Directing the subsidies that the Government is analyzing in order to get more funds to finance the internal armed conflict would reach the gas targeting. This was announced this Monday, January 29, in a radio interview by the Minister of Economy and Finance, Juan Carlos Vega Malo.

The minister reminded that gasoline, diesel and liquefied petroleum gas are subsidized in Ecuador and indicated that it is difficult to target in that order. In the local market, a gas cylinder for home use costs USD 1.60, but the actual price varies according to the international price between USD 15 and USD 24. In 2022, according to official data, LPG subsidy was the second for which the state allocated the most resources with 916 million dollars (20.09%) after the automotive sector which was allocated 2,909 million dollars (63.8%).

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“We can do things that are so simple, but at the same time so complex… when I lived alone, when I was a student, a tank of fuel would last me up to 3 months. I believe a family could have one tank of subsidized gas per month.”

Vega Malo warned that these are matters that must be discussed and worked on very carefully so as not to affect citizens, pointing out that in other countries in the region, due to environmental issues, they cook with wood, and because of cheaper gas. In Ecuador, “everyone cooks here on gas and the showers also use gas.”

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The minister concluded by indicating that “we have to understand all the connotations of targeting subsidies, social and environmental effects, but the problem is that in the country the central government spends 3.2 billion dollars, a lot of money”.