several other controversial bills in recent months, many of them labeled as “economically urgent,” requiring the National Assembly to vote on them within 30 days.

On July 14, his protected areas law went into effect, establishing a new service to oversee conservation decisions and improve coordination between park guards and the armed forces. Some environmental groups celebrated the law as a more efficient and autonomous approach to managing protected areas. Others said the law’s emphasis on tourism and development, especially through public-private partnerships, could prioritize the economy over conservation.

This week, President Noboa’s other “economically urgent” bill was sent to the National Assembly, proposing tighter controls on irregular capital flows, including money laundering and tax evasion. The bill is advertised as a tool against organized crime, but appears to focus on civil society organizations, NGOs and community groups.

The bill will require organizations to meet conflict-of-interest protocols, publish financial reports, and register in a mandatory government database.

Critics say the law could be used to persecute human rights and environmental defenders, and create obstacles for groups trying to combat new threats to protected areas in the wake of the elimination of the Ministry of Environment.

Multiple groups have called on the government to protect the budget allocated to conservation and implement policies to ensure the autonomy of national environmental authorities. They also say that NGOs, academics and Indigenous communities need to work together to protect Ecuador’s environmental rights.

“It is critical that the international community — especially the bodies of the Universal and Inter-American human rights systems — remain vigilant and remind all Ecuadorian institutions of their obligations to protect and uphold human rights, exercise due diligence, and ensure the safety of defenders of human rights, communities, and nature,” human rights lawyer María Espinosa said in an Amazon Frontlines statement.

Banner image: Waorani protest against oil and gas exploration on their territory in Quito, Ecuador. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

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